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Overactive Thyroid Symptoms in Men

Neha Joshi
Read this story to know all the hyperthyroidism symptoms that exist in men and how you can find out whether someone close to you is actually suffering from this illness.
The state of an overactive thyroid in the body is known as hyperthyroidism and is known to exist in both, men and women. This is the opposite of hypothyroidism, where the thyroid gland works slower than the normal, expected rate. Hyperthyroidism is also commonly known as Graves' disease.
Though women have more chances of having an overactive thyroid, men too have known to have hyperthyroidism. According to a certain British study by BUPA, one in every 50 women is diagnosed of hyperthyroidism, whereas the figures for men are one in every 500.

8 Overactive Thyroid Symptoms in Men

Impotence

Impotence is the only male-specific symptom. Usually, infertility is a common symptom in both men and women, but is mostly always reversible after the thyroid problem is treated. Due to such reasons, it is always advised that you get yourself routinely checked to know about your thyroid levels. This helps in early diagnosis.

Heat Intolerance

Our body and the system is continuously in an active state. If you have hyperthyroidism, you will notice that you sweat more than usual, due to your overactive thyroid. You will thus, be intolerant to heat. Excessive exposure to places of more sunlight might result in weakness.

Increased Bowel Movements

A state of hyperthyroidism will increase your bowel movements, because it increases your rate of metabolism. There is no such thing as a normal bowel movement, but three times a day to three times a week is considered alright. Less than that we can term as constipation and more than that as diarrhea. So, judging by what is normal for you, if you see an increase in your bowel movements.

Rapid Heart Rate

Rapid heart rate, irregular heart beats, and palpitations are some of the most common complaints of people suffering from hyperthyroidism. These symptoms too are a part of the general system over drive, where everything starts functioning faster and at a higher rate than necessary. This may further result into restlessness and impatient behavior.

Agitation, Nervousness and Tremor

A person suffering from hyperthyroidism will also have agitation, nervousness, and tremor as a part of all the overactive thyroid symptoms. This is again due to the system overdrive. You may tend to get angry more often and suddenly nervous about a particular thing. These feelings of anger and nervousness are common with this illness and should be looked at as signs and symptoms.

Weight loss

Another overactive thyroid symptom that is related to increased metabolism and bowel problems is weight loss. Some people may lose just a few kilos, whereas some people may significantly lose a lot of weight depending upon the seriousness of hyperthyroidism.
As your bowel movements go on increasing or if they already have, you are going to have less food kept in your body as most of it is passing out. This, finally leads to weight loss, a symptom that is again reversible after treating the overactive thyroid.

Fatigue

As we have discussed before, hyperthyroidism increases your metabolism rate. Due to this, your bowel movements will see an increase and you might notice some weight loss as well. Now, on the same lines, due to insufficient food available to convert into energy, you might feel some weakness and a little bit of fatigue.

Decreased Concentration

Due to all the above-mentioned symptoms and conditions, a person with hyperthyroidism will find it very difficult to concentrate on a particular thing or task. The system drive will always make the person restless and less calm.
You might find it difficult to work on a particular thing or task and may find no particular reason behind it. Decrease in concentration too, is another symptom.
Always remember that even though on a much smaller scale, men are still affected by overactive thyroid problems and should get them checked as soon as they notice a few symptoms. Hyperthyroidism can be controlled with certain medicines which you can take after consulting your doctor.