Armour Archives - Stop The Thyroid Madness

Armour and a lot of unhappy thyroid patients…all over again!

On July 1st, 2014, the pharmaceutical Actavis completed the acquisition of Forest Laboratories, the makers of Armour which is the oldest desiccated thyroid product on the market today. They then changed their name to Allergan.

And the poop hit the fan

By early 2015 and onward, more and more patients were reporting being quite unhappy with Armour. The price has risen substantially and often, and patients were also reporting a return of hypothyroid symptoms. It’s not all patients, but a substantial amount.

And this is not the first time we’ve been unhappy about Armour!

First, in 2007, patients were reporting that the two grain size tablet seemed to not be working at all. Then in 2008, patients had to endure seeing Armour disappear on the shelves. When they finally returned by 2009, all heck broke loose. Hypothyroid symptoms were returning with a vengeance. Turns out they “reformulated” it, increasing the cellulose and decreasing the sucrose. Not only could we not do it sublingually anymore–a method we preferred and which did in fact work—it also was causing a return of our hypothyroid symptoms in the worst way. We had to move to other brands. By 2012, the tablets were now softer, and complaints were down. But here we are in 2015 with a new pharmaceutical maker…and complaints have risen all over again.

The price has risen!

In September 2015, I sought out patient feedback in a few groups from those who had been on Armour before the July 1st, 2014 final acquisition, but were still on it in 2015. The first exasperation was about price. Here are some of the comments I got when I asked about a price change:

$20 before/$78 now. (forced to change insurance from my low copay to a high deductible plan)
Last year was paying £52 pounds x100 now paying £74.00
With co-pay, from $5 to $25-30 now
Over $20 increase for 90 mcg, 30 pills
With co-pay, $20 for 90 day supply in February 2015, $25 for 30 day supply in August 2015.
Last year cost $7-9, getting refill now-$33
$5 up to $24
Went up to $55 for a month’s dose of 120s (with insurance)
Went up about $15 dollars
Since last year, went from $5.80 to $10.80 to $12.80 and now $18.60.
For 180 tablets, from $22 to $160
I paid $47.30 before. When I ordered last week, its $71.91, same quantity and mcg.
$20 increase in cost.
$10 to $32
From 43.00 to 63.00
Tripled
From $25 to $60
My armour started off at $23/mo, in July 2014 and it just started climbing every month. In November 2014 it was $47/mo. Naturethroid is $39 for 90 days.
$29 to $44 for 30 of the 90mg.
Went from about $20/month to $92/month.
$6 in 2007/$30 now
From $15 to $55 per month (with insurance)
From 70.00 to 118.00
3-month supply 57.00 a year ago to 85.00 now out of my own pocket at Costco!
Went up $20
Went up $30
Up $25

There were more answers, but you get the drift. Note that the differences in cost represent different insurance coverages and different amounts. But it’s clear: Activas/Allergan substantially raised the price! Patients are NOT pleased.

The change in the pill itself

Though a small minority felt the pill hadn’t changed, and a couple said it was softer, 80% said it was definitely harder–exactly what went on in 2008.

One gal stated: “Not as uniform. Some softer than others; some harder to dissolve ; some seem to contain more filler”. That makes one wonder if her bottle had a mix of the 2014 and 2015 pills. Another gal stated: “Harder, different taste, smell and texture. Breaks clean.”

Most who responded either tried an increase or moved to a different brand

The answers broke out like this:

A very small percentage have stayed with the same amount as 2014 and feel they are doing fine
Another very small percentage raised and are doing fine.
A larger percentage are still on the same amount as 2014, or have tried a raise, but state they are not doing well and/or their labs are now wonky.
A large percentage have or are moving over to a different brand.

Symptoms reported as returning

For those who noticed their symptoms of hypothyroidism have returned since Activas bought out Forest, some are described as follows:

I now get tireder
Feels like symptoms are slowly returning…fatigue and intolerance to heat/cold particularly
Severe itching on sides of bridge of nose, hair falling out has worsened, feet have severely dried out-tops and bottoms, more unexplained weight gain 80%
My hair has started falling out all over again. Very unhappy.
Feel worse, more tired, but could be because of new baby
Have felt worse. It seems less effective.
Felt worse. Free T3 and free T4 plummeted.
My TSH has climbed!
Fluctuations
Problems and raising didn’t help.
Labs changed quite a bit.
Eye sight problems, loss of energy sooner in day; dr will not increase dosage..
My weight has gone up since January. Not happy.
I now have depression that I didn’t have before.
My weight has been creeping up and I have no changed my diet.
I don’t feel as well.
More tired. Have to nap now.

Comments by patients

I started on it for the first time in my life Feb. 2014. By May I had lost 20#. By Jan. I gained my weight back and wondered what in the world is going on.
Started on Armour in March of 2014 but was also being treated for breast cancer so my results were probably a little skewed. Now on a higher dose and feeling better but not happy about the tremendous price hike!
Just got back from Endo. My labs are awful. Have been on same dose of Armour for a year. Even increase it a tad. T3 and T4 dropped. TSH went from 0.53 to 2.9. No wonder I feel like crap. She switched me to Naturethroid.
I’ve been on Armour for 3 years after my thyroid was removed and have done well until April or May of 2015. My hair started falling out, my body ached, I’ve put on weight, I started feeling depression and I’m more fatigued. I have no doubt that changes in the negative have been made to Armour and I’m ticked. I am changing brands.
I have felt fine all this time, but I’m not happy with the swift price increase.

Bottom line is up to you

It’s a fact that Armour has gone up substantially since 2014’s acquisition of Forest by Actavis/Allergan. And it’s a fact that many other brands are much cheaper. So that would be up to each individual as to what they want to pay–more for Armour, less for other brands. The Options page on STTM lists all your brands.

As far as problems on the current Armour, it does appear that for too many, hypothyroid symptoms have returned and/or labs are now off. So even though there are definitely some that still remain happy, you will have to decide.

** You can read how Janie felt about Armour in 2009 here.

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September 19th 2015 385 replies

Dear Erfa Canada: Stop this nonsense and change your desiccated thyroid back!!

Not again.

It appears that one more time, a manufacturer of what was once a very good natural desiccated thyroid product has ruined it.

In 2009, thyroid patients whose lives had changed in major and positive ways thanks to Armour, a brand of natural desiccated thyroid (NDT) made by Forest Labs, saw their hypothyroidism come right back. Why? Forest, in all their wisdom, decided to raise the cellulose, lower the sucrose, and make Armour a much harder tablet. And somehow in all that change, patients reported all their hypothyroid symptoms now returning. It was a disaster.

As a result of the above, thyroid patients moved to other natural desiccated thyroid products, and Erfa of Canada was one. And oh did patients love it. It was made like the old Armour, and we could also do it sublingually–a method many of us like. Erfa calls their NDT product simply “Thyroid” and it has always come in sizes of 30 mg, 60 mg and 125 mg.

Fast forward to 2014, and patients who have been doing wonderfully on Erfa are now reporting a major return of their hypothyroid symptoms!

And what’s the scuttlebutt we hear from Dr. Henri Knafo, the Medical Director for Erfa Canada?? That they changed the facility from which the tablets were made but not the ingredients. Really??

This is particularly disturbing for European patients whose lives have changed in positive ways thank to NDT, and know the inherent problems with T4-only.

All too many European doctors and their esteemed medical organizations are clueless about the efficacy of Natural Desiccated Thyroid and turn their backs on prescribing it. Like too many American and Canadian doctors, they worship the ground that T4-only medications unfortunately walk on, and fail to see the widespread problems that thyroid patients have on T4-only. So patients suffer. But luckily, thyroid patients in Europe had been pleased about being able to find Erfa in a few places and thus, see their lives change in major positive ways.

But that has now changed for European Thyroid Patients thanks to this latest egregious change in Erfa’s Thyroid, and the situation is horrific for patients once again, just as it was in 2009 when Forest changed Armour.

What can you do??

If you were once doing wonderfully on Erfa, and now see a return of your symptoms, email Erfa’s Medical Direction here: henri.knafo@eci2012.net Spell out how you were BEFORE the change, and what is going on SINCE the change. And email him multiple times, if necessary. Make it clear. Make it often.
Post here what has happened to you on the “reformulated” Erfa. This is a widely read blog post and website for informed thyroid patients as well as doctors.

In the meantime, if you need to move over to another brand…or if you CAN change over where you live….here are your options for better thyroid treatment.

PLEASE POST THE LOT NUMBERS of the bottles of which your symptoms returned!

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UPDATE May 12, 2014: A gal from Sweden heard from Erfa today, and they are admitting there have apparently been a bad batch or batches. I’ll keep you updated.

UPDATE May 15, 2014: Dr. Knafo has posted the following:
Dear all,

As you know we are currently investigating all the complaints that I received and I would like to ask for your help in order to complete the investigation.

1. Do you have a lot number and exp date written on the bottle of Thyroid ? If so please give it to us.

2. Can you tell us what strength(s) you bough (30, 60 or 125mg) ?

3. Also please mention what pharmacy you bought the product from.

Once this information is received we can go forward with the investigation. Please feel free to email me if you have other questions

Dr Henri Knafo, MD, M.Sc, B.Sc

Email : Henri.knafo@eci2012.net

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* Watch for daily informative postings on the STTM Facebook page.

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* Need to talk to other patients? Talk to Others page. You’ll also see many other great groups who don’t bash other groups (I hope), care about patient experiences and wisdom over “opinion”, and can be friendly.

* Do you have the STTM books?? You HAVE to be informed to get well.

* Learn why Synthroid or other T4-only meds by themselves are not the way to go in your thyroid treatment.

May 8th 2014 533 replies

Has Armour gone back to its pre-reformulation? And 5-HTP is pretty remarkable…

Though this page was originally written in 2012 about Armour and 5-htp, it’s been updated to the present day and time.

It’s only a handful of comments here or there in patient groups, and I’ve gotten two emails as well. But there are reports that recent bottles of Armour desiccated thyroid have pills which are performing just like they did before the unappreciated reformulation of 2009. i.e. they are softer again and can be done sublingually, and may be back to more dextrose and less cellulose.

Said one patient who contacted me via email: “It’s interesting what I read in the thyroid group the other day that her pills were back to being soft. But typical condescending Forest Labs who never said a word in 2009 to the most informed group of patients in the world, and haven’t communicated to us directly once again if it really has changed.”

So, if it’s true, there may be a phase of figuring out what you get: the hard ones that patients found HAVE to be chewed up to be the most effective, or the return of the softer ones which could be done sublingually. I’d be curious to know which pharmacies and in which city/state are giving out Armour tablets that are softer.

UPDATE: Forest Labs, the former makers of Armour, was bought out by Activas in 2014, then the price of Armour became the highest priced NDT around. And for many, it wasn’t working like it used to. But some still do well on it, paying the highest price. Learn from this page: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/options-for-thyroid-treatment

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5-HTP can be miraculous against depression, plus can help troubled sleep patterns

When I went into full menopause, one issue I noticed was out-of-the-blue was afternoon depression, in spite of being optimal on Natural Desiccated Thyroid. Bottomed-out female hormones can be problematic until I can correct them. And I found something that worked to completely remove the afternoon depression with the FIRST day of use: 5-HTP. I was shocked.

Turns out that menopause can also mean low levels of serotonin–a brain transmitter that affects your mood positively. Your over-the-counter 5-HTP supplement (which comes from the seeds of the African plant Griffonia simplicifolia) is a precursor of trytophan, the amino acid responsible for making serotonin and melatonin. And lo and behold, what do many prescription anti-depressives, such as Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) meds, do?? They increase the bioavailability of serotonin! But why put up with the side-effects when 5-HTP is natural and has so few, I decided!!

How much? 100 mg did the trick for me, once a day. But others report needing 200 or 300 mg. I started on too much–had dizziness with starting on 200 mg. Found out the hard way that 100 mg was enough for the time being until I coud better treat my female hormonal issue. I’ve read where some only start on 50 mg.

For better sleep, studies have shown that 5-HTP outright will improve your sleep due to increasing melatonin. Research has reported a lengthening and deepening of their REM period of sleep–the deep sleep–and without increasing the amount of time they sleep. It also seems to smooth any ups and downs with sleeping. Some research shows it can take several weeks, but I figure that can be individual.

There’s even anecdotal evidence that taking 5-HTP has helped drinkers avoid the bottle. i.e. if someone drinks to self-medicate against depression, 5-HTP could help.

There are definite cautions with 5-HTP! i.e. it’s NOT recommended to take it with anti-depressants or any seratonin-raising drug, as together one could raise their serotonin levels too high. A lot of different experiences with 5-HTP can be found here. As always, talk to your doctor about using it or not. It may be for only short-term use.

NOTE ABOUT DEPRESSION: For hypothyroid patients, especially those still stuck on T4-only like Synthroid, depression is pretty common due to inadequate levels of T3. Once you get on Natural Desiccated Thyroid, as well as correct any potential low iron or low cortisol issues, you may find that depression is kicked to the wind!

As intellectually stated by Eric Fliers from the Department of Endocrinology in Amsterdam, “triiodothyronine (T3) is also capable of increasing serotonergic neurotransmission by desensitization of inhibitory 5-HT1a autoreceptors in the raphe nucleus, thus disinhibiting cortical and hippocampal serotonin release, and by increasing cortical 5-HT2 receptor sensitivity, further increasing 5-HT neurotransmission.”

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Two newer pages on STTM as of 2012, and updated to today:

Adaptogens: read how certain plant and root substances can help you cope better with stress, here.
Graves Disease: never thought I’d have a page on STTM about it, but enough patients have asked that it’s now here. Besides, since many Graves patients become hypothyroid, it’s good for them be included on a site that teaches what patients have learned about far better thyroid treatment, which is NOT T4-only.

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New to this website? Read about:

Desiccated Natural Thyroid as the treatment with the best results
Why T4-only meds like Synthroid aren’t doing the job for all too many
How many thyroid patients fall into sluggish adrenal function aka adrenal fatigue
How you can treat low cortisol without the use of HC
What patients have learned
Mistakes patients make in their treatment

And get the REVISED STTM BOOK for more details and ease of learning about what patients have learned.

July 6th 2012 62 replies

Recall of certain batches of Armour–US, Belgium, UK

If you have 1/2 grain (30 mg) tablets, a label error caused some one grain tablets (60 mg) to be labeled as 1/2 grain tablets (30 mgs). That would mean you could be overdosing yourself if you are taking 1/2 grains. Both sizes need to be returned to your pharmacist with this information and exchanged. i.e. COPY THIS when you take them back.

NOTE: they would be Lot #: 1077413 with an expiration of 9/30/2011 This is what your pharmacist would need to know.

PRODUCT

Armour Thyroid (thyroid tablets, USP), 1/2 grain (30 mg) , each tablet contains 19 mcg levothyroxine (T4) and 4.5 mcg liothyronine (T3), 100-count bottle, NDC 0456-0458-01. Recall # D-231-2011
CODE
Lot #: 1077413, Exp. 9/30/2011
RECALLING FIRM/MANUFACTURER
Recalling Firm: Forest Pharmaceuticals Inc., Earth City, MO, by telephone and letters on October 6, 2010.
Manufacturer: Forest Pharmaceuticals Inc., Cincinnati, OH. Firm initiated recall is ongoing.
REASON
Labeling: Label error on declared strength; some bottles are mislabeled as containing 1/2-grain tablets but actually contain 1-grain tablets. The entire lot is being recalled even though some bottles are labeled correctly because bottles of 1/2-grain and 1-grain could be shrink-wrapped together.
VOLUME OF PRODUCT IN COMMERCE
31,172 bottles approx.
DISTRIBUTION
Nationwide, PR, Belgium and the United Kingdom

http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/EnforcementReports/ucm242808.htm

See my post to a very, very thankful individual, here.
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February 9th 2011 1 reply

Have you switched from one desiccated thyroid to another? Let’s share.

“A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents
and making them see the light, but rather because it opponents eventually die,
and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it” ~ Max Planck

NOTE: Though this post was originally written in 2011, it has been updated to the current date and time.

HOW DIFFERENT BRANDS OF DESICCATED WORK FOR SOME, NOT FOR OTHERS

Granted, we note from patient reports that all brands work based on individual reports of any brand.

But some patients, for a variety of reasons, feel they do well on some NDT’s, but not on others. It’s very individual. This may be due to the fillers in any product.

Or, there are some like me who had to switch from one desiccated thyroid brand to another, not because of fillers, but changes in the product. I, for example, was on the pre-reformulated Armour from 2002 to 2009, and successfully treated.

Then came 2009 when patients were reporting Armour not working as well anymore. It had been reformulated–the cellulose raised and the sucrose decreased. I just let my old Armour run out, and I started on Erfa Thyroid from Canada. And it was an easy and successful switch for me.

But even some batches of Erfa seemed to go bad in 2014, so I then moved over to NP Thyroid, which has been great to this day.

So I am an example of the way that all three did work for me, and simply had to change due to reported problems in the way Armour, or Erfa, was made.

What if any switch doesn’t result in good results?

For many, the NDT they have switched to works just as well, as happened to me. But for some, a switch has not been smooth. One brand seemed to serve them well, while another brand caused them to tank.

What causes the switch problems?

For many, it could be the adrenals. On one product, they may have felt fine, yet due to an underlying adrenal issue they hadn’t caught, a different brand with that “something different” may have been the umpff that revealed their adrenal problem.

For others, the issues on the new brand could be from a sensitivity to one or more of the fillers. You can read about all fillers in each brand here.

And for still others, there is a mystery of why one didn’t work and another did.

What has been your experience? What did you switch from and to? Armour? Naturethroid? Erfa? Compounded? Thyroid-S? Let’s share.

If I need to switch, how do I do it?

It’s pretty much an even switch. i.e. if I was doing well on 3 grains on one brand, I go on 3 grains of the other.

But if I wasn’t doing well on a brand, it’s important to ask one self four things:

Did I raise the current brand high enough? It’s common for hypothyroid symptoms to return on lower non-optimal doses. How to raise is explained here.
Do I have an issue with a filler?? They can be looked at here.
Do I have optimal levels of iron? Because if your iron levels aren’t “optimal”, it can cause problems when raising NDT. Optimal has nothing to do with normal. See this page.
Do I have an adrenal problem being revealed due to NDT?

Join the STTM STTM Facebook page for daily tips and inspiration on thyroid issues.
Have you ever heard of the gal who calls herself nonstickpam? I’ve known Pam for many years, and she has spent most of that time giving helpful advice on low carb eating and how to maintain your weight while dealing with thyroid and/or adrenal issues. Recently, she wrote an article for STTM about this very issue: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/hypothyroid-and-weight-issues/

February 3rd 2011 229 replies

Category: Armour