The Hashimoto’s – COVID Connection

The COVID-19 spike protein has been linked to several autoimmune conditions, including Hashimoto’s low thyroid. Depending on the study, Hashimoto’s diagnoses have climbed by 30 to 40% since the pandemic began.

One study followed COVID survivors and found their thyroid antibody levels were roughly double those in people who hadn’t had COVID — nearly 16% compared to almost 8%.

Antibodies are markers that show your immune system has started attacking the thyroid.

How a virus starts an autoimmune process

COVID has one unique aspect that most viruses don’t: the thyroid gland carries the same ACE2 receptor the virus uses to break into cells. While the immune system is busy fighting the virus, it can start attacking thyroid tissue right along with it.

That said, COVID isn’t the only virus that does this. Multiple viruses have been tied to multiple autoimmune conditions over the years. What matters more than the specific virus is how it primes the immune system to turn on the body in the first place.

One reason: the inflammation created while fighting off an infection can kick off an autoimmune process that doesn’t stop when the virus is gone. That is why following an anti-inflammatory diet and lifestyle can help lower the risk of these mechanisms when you get sick.

Also, some viral proteins look almost identical to thyroid proteins, a mechanism called molecular mimicry. When the immune system goes after the virus, it can mistake thyroid tissue for the enemy and attack that too.

What about the vaccine question

Patients ask constantly and usually get brushed off. If the spike protein is the trigger, it doesn’t matter much how it got into the body.

A UK survey found 17 cases of subacute thyroiditis after vaccination, onset around 14.5 days. A review of 21 reports found 57 cases of Graves’ disease. A case series found thyroid eye disease showing up 3 to 20 days post-dose.

Individual cases are real even when population-wide studies don’t show a broad increase. That’s not a reason to dismiss a woman whose symptoms started two weeks after a dose, and it’s also not a reason to claim vaccines are secretly causing an epidemic.

Stay objective on both sides.

What to ask for if you think you might have Hashimoto’s

Most doctors only order TSH, and it’s the last number to move in an autoimmune thyroid process. Ask for TPO antibodies and thyroglobulin antibodies instead. Those show whether your immune system is actively attacking the gland. Get free T3 and free T4 checked too.

Repeat the antibody tests in six to twelve months. A single normal result is just a snapshot of a process that’s still moving.

Antibodies can stay elevated for years while the gland compensates by pumping out more hormone. That stretch of time is the most useful window you’ll get, because it’s when stabilizing blood sugar, correcting vitamin D, calming down overall immune load, and repairing gut barrier function still have something left to protect.

Once too much of the gland has been destroyed, getting on thyroid hormone replacement becomes non-negotiable. Every cell in the body needs thyroid hormone, including the ones in your brain.

If you got sick during COVID and never fully bounced back, an antibody panel may be the next right step.

Want help getting to the bottom of your symptoms? Reach out to RedRiver Health and Wellness Clinics for a consultation.

References

1. Rossini A, Cassibba S, Perticone F, et al. Increased prevalence of autoimmune thyroid disease after COVID-19: a single-center, prospective study. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023;14:1126683.
2. COVID-19 pandemic and thyroid diseases. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2026;17:1784314.
3. Messova AM, Ganiyeva I, Abdrakhmanova ST, et al. Autoimmune thyroid diseases after COVID-19 infection: a systematic review of clinical manifestation and outcomes. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2026;23(6):689.
4. Bennet WM, Elamin A, Newell-Price JD. Subacute thyroiditis following COVID-19 vaccination: case report and Society for Endocrinology survey. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2023.
5. Triantafyllidis KK, Giannos P, Stathi D, Kechagias KS. Graves’ disease following vaccination against SARS-CoV-2: a systematic review of the reported cases. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2022;13:938001.
6. Gorshtein A, Turjeman A, Duskin-Bitan H, Leibovici L, Robenshtok E. Graves’ disease following COVID-19 vaccination: a population-based, matched case-control study. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2024;109(2):e508-e512.
7. Thyroid eye disease following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination: experience of a case series. Vaccines (Basel). 2026;14(1):37.