The thyroid gland is a small organ that’s located in the front of the neck, wrapped around the windpipe (trachea). It’s shaped like a butterfly, smaller in the middle with two wide wings that extend around the side of the throat.
The thyroid is a gland. We have glands throughout our body, where they create and release substances that help the body do a specific thing. The thyroid makes hormones that help control many vital functions of the body.

Millions of people have thyroid diseases. Most of them are women. If you have a thyroid disease, your body uses energy more slowly or quickly than it should. A thyroid gland that is not active enough, called hypothyroidism, is far more common. It can make you gain weight, feel fatigued and have difficulty dealing with cold temperatures. If your thyroid is too active, it makes more thyroid hormones than your body needs. That condition is hyperthyroidism. Too much thyroid hormone can make you lose weight, speed up your heart rate and make you very sensitive to heat. There are many causes for both conditions. Treatment involves trying to reset your body's metabolism to a normal rate.