Pattern of Serum Vitamin A, Zinc, and Magnesium in Patients with Abnormal Thyroid Hormones

Abstract

Introduction: Thyroid hormones perform various metabolic functions, including regulating lipids, carbohydrates, protein, electrolytes, and mineral metabolism. Some micronutrients, including zinc and magnesium, have been implicated in the accurate functioning of some enzymes involved in thyroid metabolic function. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the levels of retinol (vitamin A), zinc, and magnesium in adult males and females with abnormal thyroid function. The secondary aim was to determine the correlation between thyroid hormones and vitamin A, zinc, and magnesium in study participants. Methods: This case-control study involved male and female subjects with abnormal levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), triiodothyronine (T3), and thyroxine (T4). TSH, T3, T4, Vitamin A, zinc, and magnesium were analyzed from the serum of test and control participants. The data was analyzed using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Statistics (version 22.0). Results: This study included 300 male and female participants, divided into three groups: 100 male and female participants with hyperthyroidism, 100 male and female participants with hypothyroidism, and 100 healthy male and female participants (the control group) with normal thyroid hormone levels. Test participants were selected using stratified random sampling technique. The results obtained showed that serum zinc levels in Test subjects with hyperthyroidism (1.19 ± 0.6) were significantly lower than in control (2.27 ± 0.7; p=0.00), but significantly higher than in subjects with hypothyroidism (0.92 ± 0.4; p=0.00). Magnesium levels in Test subjects with hyperthyroidism (1.19±0.38) were significantly lower than in control (2.09±0.36; p=0.00), but significantly higher than in Test subjects with hypothyroidism (1.31±0.22; p=0.00). Vitamin A levels in Test subjects with hyperthyroidism (255.8±70.3) were significantly lower than in control (342.9±57.9; p=in 0.00), but significantly higher than subjects with hypothyroidism (154.2±44.5; p=0.00). Subjects with hypothyroidism had significantly lower vitamin A than in control (p=0.00). There was a negative correlation between thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and serum zinc levels in Test subjects (r=-0.3; p), a negative correlation between thyroid stimulating Hormone (TSH) and serum vitamin A (r= -0.6), and a significant positive correlation between serum zinc levels and serum vitamin A in study subjects (r=0.4). Conclusion: From our findings, it could be seen that deficiency of Zn Mg and Vitamin A had minimal involvement in hypothyroid and hyperthyroid disorders. Further studies should be carried out with a large sample size to depict the exact roles of these trace elements and vitamins in the disease-causing mechanism of thyroid abnormalities.