Thyroid Autoimmune Disease: Could Asbestos be a Factor?

One of the most mysterious and hard-to-treat class of illnesses, autoimmune disorders occur when the body's illness defense system begins to attack itself. For reasons that remain largely unclear, the immune system goes haywire, raising its defenses against its own organs and tissues.

Diagnoses of thyroid autoimmune disorders have increased in recent years. In diseases like Graves disease and Hashimoto's thyroiditis, the body fails to recognize the thyroid as one of its own glands, and instead begins to attack it as if it were a foreign intruder. As result of this onslaught from the immune system, the thyroid's ability to function properly is impaired. The result is either a sluggish or hyperactive thyroid. This, in turn, can cause a whole host of related health problems.

The mystery of what causes autoimmune disorders has puzzled doctors and scientists for centuries. What prompts the body to fail to recognize its own tissues or organs? Over the last few decades, dozens of theories explaining this strange phenomenon have been developed and tested. However, no conclusive answer has yet been found.

One of the most plausible theories that have been advanced to explain autoimmune disorders contends that environmental factors may interfere with the body's ability to recognize its own tissues and organs. According to this theory, environmental pollutants and contaminants may play a major role in autoimmune disorders. One of the chief suspected culprits is asbestos, a compound long used for insulation in building and construction.

Some recent research appears to support this account. This week, we'll review the results of a study that explored a possible connection between asbestos, autoimmune disorders, and thyroid health.

The study, which may prove to be one of the most significant breakthroughs in the decades-long quest to uncover the origins of autoimmune disorders, was published in a recent issue of the peer-reviewed health journal, Environmental Health Perspectives.

Conducted by researchers at the Center for Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Montana, the study involved in-depth assessment and health profiling of approximately 50 residents in the community of Libby, Montana. As the result of years of vermiculite mining, manufacturing, storage, and distribution, the town is so severely contaminated with asbestos that is received official designation as a federal Superfund site in 2002.

The thorough health assessments that were performed on the 50+ Libby residents who participated in the study were consistent with many of the known problems that are linked to long-term asbestos exposure. For example, over 75% of the study's participants displayed evidence of asbestos-related lung problems and respiratory disorders.

However, in addition to the long-known health problems associated with asbestos exposure, the researchers also identified a number of lesser-known risks. The most significant finding was that over 25% of the asbestos-exposed participants had elevated levels of antinuclear antibodies in their bloodstreams. These antibodies are often found in people who suffer from autoimmune disorders, such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, thyroid autoimmune disorders, and many others.

The longer an individual had been exposed to environmental asbestos, the higher the level of bloodstream antinuclear antibodies they were likely to have. It was also found that people with more severe asbestos-related lung problems had significantly higher rates of the antinuclear antibodies in their bloodstream.

The researchers acknowledged that these findings represented just one small part of the larger autoimmunity puzzle that has been confounding researchers for years. However, the potentially groundbreaking implications of the incontestable link between asbestos exposure and autoimmunity risks cannot be ignored. Still, additional studies are necessary in order to confirm and expand upon these results.

The next phase of the study, which will continue to be coordinated through the Center for Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Montana, will seek to measure the rate of autoimmune diseases among Libby residents who have a history of asbestos exposure. The findings drawn from the ongoing research will help clarify whether a causal relationship between asbestos exposure and autoimmunity does, in fact, exist.

If you're concerned about the way that asbestos exposure could impact your thyroid function and your overall health, talk to your doctor for a personalized risk assessment. Please be sure to check back each week for more of the thyroid health news you need.