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Deep sorrow and Condolences–Dr. John C. Lowe has passed on.

With great sorrow and condolences to all his family, I want to announce that Tammy Lowe, wife of John C. Lowe, has announced the passing of this beloved man and courageous champion for better thyroid care, Dr. John C. Lowe.

Please offer your condolences and praise of Dr. Lowe and all his accomplishments in the name of better thyroid care, by commenting on this blog. I will alert Tammy to it. If you are reading this via the Email Notification, click on then title of the post to put you back on the actual blog, and comment there.

A Special Tribute to my Husband,
Dr. John C. Lowe
1/22/1946- 1/9/2012
by Tammy Lowe

It is with deep sadness and a broken heart that I write this letter to inform you that Dr. John C. Lowe died suddenly January 9, 2012 due to complications following a head injury that he sustained on November 14, 2011.

I’ve spent the last few days searching for the right words to share this news and to honor the man that I have known and loved for the majority of my life, but the words seem so small and insubstantial to the man that he was. One only has to read the many pages of www.drlowe.com, www.thyroidscience.com, and www.thyroidscience.us to know that John’s passion and dedication to the field of thyroidology and fibromyalgia was his reason for getting up every day and spending countless hours boldly offering his strong opinions in the field. There were no vacations in our life together, no tee times on the golf course, no boating on the beautiful waters or walks on the sandy beaches in Florida where we live. His happiest moments were spent at the desk he loved, surrounded by his many wellread, tattered books, and typing the words that would eventually make their way to the websites for his readers to find them. They say a genius is someone of great intelligence and I do believe that John was a genius in his field. His greatest magnum opus, of course, was The Metabolic Treatment of Fibromyalgia, the textbook that took him 10 years to write. Imagine the dedication to complete such a task.

In the final months since his head injury – John was able to accomplish several things despite impaired vision in his right eye and a broken collar bone. He proudly completed a forward to a book titled ‘Recovering with T3‘ by Paul Robinson and a forward for the book, The Hormone Zone, by Dr. John Robinson. He also conducted an interview for Dr. Mark Swanson that will soon be published. And finally, he was also working to complete his own book, ‘Safely Getting Well With Thyroid Hormone’ and was preparing to have it in print within a few weeks.

The website’s will remain as they are. His compassionate words will still be there. I will try to find the newsletter that he was working on and send it (incomplete or finished by my hand). The Thyro-gold will also continue to be available. John believed in it so strongly. I will try to find the clinical trial results and post them for the benefit of those who rely on the product. There are so many documents that he was writing that remain unfinished but I will do my best to sort through them and share them when I can.

What final words can I offer to you all at this sad time? For those of you who knew him personally, who spoke with him on the phone, who met him face-to-face, shook his hand or offered a hug in gratitude – you will join our daughter Michele and me in sorrow as we face this tragic loss together. For those of you who never had the privilege to know my husband personally, but read his writings, just know that he believed in his research and hoped that someday the TSH testing would be abandoned as the standard practice for thyroid health and that healthcare would return to the science-based treatment that it should be.

Remember the scientist that he was and continue to share his work with others who need it. Remember his voice for those
who felt they were never heard when they were in need of direction. Remember the extraordinary man that he was and help me maintain his everlasting presence.

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T3 to heal adrenals, Selenium, liver–all important info for thyroid patients!

Though this post was written in 2012, it has been updated to the current day and time and it still applicable. Enjoy!

HOW T3, DOSED A CERTAIN WAY, CAN REVERSE YOUR ADRENAL FATIGUE, says Paul Robinson!

UK’s Hashimoto’s patient Paul Robinson has been a successful T3-only treated patient for more than 13 years, especially because he never did well on either synthetic T4, nor on the combination of T4/T3. And he learned so much about himself that he compiled all the information on T3 dosing in his book called Recovering With T3: My Journey from Hypothyroidism to Good Health Using the T3 Thyroid Hormone.

But what I especially find interesting is how he used T3 to cure his flagging adrenal function rather than HC (hydrocortisone). And here is a short summary of key points. He calls this The Circadian T3 Method, aka the CT3M.

  1. Most of the day’s cortisol is made in the last four hours of sleep, which means your adrenals work their hardest during that time. And like any cell in your body which need T3 to function well, so do your adrenal cells…especially during the time they work the hardest.
  2. With the above in mind, it made sense to Paul that if adrenals are struggling with low cortisol, they clearly need T3 in that early morning 4-hour window in order to function better. How did he do it? He moved his first T3 dose to one hour before he would normally wake up, held it for a few weeks to see the results, went earlier another half hour, held it for a few weeks to see the effect…and so on. He obtained a lot of data to ascertain what was happening–urine cortisol, blood pressure, pulse, etc. He found that the time which gave his adrenals the biggest boost, and thus better function, was 3 1/2 hours before he normally wakes up. But he feels that others might find that anywhere in the first three hours of that four hour window, and it’s important to move slowly within that area to find the right time for you based on data.
  3. This protocol needs certain supplements, which include high potency B complex, B12, Vit. C, Vit. D and a good multi mineral. He goes into detail in his book.
  4. This protocol would not work if someone has Addison’s Disease, Hypopituitary or Diabetes…and may not work if you have pre-Diabetes blood sugar issues. It’s blood sugar in the cells that reacts positively with T3.

There is much more detail than the above. And Paul makes it clear that this treatment for adrenal fatigue and proven low cortisol should only be done in your relationship with your doctor.

UPDATE: many patients have reported that though the CT3M did wonders bringing up the morning cortisol, it didn’t help afternoon cortisol at all, and for some, didn’t help noon’s low cortisol. Yes, there are some who feel it’s helped all day, but also a large body who said it only helped morning. So we concluded that though it’s great for that low morning, you may have to use other supports for other low cortisol times. Also, the CT3M is excellent to help get off HC! Many are off in a month or less!

SELENIUM, EVEN WITH HIGH RT3, IS A MINERAL YOU NEED!

Check out what thyroid patient Cheryl Alvey has put together about selenium. This is a masterful page!

WHY THYROID PATIENTS NEED HEALTHY LIVER FUNCTION

What happens if your liver isn’t healthy? Transportation is less optimal, and the deiodination type 1 will change to type 3, meaning T4 will convert to excess RT3! And guess what can make your liver unhealthy? Continued hypothyroidism, which happens to all too many who are on T4-only medications, or those left undiagnosed due to the TSH. Hypothyroidism is worsened with adrenal problems, and low iron. And liver function can become unhealthy or stressed if you eat poorly You can read more about all this here.

In the meantime, what can one do to promote better liver function? Milk thistle is one highly recommended way by many (use Milk Thistle supps from the seeds to avoid estrogenic affect). Also look into dandelion root /leaf, Sassafras, Burdock, Goldenseal and Yellow Doc root, Red Clover and Echinacea root. Ask someone knowledgeable at your local health food store.

PATIENT YOU-TUBE STTM VIDEOS

See thyroid patient Sam Aliyev’s latest YouTube video. If you do one about the message of STTM, let me know and I’ll post about it.

**Has STTM benefitted you?? Want to Pay It Forward? Go here.

**Come over to the STTM Facebook page and “Like” it for daily inspiration and information!

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Why iron is so important, milk thistle for RT3, and send the revised STTM book as a Christmas present!

NOTE: though this post was originally written in 2012, it has been updated to the present day and time! Janie, hypothyroid patient and site creator

IRON AND ITS IMPORTANCE

It all too common with hypothyroid patients: finding themselves with low iron levels. I probably had insufficient iron my entire adult life, remembering that my doctors always told me I was borderline, yet nothing was done about it. So when I finally got on desiccated thyroid and got optimal (which can also happen with use of T4 and T3) and my iron needs increased due to better health, I finally fell into true anemia, and twice. Miserable, let me tell you. I was breathless, achy, depressed and had horrific fatigue.

And why is iron so important?

  • Iron carries oxygen from your tissues to your lungs (so if iron is low, you can be breathless and your heartrate has to go up in response to less oxygen. Link here.)
  • Iron helps raise dopamine and serotonin in your brain (so if iron is low, you can feel depression or hyperactive i.e. attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Link here.)
  • Iron assists with the cortisol secretion after ACTH stimulation (so if your iron is low, the cortisol secretion is decreased, lowering glucose in your cells, and that might cause the pooling of T3 in your blood. Link here.)
  • Iron promotes good conversion of thyroid hormones T4 to T3 (so if iron is low, your storage iron T4 will build too high. Link here.)
  • Iron balances your autonomic nervous sytem (so if your iron is low, you can end up in a frequent state of fight-or-flight with accompanying adrenaline surges and nervousness due to heightened sympathic activity. Link here.)
  • Iron protects women from breast tumor growth (so if your iron is low, a benign tumor can become a malignant cancer tumor. Link here.)
  • Iron improves your immune system (so if your iron is low, you are most susceptible to infections and illness. Link here.)
  • Iron supports brain cell health (so if your iron is low, you can have brain cell death contributing to dementia and possibly Alzheimers. Link here.)

How to discern if your iron is too low

We used to think testing one’s storage iron called ferritin was enough. But it’s not enough! Yes, it can be low with low iron, but it can be low with HIGH iron!! So we learned that we need four labs at the minimum : ferritin, % saturation, serum iron, and TIBC. Go here to read what we look for in our iron results.

Raising poor iron levels

Hypothyroid patients tend to “dry up” and that also causes lowered levels of hydrochloric acid in the stomach, which lowers absorption. For better absorption, try adding 1 tsp to 1 tbsp of Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar to each large glass of water or juice you use to swallow your iron pills, or use Betaine, which is an OTC hydrochloric acid supplement.

To learn more, go to the following page. And for even more details, read the Odds and Ends chapter in the revised STTM book.

CAN LIVER CLEANSES/SUPPORTS HELP IMPROVE YOUR RT3 RATIO??

Because of low iron or adrenal dysfunction, many thyroid patients have found themselves with high levels of Reverse T3…or more common, a poor RT3 ratio. And too much RT3 can mean the thyroid hormone T3 won’t adequately work in your cells, and you can feel miserable. The solution for most has been to switch to T3-only, but that can have a host of difficulties. It’s not easy to dose with T3 alone.

Recently, though, patients are discovering an alternative way to lower one’s excess RT3: the use of a good liver cleanse/support product, and most especially those with the herb called Milk Thistle. It’s an herb which, for hundreds of years, has been used as a liver tonic. In supplements, it’s the milk thistle seeds which are used because they contain silymarin–the powerful part of the herb which does the trick. And doses in the 400 mg’s of milk thistle extract supplements seem to be doing the trick, say patients who are reporting on it, taking it twice a day at 200 and 200 minimum. Some studies state you can go higher, if needed. Be careful with its use, as it can lower iron levels to some degree. So we tent to be on a small amount of iron supplementation when taking milk thistle. You can work with your doctor on this.

HO! HO! HO! SEND THE UPDATED REVISION STTM BOOK or Hashimoto’s: Taming the Beast TO A FRIEND OR LOVED ONE FOR CHRISTMAS OR THE NEW YEAR! It can be the BEST gift they will ever receive, since they are Patient-to-patient books! laughinggrapepublishing.com/

NOTE: if you are reading this via the email notification, and you want to comment on it, you’ll need to click on the title of this blog post to take you directly to the blog post. Then scroll down to comment. For those reading this on the actual blog, sign up to the left under the links.

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Dr. Skinner has been exonerated! Plus how to survive stress with adrenal fatigue!

IMPRESSIVE GOOD THYROID NEWS!

After a grueling week by the United Kingdom’s General Medical Council (GMC) , it was decided that the UK’s most renowned thyroid practitioner, Dr. Gordon P. Skinner, should have all his restrictions lifted and his Fitness to Practice restored!

On November 11th, 2007, the GMC had decided that the beloved Dr Gordon Skinner was not fit to practice, simply because in 2005, he dared to listen to and dose by a patient’s clinically-presented thyroid symptoms rather than her TSH labwork–the latter which fell in the erroneous normal range. Even more dastardly, felt the GMC, Skinner was going to treat the patient without a referral letter from her GP, and may have failed to contact the GP. Heaven Forbid!!

Says a recent statement from TPA-UK:

The GMC have agreed that Dr Skinner was not acting dangerously in initiating treatment with thyroid hormone replacement for those patients who had normal thyroid function tests but who suffered several symptoms and signs of hypothyroidism. They also agreed that for those patients who did not do well on levothyroxine-only therapy, the use of natural desiccated thyroid extract (i.e. Armour Thyroid) was a safe and effective thyroid hormone replacement that doctors could prescribe, even though it remains unlicensed. This is a precedent – and one that the British Thyroid Association are most definitely very unlikely to be happy with.

There’s something huge to learn from this! It’s called PATIENT POWER, my thyroid friends, and what we must always practice in our fight to get far better treatment. Namely, what impressed the staff of the GMC was the sheer volume of the general public who attended the hearings in support of Dr. Skinner. Additionally, there was a nicely bound volume of over 2000 patient citations in support of him.

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SURVIVING STRESSFUL EVENTS EVEN WITH ADRENAL FATIGUE

Having adrenal fatigue with its low cortisol can be a challenge, even while you are on Hydrocortisone for your treatment (HC). So thyroid and adrenal fatigue patient Robin had to learn the hard way how to do something very stressful and still survive, adrenally. After moving to a new house, she created these excellent tips for dealing with any stressful event and preventing an adrenal meltdown:

  1. REST REST REST as much as you possibly can! Just sit and stop moving, give yourself permission to stop “doing” and just BE! Let others do the work.
  2. Don’t be afraid to stress dose with your HC! Remember that a healthy person’s adrenals can provide over 100mg per day when in very stressful circumstances! Of course this is not healthy long-term, but we do what we have to do to survive!
  3. Remember that if you stress dose, you’ll need to start a tapering down by 2.5 mg, holding for several days, then taking off another 2.5, etc until you work back down to your “regular” daily dose–the one that gave you stable Daily Average Temps.
  4. SALT! Drink lots of salt water (or juice–I prefer my salt in watered-down juice or other flavored drinks), salt your food heavily, and even eat lots of salty olives, if you like them! The adrenals thrive in salt, and this can also be important if your aldosterone levels are also sluggish.
  5. Eat lots of protein and fat and try to keep the carbs as low as you can!
  6. Give yourself permission to be a hermit for a while. People can wait for you to return their calls. Just enjoy some quiet and solitude for a while.
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PAYING FORWARD WHAT STTM HAS GIVEN YOU!

Janie began a contract with a top-notch publicist to help get the word out to millions about the problems with T4-only, or for those remaining undiagnosed or undertreated due to the TSH lab test (similar to what Dr. Skinner above tried to avoid for one of his patients). She already has interviews scheduled and more gigs are coming.

But this contract won’t last long–it’s just too expensive for Janie alone. So your help is needed to reach more people, and soon.

Go here and read all about it.

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Get ready to be blown away by the words of this doctor! He criticizes his OWN colleagues, and rightly so!

As mentioned in my previous blog post of November 10th, I frequently get emails from doctors all over the world who appreciate the message of patient experience as expressed on Stop the Thyroid Madness, both the revised book and website. Here is just one more that absolutely blew my mind, as this MD, unlike his ostrich colleagues, keeps his head out of the sand and tells it LIKE IT IS. Again, I will not be mentioning his name. The below is exactly as he wrote it to me. Get ready to be both awed and disgusted!

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In the year 1847, a young Hungarian physician named Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis had a practice of Obstetrics which began to grow by leaps and bounds. Even the Royalty of Hungary began to go to his practice. Why? Because he had the best outcomes.

When he tried to show his collegues his techniques, they simply made fun of him. As his practice continued to flourish, his peers brought him before the medical society and censured him for not adhering to the current practice guidelines.

His crime? Washing his hands before delivering babies. Physicians were offended to think they should wash their hands, and were especially incensed when he could offer no scientific explanation for his intuitive action. Yet, this very simple antiseptic procedure meant that his OB patients did not contact puerpeal fever and die. Puerperal fever was common in mid-1800’s and often fatal.

The censureship did him in with depression and his practice ended when he was only 47 years old….not because he couldn’t practice, but because he literally grieved himself to death watching so many women dying unnecessarily for the sake of current practice guidelines.

It was not until the 1890’s that his methods were fully recognized, even though Oliver Wendell Holmes of Boston, Mass. USA had confirmed the contagiousness of peurperal fever, and Louis Pasteur confirmed the theory about germs.

And today, established scientific and medical opinions continue the same ridiculous travesty.

TSH levels have been set at 0.3-5.1 as normal. Therefore, if your physician screens for thyroid disease and you fall within that range, you are considered normal. Yet, Gay, JC et. al., in the Arch Intern Med 2000: 160: 526-534, showed that the TSH range was 0.45-2.5 for 95% of general population.

In the J Clin Endrocrino Metab Feb 2002 87:(2)489-499 “Serum TSH,T4, and Thyroid Antibodies”, Hollowee JG et.al. found that a normal TSH was 0.05-3.0 and was different for Whites, Hispanics, and Blacks.The NHASANES lll study showed the normal TSH to be 0.3-2.5 (95% of normal reference subjects).

As a doctor, I wrote to my pathologist at the lab I use and asked why his lab had not changed the ‘normal’ values. I will give you his reply:

“I am aware of this idea to lower the reference range for TSH. But there are mixed feelings about this in the medical community, especially with endocrinologists. If, for example,we lowered our reference range for TSH from its current 5.1 to 3.0, we would go reporting about 7% of TSH results being too high to 30%. The last time I looked into this, which was about two years ago (note: this was written in June 24, 2005, which puts the date of last looking in 2003), most endocrinologists that I spoke with were concerned that suddenly having many more patients would be considered “abnormal” and it would be difficult to manage. They felt it would be best to wait until the word spread in the general medical commmunity and literature so that most physicians would be prepared for the inevitable questions from patients and know how to deal with patients suddenly having high TSH’s. On an individual basis, we certainly could give a lower reference range for the TSH, but you should know that this is not the standard practice in the commnity at this time. It may become standard, but right now, it is not.

Thanks, and good luck,
xxx

So there is the problem. Even if TSH alone was used for screening, the answer will be wrong. Many hypothyroid patients misdiagnosed as ‘normal’ are being done so because if the right change were made, the ‘medical establishment’ would be embarassed. This says to me that the ‘medical establishment’ does not care about the patient as much as they do themselves.

Recap: TSH levels were known to be wrong by 2000. Reconfirmed in 2006. Waited at least 5 years to make change and no change made. Something is wrong with the system. Review Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis story. Nothing has changed in approx. 160 years.

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From Janie: ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT! And of course, informed thyroid patients also know another inane current practice guideline–the use of Synthroid and other T4-only meds as the “gold standard” of thyroid treatment…in spite of the fact that a huge body of thyroid patients in internet groups ALL OVER THE WORLD report POOR outcomes when on T4-only meds, besides with the TSH, and do much better on natural desiccated thyroid, or even T3, and dosing by symptoms and the free T3.

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FIND THE ABOVE APPALLING??? FIGHT BACK!!! A publicist has been hired to represent Stop the Thyroid Madness in getting to the word out to millions who still linger on T4-only meds, or who are considered “normal” thanks to the lousy TSH lab test. But it can’t go on long without your help!! Read about it here.

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