GOITER – Ayurvedic Treatment, Diet, Exercises, Yoga & Pranayama

Goiter is the abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland. Both underactive and overactive thyroid glands may produce goiter.

• SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF GOITER
• CAUSES OF GOITER
• PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF GOITER
• DIAGNOSIS OF GOITER
• TREATMENTS FOR GOITER
• PROGNOSIS OF GOITER
• COMPLICATIONS OF GOITER
• GOITER  AND AYURVEDA
• NIDANA- AYURVEDIC CAUSES OF GOITER
• PURVAROOPAM- AYURVEDIC PREMONITORY SYMPTOMS OF GOITER
• SAMPRAPTI – AYURVEDIC PATHOGENESIS OF GOITER
• LAKSHANA- AYURVEDIC SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF GOITER
• AYURVEDIC PROGNOSIS OF GOITER
• CHIKITSA- AYURVEDIC TREATMENT FOR GOITER
• AYURVEDIC SAMANA TREATMENT FOR GOITER
• COMMONLY USED AYURVEDIC MEDICINES FOR GOITER
• HOME REMEDIES FOR GOITER
• DIET AND BEHAVIOUR FOR GOITER
• YOGA FOR GOITER
• RESEARCH PAPERS OF AYURVEDIC MANAGEMENT OF GOITER

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF GOITER

• Swelling in the neck
• Coughing
• Difficulty in swallowing
• Breathing difficulty 

CAUSES OF GOITER

• Iodine deficiency
• Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
• Grave’s disease
• Certain medications

PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF GOITER

Deficiency of thyroid hormone leads to increased TSH production. High level of TSH causes increased cellularity and hyperplasia of the thyroid gland in an attempt to normalize thyroid hormone levels. If this process is sustained, a goiter is established.

DIAGNOSIS OF GOITER

• Diagnosis through clinical features
• Blood tests – to measure the level of T3, T4 and TSH (Thyroid-stimulating hormone)
• Biopsy
• Ultrasonography

TREATMENTS FOR GOITER

• Oral administration of synthetic thyroid hormone in the underactive thyroid gland
• Supportive care
• Radioactive iodine therapy
• Antithyroid agent and Hormone
• Thyroid removal and Partial thyroidectomy

PROGNOSIS OF GOITER

• Goiter is manageable with medications and surgery. Untreated goiter leads to complications.

COMPLICATIONS OF GOITER      

• Compression of the trachea
•  Lymphoma

GOITER AND AYURVEDA

• In Ayurveda,goiter is similar to ‘galaganda’.

NIDANA- AYURVEDIC CAUSES OF GOITER

• Excess consumption of ununctuous, dry, hard to digest food
• Suppression of natural urges
• Dysfunction of agni
• Derangement in ahara and vihara

PURVAROOPAM- AYURVEDIC PREMONITORY SYMPTOMS OF GOITER

• Swelling  in the neck

SAMPRAPTI – AYURVEDIC PATHOGENESIS OF GOITER

• Hypo functioning of jataragni affect dhatu agni leads to symptoms of hypothyroidism, one among the major cause for goiter.

LAKSHANA- AYURVEDIC SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF GOITER  

• Thyroid enlargement – galaganda

AYURVEDIC PROGNOSIS OF GOITER

• Yapya roga – symptoms are manageable with Ayurvedic medicines
• If it causes dysphagia and breathing difficulty then difficult to cure

CHIKITSA- AYURVEDIC TREATMENT FOR GOITER

AYURVEDIC SAMANA TREATMENT FOR GOITER

• Treatment for agnimandhyam
• Treatment for medovridhi
• Gandharva hasthadi kashayam
• Chiravilwadi kashayam
• Varanadi kashayam
• Laghumalini vasant vati
• Arogyavardhini vati
• Abharak bhasma
• Kanchanara guggulu – galaganda  

COMMONLY USED AYURVEDIC MEDICINES FOR GOITER

Internal administration

• Gandharva hasthadi kashayam
• Chiravilwadi kashayam
• Varanadi kashayam
• Gayathriyadi Kashayam
• Hamsapadadi Kashayam
• Laghumalini vasant vati
• Arogyavardhini vati
• Abharak bhasma
• Kanchanara guggulu

HOME REMEDIES FOR GOITER

• Exercise regularly
• Take an appropriate quantity of fluids

DIET AND BEHAVIOUR FOR GOITER

• Avoid food items which produce dosha imbalance like cold and dry food, hard to digest. Because dosha imbalance aggravates the symptoms.
• Consume easily digestible food items
• Avoid more oily foods, junk foods, cabbage, cauliflower, soybeans, peanut

YOGA FOR GOITER

• Nadi Shuddi Pranayam    – cleans the respiratory passage and get relief from the breathing difficulty associated with goiter

The patient needs to be seated in a meditative posture with the head and spine erect, with the body relaxed. The patient has to close his one nostril (e.g. left nostril if using the right hand and vice versa) with the thumb and exhale completely through the other nostril. Again, he will have to breathe in deeply through the other nostril while the opposite nostril is still closed with the thumb.                              

• Sarvangasana
• Sethubandhasana

RESEARCH PAPERS OF AYURVEDIC MANAGEMENT OF GOITER

1. A Successful Case Study on Ayurvedic Management of Hypothyrodism

2.     A clinical study to evaluate the role of Triphaladya Guggulu along with Punarnavadi Kashaya in the management of hypothyroidism

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6287405/

source https://ayurvedapc.blog/2021/11/18/goiter-ayurvedic-treatment-diet-exercises-yoga-pranayama/