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Year: 2016

Oh Jolly. Guess What the Endocrine Society Has Spouted This Time?

“A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep.”  ~Saul Bellow

STTM ignorance graphicAnd here we go again.

On April 1st, 2016 (which is April Fools Day–how appropriate), out comes an article in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism which presents the latest updated position statement of the Endocrine Society, titled Compounded Bioidentical Hormones in Endocrinology Practice: An Endocrine Society Scientific Statement.

In other words, their last position statement on certain compounded medications came out in 2006, and this one trumps that one. And the implication is towards “increased regulatory oversight of all bioidentical hormones.”

Sounds innocuous enough, right? Certainly they are trying to be protective of us, right?

First, in case you don’t know much about the Endocrine Society, it’s existence began a century ago and is today the oldest “largest global membership organization representing professionals from the intriguing field of endocrinology.” Members come from 110 countries representing approximately 28,000 members, with 40 percent of them located outside the United States. They include scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students. And you’d think that a society with such a vast array of members from 110 countries might have some innate wisdom, right?

Gulp.

The first gist of the article is first about compounded sex hormones…and here’s my summary of their position:

  1. There is no other rationale for compounding your sex hormones other than having an allergy or intolerance.
  2. Compounded hormones are risky.
  3. Compounded hormones are dangerous.
  4. Compounding Pharmacists, who are licensed professionals, are thus dangerous if their product is dangerous.
  5. Reported successful patient experiences (and their improved lab results) with compounded sex hormones has no validity; only “randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials” have validity.
  6. Because there are no FDA-approved testosterone preparations for women, it should be completely avoided…so I guess the opposite logic applies?? i.e. that one should embrace FDA-approved medications like statins or the antibiotic Cipro with all their numerous side effects in all-too-many??
  7. Synthetic estrogen and synthetic progesterone is the way to go.
  8. Big Pharma products are the way to go.
  9. Give all your money back to Big Pharma

If you have a subscription to Medscape, here’s a good summary of what the Endocrine Society stated about compounded sex hormones, including DHEA, but I think my summary above says it all.

But here’s where it really gets nauseating for informed thyroid patients

Says the same Endocrine Society, as outlined in the Medscape article above (instead of my interpretation):

  • Levothyroxine (LT4) is bioidentical and a highly effective and safe therapy and is the treatment of choice for hypothyroidism. The complex tissue-specific deiodinase system converts T4 to T3 and supplies the proper amount of T3 to each of the body’s tissues according to its requirements.
  • Clinicians should evaluate patients with persistent symptoms (despite adequate LT4 therapy) for other causes of their symptoms and encourage patients to engage in healthy lifestyle measures.
  • Some of these patients may benefit from combination LT4/LT3 therapy, desiccated thyroid hormone, or compounded thyroid hormone, as long as symptoms and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) (free T4) are monitored carefully.

Oh really??

To the contrary, millions of thyroid patients from the past 50+ years have noted and/or reported on the following while on T4-only:

  1. Unresolved or accumulating problems like depression, adrenal stress, anxiety, easy weight gain, difficulty losing weight, easy fatigue, poor stamina, easy sickness/slow recovery, joint pain, painful feet, hair loss, dry skin, rising cholesterol, rising blood pressure, heart problems, kidney problems, other mental health issues, and hundreds more as reported here.
  2. A poor conversion of T4 to T3 due to a myriad of real biological and normal life events which can negatively affect that deiodinase conversion of T4 to T3, such as aging, the normal stress of life circumstances, inflammation, low iron, and just plain bad genetics, to name a few. The body is not meant to live for conversion alone!
  3. Lousy outcomes from being held hostage to the dubious “normal TSH lab range” are rampant. The TSH is a pituitary hormone and can never discern if all our tissues and organs are getting enough thyroid hormone from conversion alone.

So all of you who are esteemed members of the Endocrine Society, we as informed thyroid patients who live in our own bodies and have our own intelligence and wisdom,  challenge you to consider the following questions:

  1. Can you really call T4-only “effective and safe” in light of the myriad of continued hypothyroid symptoms that patients have noted or reported for 50+ years while on Synthroid, levothyroxine, Tirosent or any other brand of T4-only…sooner or later?
  2. In light of the fact that T4-only results in numerous organic and tissue problems like depression, a low metabolism, joint pain, high blood pressure, rising cholesterol and so much more…does it really meet the body tissues requirements?
  3. If T4-only meets all the body’s tissue requirements, why does nature cause a healthy thyroid to give not just T4, but also direct T3 and calcitonin?
  4. If all those continued and persistent hypothyroid symptoms on Levothyroxine are due to “other causes” or “unhealthy lifestyle choices”, why in the world do these same individuals see them all go away when they get on Natural Desiccated Thyroid and find their optimal dose (which has nothing to do with the TSH)??
  5. Why is it that when patients are held hostage to the dubious TSH range, they continue to have clear and/or rising hypothyroid symptoms?

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

– Have you Liked the Stop the Thyroid Madness Facebook page? It gives you daily inspiration and informative information based on years of thyroid patient experiences and wisdom as record on the Mothership of Thyroid Patient Experiences: STTM!

– You can comment to the Endocrine Society as to their views right on their own Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EndocrineSociety/

– Check out this video by Hugh Melnick MD about the superiority of NDT over synthetic T4: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muorjvQ4DUE

– Share this blog post below. Let’s spread the word about this!

50 replies

In Loving Memory of Dr. William Trumbower, a Contributor to the STTM II book

William D. Trumbower, M.D.With great sorrow, I want to announce that Dr. William D. Trumbower of Missouri, who contributed the chapter Nutrition and Hypothyroidism in the Stop the Thyroid Madness II book, has recently passed away.

I adored Dr. Trumbower. He had great humility. When I asked him to be in the book, he stated that he “agonized over it as I am not in the same category as the other authors”. Posh!! I knew that was totally wrong. He was smart, open-minded, insightful and fabulous.

What I loved about his chapter is his take on the effects of either inflammation, malnutrition or toxicity on one’s hypothyroid state. He talked about the gut and the problem one can have from gluten, besides all the problems we can encounter from refined sugars and industrial-processes oils–all which he explained can cause more inflammation.

In one section of his chapter, he discussed the problems on our thyroid and health in general due to toxicity from halogens, heavy metals and xenoestrogens. I kept thinking about that when I discovered myself with high copper and lead last year, as well as high barium!! He was also keenly aware of the importance of knowing if one has the MTHFR mutation, which in itself can cause high heavy metals.

Dr. Trumbower believed that “almost all hypothyroidism begins as a nutritional disorder”. Patients haven’t always found that to be true for them if genetics are involved, but we agree that a high body of us could fall in that nutritional problem category!! So what a perfect chapter subject for him to focus on.

But here’s what I have NEVER forgotten about Trumbower: He followed his own advice about nutrition and stated that his “thyroid dose dropped from 150 mg of desiccated thyroid to 30 mg daily”. That has always blown me away. His experience underscored how important it is for all of us to know our nutritional status and treat it! I definitely do. I had found myself to be low in B-vitamins, l-carnitine and CoQ10 and definitely treat those. I also tend to fall too low in magnesium, so that’s an important nutrient for me to supplement. Dr. Trum certainly underscored it.

After the STTM II book came out, he explained to me in his own humorous way how it had changed his professional life. He stated:  “I now have credibility instead of being an old outlying radical doc.”  Don’t you love it?? Now you know why I found him to be so endearing.  And one way he blessed me in return is in stating that even he used the revised STTM book to guide his own thyroid journey! You make this girl proud.

In 2015, Dr. Trumbower and his daughter Elisabeth created a fully integrated clinic that combined aesthetics, wellness and bioidentical hormone therapies, called Pela Cura Anti-Aging & Wellness. What a blessing that must have been to worked with his own beloved daughter!

I have included his bio from the book below, just for you to know more about him and what a wonderful person and doctor he was!

Rest in Peace, Dr. Trumbower. Your chapter in the STTM II book will forever inspire thyroid patients, just as your presence and open-mindedness in the lives of so many of your patients have done the same.

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I, William D. Trumbower MD, am a 69-year-old OB/GYN (no longer doing obstetrics or surgery), practicing in the, medium size, college town of Columbia, Missouri.  I am blessed in my practice, as my eleven partners do not require me to take call any more.  I am able to spend my time, in my office, performing annual exams on many people I have known for well over 30 years, as well as being able to concentrate on bioidentical hormones, thyroid, chronic fatigue and other areas that no one seems to be very interested in, probably because they are not extremely profitable.

I did not mean to be an alternative thyroid hormone physician. Nothing in my training would have given me any hint that this was to be my destiny. During my residency, I was obsessed with surgery, high-risk obstetrics and obstetrical anesthesia.  I was fortunate enough to to stay on the teaching faculty, at the University of Missouri — Columbia, for three years, as an assistant professor. I left the University of Missouri and entered private practice, in 1979.

I suppose I can trace much of my interest in alternative thinking to my parents, who were both extremely bright and well-read individuals.  My father, who had been a captain, in World War I, was the product of a classic East coast education and seemed to know everything about everything. My mother was a registered nurse and she was the one who directed me into medicine, by forcing me to get a job, in the summer of my high school graduation, in 1963, as an orderly, at the University of Missouri Teaching Hospital, in Columbia, Missouri.  When I think back to my youth, one of the turning points, at the age of 15, was reading Immanuel Velikovsky’s book’s Worlds in Collision and Earth in Upheaval.  I realized, after reading these books the important issue for me was not whether Dr. Velikovsky was right or wrong about his theories (I believe he was right, about most things), but how the scientific establishment dealt with someone who dared to question consensus views.  This attitude of not accepting what everyone assumes is the truth has stuck with me for the rest of my life.

Another turning point, for me, and my career, occurred early in my private practice, in the 1980s, when I was confronted with patients with cyclic mood problems, which my training had not prepared me to deal with, at all. The only thing that I could think of, for people like this, was hysterectomy and putting them on Premarin. One of my patients directed me to the works of Dr. Katharina Dalton, in London, England.  When I tried some of her techniques of supplemental natural progesterone, I was astonished to find that it worked remarkably well. As a result, my family and I took a trip to London, where I spent a week with Dr. Dalton learning her techniques. When I returned home, full of enthusiasm to share my new knowledge, I was shocked to find that most of my colleagues were very negative and wanted nothing to do with this information. It literally drew a line in the sand, with me on one side and most of my colleagues on the other. However, when I looked around, most of the patients were on my side of the line.

Because of my age, I did some of my training in the days before Synthroid dominated the market and natural products, such as Armour, were still in wide use. My mother was hypothyroid and I watched as her new doctors switched her to modern medicines, leaving her with a continued weight problem and fatigue.  Because of this, I was open-minded enough to prescribe Armour, if patients requested it, but I really did not know much about it until I met another physician from Columbia, Missouri, Dr. Mark Starr.  Mark was from Columbia and moved back here to start a practice.  He is the author of the book Hypothyroidism Type 2. I realized that he had a lot to offer my patients and so I began to communicate with him.  He is the one who directed me toward the work of Dr. Broda Barnes and opened my mind about thyroid. Since then, I have continued to read and study, extensively, about thyroid. My education was enhanced when I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, in the last decade.

Interestingly enough, one of my patients had brought me one of the first editions of Stop the Thyroid Madness, prior to my diagnosis.  I actually used many of the techniques and suggestions, in the book, to guide me through my own hypothyroid treatments, including a trial of Synthroid, finding elevated reverse T3, having to use T3 only and, finally, settling on desiccated thyroid, which I have been on since that time.

When Janie Bowthorpe called me to ask me to write a chapter, for her new book, I was dumbfounded to find that anyone knew who I was. I was likewise astonished at the other authors in the new book, many of whom are people whose works I regularly read. My hope is that this chapter will provide a small overview of my view on thyroid disease and the general approaches that I take with it.  I will end by saying that the most powerful tool that anyone has to control their health destiny is what they eat every day

** Dr. Trumbower’s obituary http://www.columbiatribune.com/obituaries/bill-trumbower/article_60ba8e47-c38f-5f03-ad9a-a87978dfa9ef.html

26 replies

Read what this Eye Doctor Observed in His T4-only Treated Patients!

Matt Dixon ODThe following Guest Blog Post has been written Matt Dixon, OD who currently practices optometry in Perry, Georgia.

And not only did Dr. Dixon find himself with hypothyroidism, he made quite an interesting observation: 90% of his patients currently taking levothyroxine still have symptoms!

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So how did an optometrist (eye doctor) become passionate and obsessive about spreading the news about what Janie calls the “Madness”?

My personal journey

I don’t quite fit the typical patient profile for a hypothyroid patient.  I’m not female, no weight issues. I’ve always been very active. Yet when the symptoms started, I was clueless about where they came from or that they all could even be related. 

All eye docs are trained to recognize thyroid eye disease, but truthfully, we focus on end-stage symptoms of Grave’s disease and the ophthalmopathy that often comes with it.  And the typical optometrist does not encounter this very often.  I had no clue that in my own practice, hypothyroidism was one of the most common conditions I see. 

I suppose my first symptoms were body aches and pains.  I had always experienced annoying back issues and I presumed that deterioration was setting in as I became older (40’s).  I’ve also always been cold-natured. And by 2010, I noticed that I was struggling to make it through the work day. So by the end of the day, I was exhausted.  In fact, I was no longer exercising, but found myself buried on the couch as soon as I came home, not getting up until I forced myself to climb into bed.  Once I made it to bed, I couldn’t fall asleep and became addicted to Ambien.  When the alarm clock woke me up the next morning, my wife had to literally pull me out of bed.  If I ever forced myself to jog, I felt as if I was carrying a 25 lb. backpack.  I also began to struggle with unexplainable stress and anxiety.  

But what finally prompted me to seek answers was in fact eye-related.  I was driving my kids home one night and the road in front of me actually moved suddenly from left to right.  I hit the brakes and feared for our safety!  My 17 year old son took the wheel and we made it home.

The madness for me began

My physician at the time is a well-liked internist in my community.  I made an appointment for a checkup complete with blood work.  I had some issues that I was concerned about, but neither the assistant nor doctor reviewed my symptoms. 

I went back in a week and promptly received a prescription for Synthroid for hypothyroidism.  With little discussion about the disease, I headed to the pharmacy. After a couple of weeks I began to improve.  But I wanted to know more.  I found the vast list of hypothyroid symptoms online and could not believe how many I was experiencing.  I read enough to know that elimination of symptoms was the best way to dose the medication and focusing on TSH only would lead to under-treatment. 

More importantly, if my doctor did not know any of my symptoms, how could he know when I was adequately treated?  It was time for a new doctor.

Why do MD’s undertreat hypothyroidism?

My new doctor, unlike the previous one mentioned above, did review my symptoms and pledged to increase Synthroid until my TSH was reduced to around 1.  I made sure they were paying attention to how I was feeling.  Yes, I improved tremendously and found my happy place on brand name Synthroid.  But I did move over to natural desiccated thyroid (NDT) and was even happier. As I adjusted to the new medication and found the correct dosage, I was able to get through the day with full energy and better mental focus.  Most days I am symptom free.

In my area, I have yet to find more than a handful of docs who use NDT with any frequency.  In my patient population, I rarely encounter a patient on NDT unless I have coached them to find a way to get the prescription.  (Optometrists are licensed to prescribe oral medications but only for eye conditions) 

Synthroid is the number one prescribed drug in America!

This is no accident and it will not be easy to battle the industry that achieved this coveted ranking.  Doctors clearly have been trained to use synthetic T4-only meds as the treatment of choice, having been convinced that it is highly effective.  Trying to change this at the medical school level will likely never happen.  Attempts to enlighten physicians who are convinced that levothyroxine treatment and normalizing TSH levels is the best care will rarely lead to change.  In fact, general practitioners and internal medicine docs will continue to get it wrong as long as endocrinologists and the American Thyroid Association (ATA) promote Synthroid religiously.  Those who have seen the light, thanks to educators like Janie Bowthrope, will laugh (then cry) when they read the preview from the ATA’s published pocket guidelines http://eguideline.guidelinecentral.com/i/521958-ata-hypothyroidism-pocket-card How could these smart folks be so misinformed and allow patients to suffer?

What can one eye doctor do?

I’ve decided to review residual symptoms with every patient who comes into my office taking any form of hypothyroid medication.  The majority of them have never reviewed such a list!  Occasionally, a patient will not circle a “single symptom”, but more often patients will have “several” symptoms.  I offer a 3-page summary of how hypothyroidism can be properly treated and, of course, I have them google STTM.  After counseling over 100 of these patients (with only one complaint), many have returned to say thank you.  Sadly, most patients get the push back from their MD and will remain on T4-only meds.  I’ve also learned that if a physician has not studied the use of natural desiccated thyroid and is only committed to normalizing TSH, even the patients who convert to NDT may still suffer due to ineffective dosing.

I treat many patients with dry eye syndrome, which is very common and sometimes costly to treat.  I am convinced that treating dry eye syndrome in a patient who is undertreated for hypothyroidism is like trying to change a flat tire on a car that is still moving.  Every eye doctor should take an interest in this disease even if for this reason alone!

What can a patient do?

Refuse to tolerate inadequate treatments.  Be passionate about your own health.  Recognize that very good doctors with good intentions have been misinformed and may be facing tremendous pressure in our rapidly changing healthcare system.  They do not quickly change deeply held beliefs when it comes to recommended treatments.

Study Janie’s recommendations.  Make an effort to help your physician understand.   //www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/doctors-need-to-rethink/  When seeking a new doctor, nurse practitioner, physician’s assistant or osteopath, ask questions before you make an appointment.  And do not assume that a board-certified endocrinologist is any more enlightened about this disease.

Final thoughts

My best analogy in attempting to drive home the importance of optimal treatment of hypothyroidism in my patients is to show them their vision as it would appear through a half-strength pair of glasses.  I ask them if they would be happy to see like this.  I ask them how quickly they would find a new eye doctor who prescribes full-strength glasses.  They get it.  I’m passionate about this disease and the patients who are literally suffering and feel uninvited to shout “I feel like crap!” to a doctor who won’t listen.  Together, we will make a difference.

Matt Dixon, OD

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Dr. Dixon has practiced in Perry and Warner Robins, GA for over 25 years.  He provides comprehensive eye care and frequently counsels patients regarding wellness.  He has written numerous articles on eye disease and the business of optometry.

He is married to Jenna and has 3 children and 2 dogs.  He is an aspiring songwriter and has recorded 2 albums.  Thanks to NDT, he is quickly becoming a CrossFit addict.  www.drmattdixon.com

164 replies

LYME SUCKS!! In Loving Memory of Paige Adams, FNP, B-C

Paige Adams, FNP, B-C UPDATED(Paige Adams died Sunday night/early Monday morning, due to her Lyme disease. And if you didn’t know her, I want you to.

In honor of Paige Adams, the Lyme Warrior….)

When I was contacting certain medical practitioners in 2014 to be in the STTM II book, one that I knew I wanted in there was Paige Adams.

Paige was a Nurse Practitioner with a fabulous reputation among patients as owner of The Center for Proactive Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee.

And Paige herself was a fighter! She had problems for many years and successfully treated her hormone imbalances like PCOS and infertility, Crohn’s disease, severe adrenal fatigue and Hashimoto’s disease. Perhaps that is why she specialized in treating difficult cases at her clinic…

And oh was Paige a fun and extremely loving individual, as so many others know! In our many email correspondences, she would start her message with things like “Hey Lovely Lady!” or “Hey Gorgeous!” or “Hi Ladybug!”. Or she would end her emails with “Much Love n Blessings”.  She always made me chuckle with her exuberant, sweet and loving personality.

Paige strongly supported this thyroid patient movement for better health care as well as our power in being informed patients and our best advocates. Her chapter happened to be about Reverse T3 in the Stop the Thyroid Madness II book, titled “Moving Forward with Reverse T3: The Causes and Health Implications”. And she wanted me to include all sorts of wonderful and cute graphics in the chapter, which you will see in Chapter 11. You can discern her dynamic personality in the way she wrote that chapter.

She concluded her wonderful chapter with the following words of wisdom:

The best best advice I can give to my patients is this:

– Eat clean (preferable gluten-free)
– Drink plenty of filter spring water
– Exercise to tolerance
– Find time to enjoy life and to laugh. I mean laugh a LOT!
– Get your face in the sun for even a few minutes every single day
– Keep your [internal] gutters and downspouts clean
– Get your caboose in bed for plenty of uninterrupted sleep every night

Paige also knew about the importance of B12, supported the use of Low Dose Naltrexone, understood personally about the MTHFR mutation, was concerned about the connection between certain viruses and cancer, was interested in genomics, supported the use of Natural Desiccated Thyroid in the treatment of hypothyroidism, and had an special interest in autism in children, many of whom she treated.

One of several treatments that Paige loved was the Myer’s Cocktail–an intravenous nutrient mixture that could contain high doses of the B vitamins as well as magnesium, vitamin C and sometimes calcium.

Paige was an “avid and outspoken animal lover”, too, which she never hesitated to talk about in her Facebook posts. Paige also loved the Alabama Crimson Tide.

And Paige had Lyme disease

For those who don’t know, and in simple terms, Lyme is a tick born infection via a bacteria of what is called the Borrelia type. It is estimated to affect 300,000 people a year in the United States and 65,000 people a year in Europe¹, even though many more individuals get bitten by a tick without getting Lyme.  The good news about the bite is that if it’s attached for less than 36-48 hours, there is less risk you’ll get Lyme.²  But it happens.

If someone does get Lyme, the signs and symptoms of the disease vary and usually appear in stages.³ Many will get a bullseye rash on the skin within the next week or more: some do not. Others will get flu-like symptoms, ranging from achiness to fever to fatigue. Over time, which can take months to years and especially if untreated, individuals can develop viral infections, inflammation, aches and pains, shakiness and/or neurological issues…to name a few. Lyme is nasty.

Paige, unfortunately, had active Neuropsychiatric Lyme Disease, which she explained to me in the Fall of 2015 and was fighting it all with IV antibiotics and a great amount of oral medications.  Also known as Lyme neuroborreliosis, it’s the neurologic involvement of either the peripheral or central nervous system.

Bottom line, Paige was one sick lady and fought like a champion. Her dear mother confirmed that she lost her battle with Lyme during the night. There will be no service, but as soon as her mother announces it, there will be a way to make donations, which I will include as a comment to this post.

Lyme disease and you

Do know that each person’s case of Lyme is individual with many variables, both in outcomes and treatment protocols. Many do quite well after treatment. For more information…

– A video to watch about Lyme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OdP8Jndnyk

– And another video by Dr. Horowitz about the co-infections that can go with Lyme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9a-2Nb2sbk

- – Here’s an interesting page where the results of this gal’s survey questions were tabulated about Lyme treatments: http://willtherebecake.org/2015/11/11/success-rates-of-various-lyme-treatment-options-a-personal-study/ The rest of the website is excellent.

More sites:

http://ilads.org/

http://www.lymediseaseassociation.org/

http://whatislyme.com/where-to-start-lyme-info-for-newbies/

http://www.tiredoflyme.com/http://www.betterhealthguy.com/blog

Groups:

– This group is for women only and focuses on abx: https://m.facebook.com/groups/243181499182129?ref=bookmarks
– This one is all about various herbal protocols like cowden, buhner, white     https://m.facebook.com/groups/263709223729311?ref=bookmarks
– This one follows dr. Klinghardt: https://m.facebook.com/groups/712530532196662?ref=bookmarks
– LDI: https://m.facebook.com/groups/828673227222144?ref=bookmarks
– Another Cowden group: https://m.facebook.com/groups/1547743332142929?ref=bookmarks
– Cannabis for Lyme: https://m.facebook.com/groups/1506598772889860?ref=bookmarks
– Lyme and mold (mainly follows dr. Shoemaker): https://m.facebook.com/groups/1485904731739075?ref=bookmarks

Dear Paige, you will be missed by so many people! Thank you for touching all our lives with your sweet spirit, highly positive outlook, loving attitude, tireless efforts to help others in your practice and passions…and your wonderful contribution to the STTM II book! And we all send our deepest condolences to your mother and the rest of your family and closest friends.

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  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyme_disease
  2. http://www.cdc.gov/lyme/transmission/
  3. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/lyme-disease/basics/symptoms/con-20019701

Here is a great article by Paige:

Intravenous Therapies – Miracle Help for All

And remarkably, this is the beautiful graphic she posted on Facebook the day before she died… We should all post it on our pages in her honor.

Paige Adams quote she posted

52 replies

A Speculative Account of the Effects of Iodine Supplementation at Different Doses

Screen Shot 2016-01-08 at 10.14.42 AMThe following Guest Blog Post was written by Malcolm Maclean, MD of the United Arab Emirates. Dr. Maclean serves as a Trustee and Medical Advisor for TPA (Thyroid Patient Advocacy) UK.

Dr. Maclean makes strong speculative proposals in this article as to why there are differing bodily experiences in the use of iodine and the doses used.

Take the time to read the below slowly and carefully–good points to consider!

NOTE: if you are receiving email notice of this blog post, a reply to the email goes nowhere. Instead, you need to click on the title of the blog post, which will take you directly to the STTM blog, and there you can comment.

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The value of iodine

Most folk in the Thyroid Community understand the requirement for Iodine because the body uses it to synthesize thyroid hormone.

But a variety of cells require iodine for optimum function, as well (e.g. breast, ovaries, pancreas and prostate). So Iodine is important for the body quite apart from supplying the thyroid gland with Iodine. This view is not widely held in the mainstream.

Further, several scientific reports point to widespread iodine deficiency, particularly in the UK and parts of Russia, pointing to the value of Iodine supplementation, at least in some cases.

Yet a problem and a challenge

The capacity of Fluoride and possibly Estrogen Dominance to aggravate dysfunctional Iodine metabolism argue for close attention. Because for those who choose to supplement with Iodine (and there is a strong case for this to prevent breast cancer, plus those diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Disease, see below), the response to such supplementation (based on reported experience of those contributing to Iodine Forums) appears to vary according to:

  1. the baseline Iodine status
  2. the state of the adrenal glands (operating at full strength or in a state of “adrenal insufficiency”?)
  3. whether Companion Nutrients are simultaneously supplemented.
  4. the chosen dose of Iodine
  5. how it is taken (via skin/orally)
  6. the size of the dose
  7. how quickly dosage is introduced

Important Point: For those in the Thyroid Community who have been diagnosed as having Hashimoto’s Disease, Iodine has a reputation for exacerbating Hashimoto’s Disease. However, Iodine may be tolerated provided that the “Companion Nutrients”, referred to above, are in place.

Why are Companion Nutrients important?

Arguably, the adverse effects attributed to Iodine, when used in the situation of Hashimoto’s Disease, are caused by the Iodine-induced, unbalanced and exaggerated activity of the activity of an important and powerful thyroid enzyme: Thyroid Peroxidase, thereby a creating Oxidative Stress and the potential for thyroid cell damage. The Companion Nutrients are designed to support the body’s antioxidant System. Companion Nutrients are used here to prevent damage arising from the unopposed action of Thyroid Peroxidase, as and when Iodine is introduced to the Thyroid Gland, especially in the situation of an inadequate anti-oxidant System.

The purpose of this article

The purpose of this text is to examine the variable experience of those who have reported the effect of supplementing with Iodine and to attempt to explain those experiences according to how the body responds in different metabolic situations. Therefore the purpose is not to influence the reader in any direction (as regards Iodine usage) but to perhaps enable a speculative view of what might happen if/as and when, Iodine is supplemented and why.

I believe that no one should adopt Iodine supplementation without a good deal of reading around the subject, e.g on the STTM and TPAUK websites.

I apologize for the length of this contribution. However, it deals with the complex issue of Iodine effects and it is tricky to give a brief interpretation of this little-understood, but important area, especially for those whose metabolism is out of whack because of the toxic effects of mercury, which has the capacity to damage adrenal, thyroid and methylation function (at least).

So, this text has also been written for those with suspected toxicity (e.g. from dental amalgam) in the hope that the text might explain and emphasize components of the Shade Protocol (designed for the elimination of mercury), which might be ignored by those who, unwisely, are too hasty to get better. 

The right dose of Iodine

I don’t think anyone fully understands what “the right” dose of Iodine is.

If your adrenals are out of whack, Iodine is liable to cause you to crash.

Nor is there agreement on what may be the further results of Iodine supplementation, especially at higher doses.

Some people assert that if you start supplementing with Iodine, two different effects may result, depending on what dose you start at:

Low Dose

Effect: Up-regulation of thyroid synthesis, especially for those who are Iodine deficient (many people are Iodine deficient, so that makes sense). However, if your adrenal function is down, the cells cannot handle the increased levels of stimulation (via thyroid hormone) without a correspondingly elevated level of cortisol.

It is known that thyroid hormone and cortisol work together. Hence, in the situation of adrenal insufficiency (possibly Mercury-induced in the first place, for some) there is the potential for an adrenal failure-induced “Crash” (= feeling dreadful +/- palpitations =”Thyroid toxicity”). So in these two situations… (a] adequate, vs  b]  inadequate adrenal function…taking Iodine may make you feel better or worse

High dose

Effect: Some people report benefit from the introduction of Iodine at a high initial dosage (going against the principle of starting low, increasing slow). This appears not to make sense.

The theory of taking high doses of Iodine

One theory involves acknowledging that Iodine may function as an antioxidant (that Iodine has antioxidant properties, is accepted, although, perhaps not widely so).  The theory goes: Iodine exerts its antioxidant properties but only noticeably at higher doses.

Further, so the theory goes, that antioxidant effect at higher doses tends to overcome the blockage of adrenal function that is creating impaired adrenal function in the first place. Meaning: Low cortisol synthesis and low cortisol levels, because of Mercury blocking cortisol Synthesis by exerting stress on the anti-oxidant system (Iodine usage here, supporting the anti-oxidant system and opposing Mercury).

That too makes a certain amount of sense, because Mercury is known to be able to block cortisol synthesis by acting as an oxidant and exerting stress on the anti-oxidant system.

Speculatively, once your Iodine dosage has (according to this scenario) restored adrenal function by opposing Mercury effects, any further increase may start to be counter-productive (meaning onset of Iodine overdose).

Speculatively, according to dosage therefore, these situations may result sequentially:

1. Baseline: Iodine deficiency in the diet.

Sub-optimal thyroid function with, perhaps, symptoms of Hypothyroidism.

2. Addition of Iodine at low dosage

a) Improves you if adrenal function is adequate
b) Crashes you if you have adrenal insufficiency

3. Addition of Iodine at high dosage

a) Bypasses the “Crash” effects
b) Remits the oxidative stress which is causing the (Mercury-induced) adrenal Insufficiency (with knock-on low Cortisol levels), enables the adrenals to restore Cortisol synthesis:

Result?  Feeling better

4. Supra-Optimal Iodine Dosage

Meaning: even higher dosage than that necessary to restore adrenal function and Cortisol levels:

Speculatively: Iodine Toxicity

Result: You start to feel down again.

Speculative summary of Iodine effects according to dosage

Starting at a “Low” baseline level (Iodine Deficient status) and from there, increasing daily dosage: Feels down-> Take more Iodine-> Feels better->Increase Iodine dosage. More iodine-> Feels worse-> Increase Iodine dosage. More Iodine->Feels better-> Increase Iodine dosage even further: feels worse

This is all theory and is provided for the benefit of those who speculate about what effects Iodine may have.

In preparing the description of this speculative scenario, I am indebted to the contribution (of a lawyer) to an Iodine Forum, who wrote interestingly on this topic as follows:

“Okay. This all-theoretical, mind you, but based on my experience, I think my theory may be correct. At lower doses of iodine, many of the symptoms labeled as bromide detox are identical to adrenal fatigue symptoms: air hunger, low blood sugar, weight gain, headaches, dizziness, fatigue, insomnia, anxiety, palpitations, etc. Another coincidence: the very things that Brownstein etc. recommend for bromide detox are actually things used to alleviate adrenal fatigue: Vitamin C, salt… This may explain many of the symptoms of detox at lower doses. It’s actually adrenal fatigue. Now, iodine can also act as an antioxidant, but only when the body uses excess iodine to make a lipid called delta-iodolactone. But the body will not make this unless it is such a high dose of iodine that the body feels confident that it has enough iodine for its basic needs, so it can use the excess iodine to make this antioxidant lipid. This antioxidant is like 300x more powerful than Vitamin C. I think that you have to take upwards of 100mg of iodine or higher for the body to make this. Because when I take 25mg, I have horrible detox symptoms, but when I take 100mg of iodine I feel normal. I think that at 100mg and up, the body makes delta-iodolactone, and this [is an] antioxidant . It’s the only thing that can account for the fact that people, who can’t take 25mgs without getting sick, can take 150mg without a problem. And there have been about 10 of us who have found this to be true”

The only difference between the lawyer’s interpretation of Iodine effect (at high dosage) and my interpretation:

My interpretation is that at high Iodine dosage, that strong antioxidant effect kicks in, thereby enabling Iodine to resurrect the adrenals (and thus cortisol levels) by opposing the strong oxidant and toxic effects of Mercury. The evidence for this speculation?  At high concentration, iodine appears to tighten up the mitochondrial membrane, thereby preventing leakage of cytochrome C from the mitochondria, across the mitochondrial membrane into the cytosol (cytoplasm).

Result? Less  in the cytosol diminishes oxidative processes in the cytosol.

Result? Less risk of the negative consequences of oxidative stress.

Result? Restoration of the important enzymes which have been suppressed by oxidative stress.

Result? Recovery of 17-Hydroxylase, 5′ Deiodinase, and Methionine Synthase, thereby contributing to the recovery of adrenal, thyroid and Methylation function respectively.

There are those, including myself, who attribute their thyroid & adrenal failure to Mercury toxicity (from dental amalgam). Importantly, this interpretation of Iodine effects draws attention to and emphasizes the importance of supplements described in the Shade Protocol (designed for the elimination of Mercury) and also described as the “Companion Nutrients” in “Iodine Context”.

To summarize: Iodine supplementation is a tricky area. Extensive reading prior to any usage is advised. Adrenal function should be good and the Companion Nutrients should be in place as supplements before embarking. Potential effects of Iodine at different doses have been speculatively described. Getting the right dose is especially tricky and there appears to be no way of knowing what is the right dose without just trying and seeing. Few would argue against a daily dosage of Iodine: one milligram per day, properly supported, as described above.

Further, importantly, this text is not a recommendation to start taking Iodine at massive doses, despite the fact that some report benefit from this approach. The reason for such caution is, as usual, that our metabolisms are all different.

Dr. Malcolm Maclean

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