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What in the world is the UK’s Royal College of Physicians thinking??

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(This post was updated to the present! Enjoy!)

2009 was a nauseating year for informed UK thyroid patients. UK’s Royal College of Physicians came out with a press release about the new guidelines on the diagnosis and management of primary hypothyroidism. And it hit the web with a resounding, stiff-necked **THUD**.

The press release was titled:

Thyroxine is the only treatment for primary hypothyroidism

Yup, as if nothing else could possibly exist, even though other hypothyroid treatments do exist, and one has been around for over 110 years changing lives called Natural Desiccated Thyroid. But no, it’s only the blinkered, horse-blinders pronouncement that “Thyroxine is the only….”.

And to underscore the title, the first line of the press release pronounced:

New guidelines on the diagnosis and management of primary hypothyroidism state that thyroxine is the only treatment that should be given for this condition, which is caused by underactivity of the thyroid gland.

And it continues in all its blabbering, tunnel-vision glory:

The guidelines also state that the only validated method of testing thyroid function is on blood, which must include serum TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) and a measure of free thyroxine (T4).

For those who may not have caught up with the wisdom on thyroid patients and a growing body of entirely wise practitioners, the TSH lab test has proven to be the absolutely worst way to diagnose hypothyroidism, besides its use to find the right amount of medication. Far more important is the very test the UK College completely omitted: the free T3. T3 is the active thyroid hormone!

The came the final coup de grâce in the press release:

Patients, doctors and other health professionals are worried that people are being wrongly diagnosed and treated, due to the amount of unvalidated diagnostic tests and ‘natural’ treatments which are being offered by a variety of private individuals and companies. Wrong diagnoses and treatments can be dangerous, either because the wrong treatment can cause serious side effects, or the true cause of symptoms can be left undiagnosed and untreated.

Sadly, the danger is in using only one of five thyroid hormones, and forcing patients to live for conversion alone, resulting in a continuation of hypothyroidism in each patient’s degree and kind, sooner or later.

A concluding paragraph by Janie

In the 1600’s, Galileo was the first most prolific voice to proclaim that the earth revolved around the sun (Natural Desiccated thyroid), in contrast to the firmly held position that the sun revolved around the earth (Thyroxine). He was denounced as being dangerous and heretical. Looks as if the UK Royal College of Physicians has a 17th Century mindset….

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** I wrote about it in the news media here: http://www.opednews.com/articles/The-Royal-College-of-Physi-by-Janie-Bowthorpe-090210-698.html

Are you from the UK? Tell us what you think.

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Thyroid Tidbit: FLUORIDE in our water is poison to our thyroids

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Even 1 1/2 years ago, over 2000 professionals from a variety of disciplines called the US Congress to end Fluoridation of water, citing it’s toxicity and the deception of putting it in our water. You can read their call to action here.

The importance of this call lies in each of us with thyroid disease, since fluoride is a KNOWN inhibitor of our thyroid function.

As of Feb. 9th, 2009, the Courier Post Online of South Jersey has an excellent article on the problem of our extreme exposure to fluoride. This article cites the following facts:

1) 53 US cities rejected fluoridation during our last November election
2) Ingested fluoride can damage kidney patients, bones, the thyroid gland, high water drinkers, and children’s teeth
3) Studies linking fluoride to cancer and lowered IQ are plausible.
4) In 2007, the British Medical Journal indicated that fluoridation never was proven safe or effective and may be unethical.
5) Health Canada says the government should cut the recommended amount in drinking water, encourage the use of low-fluoride toothpaste by children and have makers of infant formula reduce levels.

I personally made a point to stop using any toothpaste with Fluoride a few years ago. I also supplement with iodine, since fluoride displaces iodine levels. Sadly, I still love iced tea, which contains fluoride. But YOU can avoid more fluoride exposure by finding a way to get off anti-depressants and osteoporosis medications which contain fluoride, and that is especially possible when you are optimal with Armour desiccated thyroid in presence of strong adrenals or optimal cortisol supplementation.

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Is grandpa sleepy? The innocent victims of the TSH lab.

lynn-doralynn-donna1 Most of us are in our prime when our health is slaughtered thanks to the lousy TSH lab result–a result which can be normal for years before it rises high enough to reveal our hypothyroidism, or a range which keeps us with lingering hypo symptoms.

But the elderly are also wide open targets of the scandal of the use of the TSH test to diagnose hypothyroidism.

My father-in-law was stout, tall and healthy as an ox his entire life. For the first eighty-eight years of his life, life was active and grand. Oh did I love him.

Yet as he was nearing ninety, fate became fickle. He became like a Rip Van Winkle, sleeping more than being awake the final three years of his life. He slept in the mornings, he slept after lunch, he slept before dinner, and he went to bed early. And he seemed depressed.

Family concern (mine) prompted his doctor to test his TSH, widely used by clueless doctors to ascertain thyroid function. The family doc proclaimed “Normal”

Sad. Because I had to watch him waste away in his fatigue until he died.

Hypothyroidism increases with age, and many of our elderly fall victim to it. Using most any search engine on the net, you’ll find numerous articles on thyroid and the aged. But I suspect it’s an even greater problem that most any article can relay, since most of them are talking about the TSH and thyroxine. So the elderly, just like us, suffer due to the infinitely lousy TSH lab, just like my dear father-in-law.

Read my latest article on OpEdNews titled “TSH: Thyroid Stimulating Hooey and the Loss of Wisdom” (Yup, the first part is the same title of Chapter 4 in the STTM book) : http://www.opednews.com/articles/TSH-Thyroid-Stimulating-H-by-Janie-Bowthorpe-090205-60.html

Have you noticed suspicious hypothyroid symptoms in your grandma or grandpa, or your own elderly patients? Tell your story by commenting on this blog post.

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A real life horror movie: suckered by Big Pharma marketing. Part 2

(Want to be notified of my blog posts? Curious what’s on my mind? Use Notifixious to be informed. Look on the bottom left of the links where you can sign up. )

Recently, after we watched a semi-scary movie about being suckered, a friend brought up my blog post of last July where I described a terrifyingly-real horror movie.

The plot: stunningly convince hundreds of millions of individuals worldwide that what is obvious, isn’t. i.e. it’s all in your head, you are adequately treated on Synthroid, Levoxyl, Eltroxin, Norton, et al, and not only that, we’ll bandaid your continuing problems with more medications.

A second plot: also completely hoodwink those with top notch higher medical educations and experience by churning out the the exact same poppycock, and reward their stupidity with gifts.

The central villian: Big Pharma, followed by the doctors who bought the lie

Exactly a year ago this month, Science Daily came out with an article, citing two York University researchers who estimated that the U.S. pharmaceutical industry spends almost twice as much on promotion as it does on research and development, contrary to the industry’s claim. In other words, the researchers estimated that $57.5 billion in US dollars was spent on pharmaceutical promotion in 2004–the year they were studying. Yes, I said BILLION.

Breaking that down, Big Pharma spent approximately $61,000 per physician in promotion of their products. And they concluded that both figures were UNDERestimates. In other words, they concluded that the US pharmaceutical industry is marketing-driven rather than “life-saving”.

And adding fuel to the fire: most doctors believe every thrust of that marketing. I recently participated in comments with other wonderful patients in response to a DO/Endocrinologist, Dr. Thomas Repas, who has clearly bought the Big Pharma marketing when it comes to levothyroxine. You can read his posts and our comments here, here, and here. Dr. Repas is exactly the kind of doctor who has starred in our horror movie, and the kind of doctor that patients have lamented about for years. Read the Give Me a Break list of comments made by doctors, as well as further comments on the January 1st blog.

But Dr. Repas is in good company. Doctors have believed the Big Pharma lie about T4-only medications, and against desiccated thyroid like Armour, Naturethroid, etc. for 50 years. In the patient-to-patient Stop the Thyroid Madness book, you can read about the first tableting of Synthroid in 1955 and the strategic and successful promotion of T4-only, in spite of the fact that T4 was known to be unstable for decades.

And today, more than 50 years later, very few of us have been untouched by the Big Pharma push for levothyroxine T4-only treatment. My own mother was suckered, and I was suckered. And until patients started to make a huge push for desiccated thyroid treatment the last few years, nearly every single doctor around the world had been suckered.

We still have a way to go. But we’ll get there, bit by bit.

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Ten reasons you may still feel bad: health is like a chocolate cake

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(This post has been updated to the present date and time! Enjoy!)

I frequently bake chocolate cake for birthdays in my family. Of course, part of it is so I can lick the beaters and bowl. **blush** But in my family, we are chocolate lovers. So any cake I bake is THE BEST cake in world.

Why? Because of the combination and/or amounts of several important ingredients that make any cake “great”… by anyone. Leaving out any of those specific ingredients, or putting in too little or too much, could result in a cake less than great.

And your health and feel-goods as a thyroid patient are like a good cake: the combination of ingredients and amounts that you have to get right.

Below are ten healthy “ingredients” to investigate to make sure the “chocolate cake of your life” is great!

1) INGREDIENT: The right amount of thyroid hormone medication

One of the most common mistakes made by patients and their doctors is simply not raising high enough to find the right amount. I have a friend who was stuck on 3 grains of Natural Desiccated Thyroid out of habit. Now 3 grains might be right for some, but it wasn’t for her–she continued to have hypothyroid symptoms out of habit. I finally convinced her to talk to her doctor. Labs showed her free T3 was just a few points over mid-range, and having a free T3 towards the top seems to work better for most. That will also push the TSH very low…and without a problem. So she did raise, and it finally did the trick. She now had the perfect chocolate cake of health!

2) INGREDIENT: Optimal B12

Sammy felt like she was doing great on her thyroid meds, but something was off. She had occasionally weakness, a tingling in her fingers, fatigue, and sometimes walking problems. Turns out her B12 levels were not optimal, which can be common for those undiagnosed hypothyroid or on T4-only. She got a B12 test, learned where patients are optimal, and corrected it.

3) INGREDIENT: Optimal iron

Did you know that like most nutrients, being “in range” has nothing to do with anything?? It’s “where” you fall that counts. And thyroid patients who’ve been undiagnosed, undertreated due to being held hostage to the TSH, or treated with T4-only, tend to acquire inadequate levels of iron. Symptoms can include fatigue, depression, weakness, achiness, breathlessness or others. Learn all about iron and where iron is optimal.

4) INGREDIENT: The right amount of stomach acid via ACV or lemon juice

Hypothyroid patients can have low hydrochloric (HCL) stomach acid levels. That not only contributes to acid reflux (yes, reflux can be because of LOW iron), it means you don’t absorb nutrients well (including low B12 and iron mentioned above). As a result, it’s crucial to give that acid back to yourself. A tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar or lemon juice mixed in water and taken twice day helps many. Or try taking Betaine, which is HCL in pill form, or any other quality HCL or digestive product.

5) INGREDIENT: Optimal levels of B-vitamins

Did you know that when you become healthier due to the right thyroid treatment, your demand for B-vitamins can increase? Yessiree. B-vitamins along with CoQ10, help drive the production of your internal cellular energy. Though a variety of foods give B-vitamins, patients will often supplement with a good whole food B-vitamin or one brand or kind of their choice.

6) INGREDIENT: Avoidance of gluten

Now, patient experiences have revealed that not everyone needs to remove gluten from their diet. But a very high percentage of Hashimoto’s patients (the autoimmune version of thyroid disease) find they do a great deal better if they do. Why? Gluten can raise one’s antibodies, as well as damage your stomach lining and intestines, thus reducing absorption of many key nutrients. If you have Celiac disease, removal of gluten is also important.

7) INGREDIENT: Sex Hormone balance

When your thyroid or adrenals get out of balance, your sex hormones can follow suit, from estrogen dominance to low testosterone. When estrogen dominance occurs, you can feel depression, fatigue, and sore breasts. Low testosterone can equal lower energy and mood. That’s why many thyroid patients also treat their hormonal levels, if needed, to feel better.

8) INGREDIENT: Iodine plus other minerals

Turns out that not only are your thyroid hormones in need of iodine to even exist, patients have reported iodine supplementation to help them feel better. Women like using it to rid themselves of fibrocystic breast disease. We do recommend doing on Iodine Loading Test to first see if you need it, though. Most do, but some may not. Other minerals are important too, like magnesium, potassium, sodium and more.

9) INGREDIENT: A good doctor

Yes, we certainly know how hard it can be to find an informed and open-minded doctor. And because of that, some patients are forced to self-treat, and we don’t begrudge that choice at all. If you do want to find a better doctor, here’s a page to help you do so. It may not always be easy where you live, but can be possible.

10) INGREDIENT: Knowledge

This is where Stop the Thyroid Madness (STTM) comes into play. STTM is the flagship of patient experiences and wisdom, ready for you to absorb all its excellent information and regain your health and well-being again, besides help teach your doctor. There are now TWO STTM books to learn from, too.

P.S. My real chocolate cake: I think cake mixes are just as good as homemade. I use Devils Food Cake a lot, but have used all the varieties for fun. But the icing is ALWAYS homemade: cream one stick butter, add about 4 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 cup cocoa, then cream or half-n-half. Shake in a liberal amount of sea salt. Add two tsp. vanilla. Beat, beat. Taste. Modify as needed. YUM. There are other great icings you can make!

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

** Come join the STTM Facebook page for daily inspiration and wisdom!

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