Hashimoto’s Disease

Hashimoto’s disease is an autoimmune condition that can cause hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid). It’s a lifelong (chronic) condition.

Your thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland located at the front of your neck under your skin. It’s a part of your endocrine system and releases thyroid hormones.

Your thyroid’s main job is to control the speed of your metabolism. This is the process of how your body transforms the food you consume into energy. It’s common to mainly think of metabolism in terms of weight gain or weight loss. But this process affects every organ in your body, including your heart and brain.

In most cases of Hashimoto’s disease, your thyroid can’t produce enough thyroid hormone for your body. This slows down your metabolism and causes a range of symptoms.

The condition is named after Dr. Hakaru Hashimoto, who identified it in 1912. Other names for Hashimoto’s disease include:

• Hashimoto thyroiditis.
• Chronic autoimmune thyroiditis.
• Lymphocytic thyroiditis.

How common is Hashimoto’s disease?

Hashimoto’s disease is common. It affects about 5 in 100 people in the United States.

Hashimoto’s disease is the most common cause of hypothyroidism in countries with widely available iodized salt and other iodine-enriched foods. Iodine deficiency is the most common cause in other countries.

Who does Hashimoto’s disease affect?

Anyone at any age can develop Hashimoto’s disease. But women and people assigned female at birth (AFAB) are 10 times more likely to get it than men and people assigned male at birth (AMAB). Diagnosis most commonly occurs between the ages of 30 to 50 for people AFAB.