Thyroid Hormones are Essential for Normal Life

The thyroid gland is an organ located in the front of the neck just below the Adam's apple. The thyroid gland is butterfly-shaped and consists of two lobes located on either side of the trachea. A normal thyroid gland cannot be felt by pressing a finger on the neck, nor can it be seen externally. The function of the thyroid gland is to produce hormones whose task is to regulate the body's metabolism so that it controls the work of the heart, muscles and digestion, brain development and bone maintenance. The proper functioning of the thyroid depends to a large extent on a good supply of iodine from the diet. Thyroid hormone-producing cells are specialized in extracting and absorbing iodine from the blood and incorporating it into thyroid hormones.