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Category: iron and ferritin

A way to bring up serum iron without taking iron supplements?

Yes, it appears so…with lactoferrin. But first…

It is common for hypothyroid or Hashimoto’s patients to get low iron

Why? The most common reason is being on T4-only like Synthroid or Levothyroxine. The latter leaves most with lingering hypothyroidism, sooner or later. Thus, continued hypothyroidism lowers one’s stomach acid, and lowered stomach acid means you aren’t going to absorb nutrients well. So iron can fall, as can B12, Vitamin D and more.

The second most common reason is being underdosed on Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT) or T3 for a long period of time…usually due to a doctor who goes by the TSH or doesn’t understand how to get you optimal.

The third most common reason? Being undiagnosed for awhile, once again due to doctor’s clueless reliance on the lousy TSH lab test. The TSH can be “normal” for years before it rises high enough to reveal your thyroid problem.

But before I get into the topic of this post, please know that the vast majority of thyroid patients with inadequate levels of iron have successfully raised it with the right amount of iron supplements and for years! It’s all explained on the iron page.

How do I know if I have low iron?

It’s about four iron labs, NOT just ferritin–the latter which too many doctor rely upon solely, and is a mistake. You can have low ferritin and good or high iron due to a methylation problem! Those four iron labs are serum iron, % saturation, TIBC and ferritin. Yes, all four. Then you compare your results to this page: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/lab-values

Your results have NOTHING to do with just falling anywhere in those ridiculous ranges. Compare to above link!! It’s serum iron you treat.

And if ferritin is high with lower serum iron, that means inflammation you’ll need to treat and get DOWN, otherwise taking iron will raise your high ferritin even more.

How I found out about a new way other than iron supplements

I do coaching calls. And one call in particular was impressive! This young man raised his serum iron from 77 to 130 without taking a single supplement of iron. How did he do it? With nothing more than lactoferrin. He was also taking astaxanthin, but I’ll explain later.

BUT PLEASE NOTE: We have NOT seen just lactoferrin work for anyone else since I wrote this blog post. ~Janie

What is lactoferrin?

Lactoferrin is a protein, also called a “glycoprotein” because it has both a carb and a protein. Lactoferrin is primarily found in a mother’s breast milk at the beginning of nursing and it’s at quite high levels–seven times higher than it will be later, or in regular milk1. And what does lactoferrin do for infants who breast feed, as well as adults who use it as a supplement? It plays a fabulous role in enhancing your immune response, making it antibacterial, for one, plus anti-viral, anti-parasitic and even anti-fungal. Lactoferrin is also stated to be anti-cancer, and also known to promote bone health.

And for all of us, lactoferrin envelopes (binds) iron, constraining the iron from feeding a bacterial or viral infection, from feeding candida, from being too toxic in our bodies, or causing too high levels of free radicals! But there is evidence that it also helps raise low iron.

Some ask about the lactose in lactoferrin since it comes from a mother’s milk–it’s very very low.

So has research also shown that lactoferrin supplementation can raise iron levels?

Yes!

Here’s a 2006 study of 300 women, part taking lactoferrin and part taking just iron supplements, and the women taking lactoferrin saw a definite rise in their serum iron as did those taking supplements, but the former had even better results! It was 100 mg lactoferrin twice a day vs 520 mg once a day of ferrous sulfate. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16936810

And here’s a 2009 study showing that with one group using iron supplements and another group using lactoferrin…the outcome was the same–each had raised their iron status comparably! results! https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19639462

In 2014, a study with pregnant women showed the same as above–that transferrin did the job in raising iron as much as iron supplementation and with fewer potential side effects. Transferrin also lowered inflammation. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24590680

And there are more studies which scientifically validate that power of lactoferrin to bring up iron from the iron content in foods you eat. Most studies show participants taking 100 mg twice a day, to equal a total of 200 mg.

How have we used lactoferrin before?

Stop the Thyroid Madness–the mothership of patient experiences and wisdom rather than empty strong opinion, has always mentioned using lactoferrin with your iron supplementation to envelope the iron and carry it around, besides protect you from the toxicity of iron. That is especially true if your liver isn’t making much transferrin as revealed by a lower TIBC–an indirect measure of your liver’s ability to make transferrin. Transferrin is in the same family of proteins as lactoferrin, thus lactoferrin supplements are ideal.

But now we have evidence that lactoferrin ALONE may do the trick. And guess what…there are even lactoferrin receptors in your body.

Will lactoferrin supplementation do the trick for everyone in raising low iron?

We don’t know yet. We need more patient feedback on their experience with it. But as mentioned above, there is evidence both in experience and research that is a bit exciting and interesting. And you probably need to take it while eating foods rich in iron, too.

Which lactoferrin should I get if I want to try raising my confirmed low iron?

Most brands seem to be fine; most lactoferrin supplementation is shown to be safe; they come from bovine sources. But I would choose a brand you have read about and/or trust.

There is a brand of lactoferrin by Life Extension that says it’s the apolactoferrin form, meaning iron depleted. Regular lactoferrin in most other brands do contain a little iron which is not depleted. I would personally go with other brands, not Life Extension, but that’s me.

What about the astaxanthin mentioned above?

If you have inflammation, iron will tend to go high into storage (aka ferritin), instead of supplying your serum iron levels. For women, you can suspect inflammation if your ferritin is nearing 100 or much higher, and for men, if you ferritin is going above the 130’s. With either men or women, your serum iron will be lower than it should be if ferritin is revealing inflammation!!

And it’s your serum iron levels you are supposed to be treating, NOT ferritin… unless you have inflammation! Thus, taking inflammation lowering supplements are important, as lowering inflammation is the only way to raise low serum iron! Astaxanthin2 is one (such as a minimum of 12 mg and possibly twice a day?), but so is curcumin twice a day (in higher doses than bottles say) or other anti-inflammatory supps of your choice. Take the time to check out this page–we all have to be educated to get well: —-> https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/inflammation

Bottom line?

1. We now have science showing the efficacy in using lactoferrin to raise low serum iron levels, plus solid patient experience in doing so, as well.

2. Lactoferrin supplementation may prevent you from getting low iron in the first place.

3. If you are someone who has serious gastrointestinal issues with taking iron to correct low serum iron (not low ferritin–it’s about correcting low serum iron), this is a new possibility to explore. Even if you have no issues taking iron, the possibility that taking lactoferrin can raise iron is interesting, besides the fact that it also improves your immune function, is anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungus, anti-parasites and anti-cancer! Wow!

4. If you have low serum iron with high ferritin, the latter points to inflammation. Important to get that inflammation down to help raise your serum iron, even if you use lactoferrin.

5. Studies above used 100 mg twice a day to equal 200 mg daily. If you have gained any experience with using JUST lactoferrin to raise iron, please let us know how long it took you, how much lactoferrin you used, and what your results were.

P.S lF YOU ARE RECEIVING THIS BLOG POST via email because you signed up to do so (bottom right of any page on STTM), do NOT reply to the email. No one will see your reply. Click on the title of the post, which will take you to the actual blog post on STTM. Comment there!

Footnotes:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactoferrin

2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4454080/

This information about lactoferrin can be a supplement to your STTM books! Print and insert. Here they are: https://laughinggrapepublishing.com

67 replies

Feel better on T4 than you did on Natural Desiccated Thyroid?

Occasionally, hypothyroid patients will exclaim with conviction and truth that they outright feel better on Synthroid or Levothyroxine (T4-only meds) than they did when they tried Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT) or even T3-only.  And we believe them.

But…there is an explainable reason which does not mean T4-only is better for you. It really isn’t. Bear with me and read on…

Years ago, as many of us were starting on NDT after being on T4, we were seeing our lives change in a huge way, far more than T4 did! It was like a miracle! Those five hormones really made a difference.

But some others were having problems when raising something so miraculous for others. Huh?? We didn’t get that.

It took awhile longer to finally see why and to answer the “huh?” i.e. we began to see that there were three strong and correctible reasons why someone was not seeing the miracle of NDT as others were, and instead, were blaming the NDT (or T3) and moving back to T4-only…

The three main and correctible reasons why NDT, which gives all five thyroid hormones, seems to fail…

1) NOT BEING “OPTIMAL” WITH YOUR NDT DOSE (it’s NOT about just being in range and not about being held hostage to the TSH)

We all have had a tendency to believe that our doctors know what they are doing with NDT or T3. But, the majority do not. They tend to leave you on too-low doses, and/or pay attention to the lousy TSH. Thus, due to the natural suppression of the feedback loop (hypothalamus to pituitary to thyroid), you will get worse on those lower doses, sooner or later. i.e. you will get more hypo, and/or have rising adrenaline, cortisol, anxiety or other. And because of that, some exclaim “NDT didn’t work for me!” and they rush back to T4-only.  But NDT, with all five thyroid hormones, could have worked well IF you had known to be more optimal. Optimal puts the free T3 towards the top of the range and the free T4 mid-range, and puts the TSH below range…all three…and removes all symptoms. What amount does that is very individual—some start to achieve that in mid-2 grains, others are in the 3-5 grain area, others may be higher.

What if you tried to raise to be optimal, but had worsening problems? Read #2 and #3 below.

2) NOT BEING OPTIMAL WITH YOUR IRON LEVELS (it’s not about just being in range)

When this is brought up to patients who once tried NDT and failed, they will exclaim with all sincerity “But my iron levels were great”. We know that a very small percentage may have had good iron. But what is common with the majority is they did NOT have good levels “Falling in the normal range” does not equal a good level of iron. It’s WHERE one falls that tells the story.

For example, with two types of ranges for serum iron (NOT ferritin):

a) When the range is approx. 40?155: women who have optimal serum iron tend to be close to 110, or 109, or 108, etc. They are NOT in the 90’s and definitely not lower when optimal. Men tend to be in the upper 130’s.
b)  When the range is approx. 7-27: women are optimal around 23ish; men are towards the top.

If they are lower than the latter examples, it messes up the ability to raise NDT and feel great without issue. Why? Inadequate iron levels tend to raise the reverse T3 (RT3) as one is raising their NDT.  As the RT3 goes up due to inadequate iron, you will feel worse. And because of that, some exclaim “NDT didn’t work for me!” and they rush back to T4-only…but if they had had optimal iron, NDT WOULD have worked…as long as they also had optimal cortisol (See #3 below) and were working to find their optimal dose of NDT (see #1)

See more details about iron here: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/ferritin

3) NOT BEING OPTIMAL WITH YOUR CORTISOL LEVELS (it’s not about just being in range, and it’s NOT about blood cortisol)

We noted years ago that at least 50% of those with hypothyroidism had a cortisol issue as revealed by saliva, not blood. What does a cortisol issue mean? Either their cortisol was too high (due to the stress of being undiagnosed, poorly treated, or being on T4) or was too low (due to the stress of being undiagnosed, poorly treated, or being on T4), or had both high and low (due to the stress of being undiagnosed, poorly treated, or being on T4).

And what happens with a cortisol issue when you are trying to work with NDT? Either RT3 will go too high (the inactive hormone), or one’s T3 will pool in the blood and not make it to the cells, or both…and you won’t feel well or have bad reactions like excess adrenaline, anxiety, shakiness, feel-bads.

And because of having a cortisol issue, some exclaim “NDT didn’t work for me!” and they rush back to T4-only…but if they had…

a) done the 4-point saliva test, not blood
b) compared the saliva results it to the lab-values page (it’s not about that normal range)
c) CORRECTLY treated it (see this page, plus Chapter 6 in the updated revision STTM book if saliva is VERY low, which also applies to Adrenal Cortex),

….they would have soared on NDT…along with good iron and being OPTIMAL on NDT (or T3)

Note: it’s always about the results of a saliva test, NOT blood cortisol.

Bottom line, it’s not as simple as “feeling better on T4”. It’s more about that you are NOT experiencing the side effects that you did on NDT from any of the above three problems, which were all correctible. That is different.

“That all sounds like too much trouble–I’m staying on T4-only!”, you may be exclaiming….

There is a big problem with that reasoning that I hope you will be open to….Namely, T4-only outright…

  • CAUSES low iron
  • CAUSES a cortisol problem
  • CAUSES many other issues like lowered B12, lowered Vitamin D, rising blood pressure, rising cholesterol, depression, anxiety, heart issues, bone thinning, chronic pain….and more. The individuality is in who gets which…but T4 users do get problems of their own kind, sooner or later.

Please note that the above is not an empty strong opinion. It’s based on years of reported patient experiences from many who were on T4! i.e. most of the following hypothyroid symptoms were experienced by T4 users!! They were still hypo!

Now you may state “But I know people on T4 who do not have those problems!”.

First, some outright DO have some of those problems, but don’t realize it or they deny it (while others see it in them). Adrenal issues, even those denied, can make certain people awash with defensiveness, argumentativeness, denial, anger, paranoia towards others observations, low patience, moodiness, etc.

Yes, some on T4 do, in fact, do better than others. But you know what we have observed? The longer they stay on T4-only, the more problems WILL, in fact, raise their ugly heads eventually…like either adrenal issues, or low iron, or low B12, or depression, or rising cholesterol, or rising blood pressure, or heart problems, or dry skin and hair, or chronic pain, or bone loss, or rising illnesses…..on and on. Forcing the body to live for conversion alone backfires….sooner or later.

Summary: A working Natural Desiccated Thyroid, or adding T3 to that T4 as a second choice and getting those frees optimal, is a much better way to go than being on nothing but T4, according to years of worldwide patient experiences

A working NDT gives you all five thyroid hormones, and does NOT force you to live for conversion of T4 to T3 alone, i.e. some of NDT is direct T3. Additionally with T4-only, some people have genetic mutations which hinder the conversion of T4 to T3 and may not realize it.

There is a good reason that millions of patients found out that T4-only is not the way to go for many reasons, and NDT is the way to go if you correct the reasons you did NOT to do well...or even adding T3 to your T4 in an OPTIMAL amount. But you will still need optimal iron and cortisol!

P.S. The above three reasons are the most common for not doing well on NDT (or T3) and should be considered first. A 4th less common reason: chronic inflammation of any cause. Read about inflammation. If this is true for you, the sad part is that T4-only will also backfire, as it raises RT3.

Mold exposure can also effect conversion.

Click on the graphic to order an excellent saliva cortisol test.

102 replies

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/

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24 replies

Thyroid Tidbits: Men with low iron, Reverse T4 (yes, I said it correctly), Inflammation in thyroid patients, plus more

(No, the tatoo isn’t mine. It belongs to a gal who says STTM helped changed her life. Amazing and brave! 🙂 )

MEN CAN HAVE LOW IRON, TOO:

I’ve seen a few hypothyroid men who have found themselves with low iron. In fact, either iron anemia is growing in men, or we’re just hearing from them more thanks to the internet.

And remarkably, it has become personal for me. Turns out my own husband is very low, which explains the fatigue he had been experiencing lately. Sadly, taking iron pills gives him a headache, so he will eat high-iron foods daily, and will be exploring Floradix, a liquid herb-based iron. Men, get all the needed iron labs!

REVERSE T4 (yes, I said it correctly)

I’ve been having an email chat with a scientifically-minded guy named Brian who also has a sister with a major in bio-chemistry. And something dawned on both of them concerning “levothyroxine” which is the synthetic term for T4. The prefix LEVO means the “left-hand” version of a molecule, and thyroxine is the biological term for the real T4. Says Brian: “Levo-thyroxine means it has exactly the same atoms in exactly the same order, but not the same shape (handedness), so if enzymes or proteins have to chemically “fit” it to work, they may not be able to. He concludes this can be one reason being on synthetic T4-only does not work, and knew it was alluded to by Dr. Mark Starr.

But Brian continues: In just the same way that levothyroxine is the mirror-image or “left-handed” version of regular thyroxin, RT3, or Reverse T3, is the mirror-image or “left-handed” version of T3. If we were consistent with our terminology, in other words, levothyroxine would be known as “Reverse T4”. Says Brian, just as Reverse T3 is biologically inactive , so is Levothyroxine, thus “Reverse T4”. I love it!

CHECK OUT WHAT THIS MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTIONIST SAID:

In a facebook discussion, a female medical transcriptionist has had a realization. Namely, in almost every report she is transcribing into text or digital format, a patient with the diagnosis of hypothyroidism also has a medical history of depression and/or anxiety. You can read about depression & anxiety here. Of course, no patient who is informed is surprised! They are HYPOTHYROID symptoms. And she then notes the prescription ordered by the doc: Synthroid. WAKE UP DOCTORS. You are only dooming your patients to a lifetime of depression, anxiety and far more.

WHY MANY OF YOU HAVE INFLAMMATION (and don’t even know it), WHAT IT DOES, AND HOW TO TREAT IT

One thing I see a lot when doing phone consultations, as well as on thyroid patient groups, is evidence that someone has low-grade inflammation. In fact, research has already shown that a large body of folks with hypothyroidism have higher levels of CRP (C-Reactive Protein) which is a lab test marker of inflammation. That inflammation, in turn, puts you at a higher risk of heart disease.

Another clue that you have an inflammation problem is having higher ferritin levels (i.e. ferritin looks great, or is too high) along with poor iron serum/% saturation lab results. In other words, in the presence of chronic inflammation, your iron will be diverted to your ferritin iron storage, and less will be in your serum and saturation. You can also find yourself with very low TIBC (Total iron-binding capacity). The TIBC is measuring the protein “transferrin”, made in your liver, and which transports your iron through your body. If this is the case, you can’t take high levels of iron supplementation, as explained on the above ferrritin page and more in the book.

What do you do? 1) Treat your hypothyroidism properly–a huge step in lowering that inflammation–with desiccated thyroid, NOT Synthroid. (Read the Things We Have Learned page on STTM, or even more details in Chapter 3 in the new Revised STTM book). 2) Treat proven low cortisol with HC or hydrocortisone. Don’t guess! Do a saliva test!) If saliva testing reveals you have adrenal dysfunction, cortisol supplementation will help counter inflammation. (Read the Adrenal Info and How to Treat page on STTM, or more details in Chapter 6 in the new Revised STTM book.) 3) Use Krill Oil as a supplement. Krill Oil is an even better marine fish oil with rich amounts of Omega 3 fatty oils, and research with even a low dose of 300 mg proves that it does a bang-up job in reducing inflammation as well as pain in joints associated with rheumatoid and osteoarthritis. My own husband is on 1000 mg a day.

HAVE THE REVISED SECOND EDITION OF THE STTM BOOK YET? IT’S WORTH IT.

I am frankly extremely proud of the Revised Second Edition of the STTM book. In spite of being a lot of hard work, it is good to see all the additions, details and corrections throughout the entire book. There is much more on labs and how to read them, ferritin and iron, adrenal dysfunction and how to treat it, reverse T3 and how to treat it, plus a completely new chapter on good supplements and foods. I added a little more hidden humor, which was fun. There are now 36 more pages, too, and at the same price. You can see more about the book here. The book is ideal since you can bring that right into the doctor’s office with the information highlighted and bookmarked. As far as Kindle or other readers, yes, I’m already aware that some of you have requested it. But right now, it’s the book only. But I’ll make announcements in the future as to what might be coming up.

P.S. Seeing this blog post via the email notification? If you have a comment to make, click on the title, which will take you directly to this blog post on the net, and comment there.

13 replies

Adding T4 to NDT…and more mistakes we had to learn from!

STTM 2006 to 2015Update: The blog post below was originally written in 2006, when I, Janie, was learning just like the rest of you!

But there are five key points that I, and all of you as fellow thyroid patients, had to learn that go against what I originally said below.

Those points involved iron labs like ferritin, your FT4 lab result, adding T4 to NDT, and what menopause can do to your optimal amount of Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT.)

Here are five corrections to my original 2006 blog based on a myriad of patient experiences and wisdom since then:

1) You can never just go by Ferritin alone

Ferritin is your iron storage hormone. Yes, it can be low along with low serum iron. But we’ve discovered it can also be low from having HIGH iron (aka hemochromatosis), or having high heavy metals from the MTHFR mutation. And you wouldn’t know if you have either of the latter if you ONLY went by you Ferritin lab result. You’ll see all the iron labs we found were important on the Recommended Labwork page.

2) It’s not a good idea to get your free T4 towards the top of the range (along with that free T3)

This was a huge discovery based on many of our experiences, including mine! i.e. the higher in the upper part of the range we got our Free T4, the more likely our bodies were going to start converting that T4 to Reverse T3 (RT3) to clear it out. RT3 is an inactive hormone. So as your body starts making that RT3, you will find yourself more hypo and/or with hyper symptoms. For me, upon getting my FT4 higher, my BP started rising!

3) Conversely, it has NOT been a great idea for most of us to add synthetic T4 to our Natural Desiccated Thyroid

Instead, we found it important to simply raise NDT high enough to get rid of our hypothyroid symptoms, and it has worked great for the vast majority just by itself. NDT is 80% T4 anyway! There may be individual cases where adding T4 to NDT has worked, but one has to be very careful, since you you risk having the T4 turn to RT3, the inactive hormone.

4) Ladies: The amount of NDT that worked for you before menopause may not work afterwards

I’m a good example. I was at 4 grains before full menopause (and even experimented with 4 1/8 grains) in 2006 and did fine. But that’s because I was severely estrogen dominant at that time (which binds some of those thyroid hormones). When I ceased to be estrogen dominant after meno, 4 grains was too high for me, and even caused a buildup of RT3. I did much better at 3 1/2 grains.

5) There are many great brands of NDT besides Armour to consider (it was the most popular in 2006, but there are now many great brands to look at).

All those brands are listed here. Besides, in 2015, Armour tripled in price and some patients also reported it had changed since their symptoms were coming back. See this blog post about the 2015 problems with Armour.

And here are key points I wrote about below in 2006 which are STILL TRUE today:

1) An optimal amount of NDT puts the TSH below the range (and we don’t experience bone loss or heart problems, as some clueless doctors will proclaim)

2) An optimal dose of NDT seems to put our free T3 towards the top of the range and our free T4 around mid-range, and it works great for most.

3) Going through peri-menopause can confuse things.

4) Most patients report it worked well for them to completely drop their Synthroid/T4 medication when starting on NDT…or to drop it fairly soon after starting NDT.

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

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P.S. Here’s my original 2006 post below. What you see in RED represents information that our experiences and wisdom corrected, which is above.

When I switched from Levoxyl to Armour on one day in July of 2002, the difference in my well-being was so stunning that I never looked back. In fact, I was so stunned that I started an internet talk group about natural thyroid hormones in August of 2002. I went from someone who couldn’t even sand a small wood project without being debilitated (Yes. Really. With a “normal” TSH and on Levoxyl)…….to someone who could eventually own her own store and stand ALL day. I am now on 4 grains, multi-dosed and sublingually, plus 1/8 grain at night. I have a free T3 at the top of the range, and a suppressed TSH.

Along the way, I’ve had to correct low Ferritin. Additionally, I’ve had to deal with some serious peri-meno issues caused by a plummeting progesterone level with a still high estrogen level.

All in all, my thyroid treatment with Armour alone has been a HUGE success story! I can work on my feet all day and wake up refreshed the next. And I haven’t needed a nap in years.

But…there has been one phenomena that has made be ponder. Namely, if I do several back-to-back days of busy activity, or, if I do something of high physical intensity in one day, I don’t recover as “speedily” as my friends who do the same with me. In other words, they will wake up refreshed, and I may need another day to do so.

And the above has made me ponder. Is it due to cellular damage from being on the lousy T4-only treatment for 17 years? Is it due to a need for adding a bit more Armour when I do excessively physical activity? Is it due to my body’s poor reaction to entering the meno-phase of my life? Or, is it due to my mid-range free T4?? I do remember that Dr. Dommisse of Arizona would seek to optimize BOTH free’s in his patients. And, I’ve heard that a doctor in California is doing the same. And I’ve wondered: does the higher free T4 provide what is needed due to conversion for recovery purposes??

So…I have decided to try an experiment…adding a small amount of T4 to my 4 1/8 grains of Armour. Remember: Armour as pig thyroid is approx. 80% T4/20% T3 (as compared to the human thyroid 93/7), and several patients on Armour tend to only get their free T4 to mid-range…even with an optimal high-range free T3…and I’m one.

I’ve been on 25 mg. thyroxine for over 6 weeks now. After 4 weeks, I “thought” I’d noticed a difference. But alas, I am also dealing with the effects of my stressful entry into menopause. So, it’s hard for me to tell what’s going on with adding T4! I also haven’t done labs yet to SEE where I’ve gotten my free T4, but will be seeing my doc soon.

Bottom line: though I am reporting my experiment to the readers of this blog, I honestly can’t discern yet with clarity what positive effects it’s having because of my peri-meno issues. But that is not taking away of the possible benefits of getting BOTH your free’s towards the top of the range. Dommisse of Arizona states the following:

“The brain seems to need to receive thyroid hormone in the form of T4 as well as T3, and then converts T4 to T3 INSIDE the brain cells. e.g., Patients on the so-called Wilson’s T3-only approach get good relief of physical symptoms but retain their brain fog, memory loss, concentration problems, etc.. The other reason it is a good idea to have your “reserve” of the T4 thyroid hormone as high as possible (as long as that is without any adverse effects)- so that, if you miss a dose of T3-containing preparation, you can possibly convert T4 more readily to T3 than if the T4 level is not as optimal.”

NOTE: if you are new to using Armour, please note that I am NOT advocating that you pressure your doc to add ANYTHING to your Armour…yet. That can only complicate your goal to find your optimal dose. If you still have problems on Armour, it’s a strong sign you simply aren’t on enough, or have low cortisol or low Ferritin. Remember: I feel GREAT on Armour–need NO naps, have excellent energy, no weight gain issues, etc.

I have also noticed that some STAY on their T4 when starting Armour. That may not be a bad idea since it would help you bridge over, but it can also end up confusing the issue of where your optimal dose is down the line!! As a thyroid patient advocate, I have noted that those that use their T4 one day, and get on Armour the next WITHOUT the T4, generally have an easier time finding their optimal dose down the line without confusion. And do know that some on Armour alone obtain that high-in-the-range free T4. I am just not one of them.

 

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