The thyroid is one of the largest endocrine glands in the body. This gland is found in the neck inferior to the thyroid cartilage, known as the Adam's apple in men, and at approximately the same level as the cricoid cartilage. Thyroid nodules are solid or fluid-filled lumps that form within your thyroid gland. Most thyroid nodules are noncancerous and do not cause any symptoms. You generally don’t even get to know of the existence of a thyroid nodule until it comes up during a check-up by your doctor. Some thyroid nodules can become large enough for you to feel them and see them at the base of your neck and they press on your windpipe, making it uncomfortable or difficult to swallow. In some cases the nodules produce a high amount of thyroxin causing problems such as sudden, unexplained weight loss, nervousness, rapid or irregular heartbeat.
Although thyroid nodules are seldom cancerous or malignant, a nodule is more likely to be cancerous if it grows quickly or feels hard, causes you to become hoarse or to have trouble swallowing or breathing, causes enlarged lymph nodes under your jaw or in your neck. It's not known what causes most nodules to develop, but some of the factors that could have an effect are a lack of iodine in your diet, Hashimoto's disease, a genetic defect of receptors that release thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), radiation treatments to your head or neck during childhood. Several types of nodules can develop in your thyroid gland such as a colloid nodule, follicular adenoma, thyroid cyst, inflammatory nodule, thyroid cancer, multinodular goitre or hyper functioning thyroid nodule. Depending on the type of thyroid nodule you have, your treatment options may include watchful waiting, thyroid hormone suppression therapy, radioactive iodine or even surgery.
You can try the juice of ginseng and make sure it is not sweetened. All raw foods that are yellow in color may be eaten for a healthy thyroid gland -this would include vegetables like pumpkins and carrots. Green leafy vegetables must be eaten to ensure the proper functioning of the thyroid gland. You can also eat fish in order to help with this condition. You should avoid white flour, white sugar, fried or greasy foods, preserves and condiments, caffeine and alcohol. It is important that your sister’s diet should be rich in iodine found in asparagus, cabbage, garlic, onion, oats, pineapple, whole rice, tomatoes, watercress and strawberries. Emotional stress should be avoided and it is very important to get adequate sleep.