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Tag: Anthony Weetman

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: 2012 in perspective for thyroid patients worldwide

2012 represented my tenth year as an activist, which has given me great perspective of where we are today as to compared to where we were ten years ago. And it’s huge. We had NO Stop the Thyroid Madness compilation of successful patient experiences to learn from and very few patient groups. We’ve come a long way, baby and the fight for better thyroid treatment and wisdom continues!

To summarize, Clint Eastwood couldn’t have said it better as to the mix of what 2012 gave us as informed thyroid patients!

THE GOOD: 

  • Armour returns to a softer tablet  After Forest Labs disastrous reformulation of Armour natural desiccated thyroid in 2009, which made the tablets harder and caused a return of our hypothyroid symptoms, we started to see Armour tablets becoming softer again in mid-2012. And that meant we could choose to do Armour sublingually once again. In the meantime, this disaster allowed many patients to discover NP Thyroid by Acella, which has turned out to be a great product.
  • More doctors are getting it! I probably see this in a more widespread way than individual patients do thanks to all the emails I get, but it’s clear that a growing body of doctors are finally understanding the efficacy of natural desiccated thyroid and the idiocy of the TSH lab test in diagnosing and dosing NDT. Sure, the field of Endocrinology is still as backwards as it gets, as are many other doctors, but others are listening here or there. (But do note that even the best doctors aren’t caught up in other areas, so become informed and expect to guide them as to patient experience! STTM book helps you do that.)
  • STTM book now in German and Swedish  I was proud and excited to offer these two translations to help spread the word to those who may not speak English.
  • Study being done comparing NDT with Synthroid Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland is doing a study, and seeking participants from the military, to compare the results of natural desiccated thyroid (which they call Natural Desiccated Extract or NDE, and will be Armour) and T4-only aka levothyroxine (and will be the infamous Synthroid). But there is a clear bad…..see below 
  • Wichita, Kansas says no to Fluoride in their water. Considering that many of us suspect that the fluoride we are constantly exposed to could explain the huge influx of thyroid disease, this is extremely good news and we can only hope that other cities get this smart.
  • Thyroid Change In an attempt to unite all thyroid websites, leaders and focuses came this new website, Thyroid Change.

THE BAD:

  •  John C. Lowe dies  It was a terrible shock to lose this helpful medical professional in January due to the effects of a head injury the previous year. And his websites went with him for awhile due to probate. He will be sorely missed, as he was a champion for the use of NDT and understood SO much about better thyroid care.
  • The passing of Edna Kyrie  Edna of the UK worked hard on the website Thyroid History, aka Thyroid Research, compiling everything she could find pertaining to thyroid research and science, even while dealing with the effects of MS (multiple sclerosis).
  • US now confiscates medications if they come into the country  In July, Obama passed a bill called the FDA Safety and Innovation Act (S. 3187) which allows the government to destroy a package of personally imported drugs at their point of entry to the United States…even if some patients feel they need them when they can’t find any doctor wise enough to prescribe NDT, or enough NDT thanks to the poor use of the TSH lab test. And several patients have already had this happen to them.
  • Walter Reed National Military Medical Center study will sadly be using the TSH  i.e. though it looks exciting to see a study comparing NDT to Synthroid, they are going “to keep TSH in normal range” (which for the majority can mean they are still hypothyroid) and aren’t even testing the FREE T3, just using the total T3, total T4, free T4, T3 resin uptake, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), and a lipid panel.  Give me a break….
THE UGLY:

Good thyroid patient discussion groups here.

Things we have learned here.

What’s new on STTM here.

What your Road to Recovery can look like here.

The revised STTM book here.

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Scandanavian thyroid patients sickened…and US thyroid patients don’t blame them!

The following was sent to several thyroid leaders and websites yesterday from Scandanavia. And if you don’t understand the full story, read what I have to say about it below…and you’ll see why thyroid patients find this disgusting:

To Whom it may concern in the matter of The H. C. Jacobaeus Lecture Prize 2012 by the Novo Nordisk Foundation

With grief we become aware that The H. C. Jacobaeus Lecture Prize 2012 will be awarded to Anthony Weetman at The International Thyroid Symposium on 29 November this year, in Gardermoen, Norway.

Anthony Weetman is painfully well known by thyroid patients worldwide in a way that is miles afar from the honor and gratitude.

Can it really be true that Novo Nordisk Foundation will honor Anthony Weetman from the UK, despite the fact that this doctor treats the majority of thyroid patients as mentally ill?

Is it a position on thyroid diseases and patients that Novo Nordisk Foundation shares with Anthony Weetman?

It is well documented that Anthony Weetman is practicing a simplistic approach to thyro-endocrinology.

Does this mean that when Novo Nordisk Foundation wants to dignify this doctor with The H. C. Jacobaeus Lecture Prize 2012, the Foundation supports Anthony Weetman’s oversimplification of thyro-endocrinology?

Considering HC Jacobaeus’ honorable contributions to the history of science, the H. C. Jacobaeus Lecture Prize 2012 to Anthony Weetman is to be considered as an affront to HC Jacobaeus and as an Novo Nordisk Foundation’s active contribution to the gap between doctors and thyroid patients that will become even wider and deeper than it is already.

Sincerely,
Administrators and users of thyroid forums in Scandinavia
Ref: http://www.sonjas-stoffskifteforum.info/showthread.php?t=15164

So what’s the story?

First, let’s look at the players: Novo Nordisk “is a global healthcare company with 89 years of innovation and leadership in diabetes care. The company also has leading positions within haemophilia care, growth hormone therapy and hormone replacement therapy.”

Anthony “Tony” Weetman has been a Professor of Medicine at the University of Sheffield in the UK for many years. Since 1991, he was also a Consultant Endocrinologist at the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Trust. From 2005 – 2008, Weetman was President of the British Thyroid Association and presently is Chair of the Medical Schools Council and a member of Council of the Royal College of Physicians of London.

Why the disgust?  Weetman condescendingly believes the majority of thyroid patients have a somatoform disorder, which is just a medical way to say that millions of thyroid patients are no more than hypochondriacs. As a result, you are chronically exaggerating your symptoms and problems due to stress and worry. Thus what you think is wrong with you is actually the result of a MENTAL DISORDER! In 2006, Weetman revealed his true colors in an article titled “Whose Thyroid Hormone is it Anyway” (Journal of Clinical Endocrinology) by stating:

“The majority of patients who demand thyroid hormone treatment for multiple symptoms, despite normal thyroid function tests, have functional somatoform disorders…”

Bottom line, my fellow thyroid patients, Weetman is basically saying that your depression, heart problems, high blood pressure, low blood pressure, rising cholesterol, easy weight gain, hair loss, fibromyalgia pain, chronic fatigue, sluggish adrenal function, low iron, high liver enzymes, and a host of other very real hypothyroid-caused symptoms….ARE IN YOUR HEAD…especially if the TSH lab test (which patients know is a failure) says you are normal.

You can read my blog post from 2006 on Weetman here. And US thyroid patients support and understand the disgust of our friends in Denmark, Norway and Sweden!

WANTED: YOUR BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTOS OF HYPOTHYROIDISM TREATMENT

I have started a page where you can showcase how you looked before the right thyroid treatment, and afterwards, here. Combine a photo of how you looked before treatment, and after treatment, into one JPG, and use the Contact at the bottom of any page on STTM to send me the photo, your first name, age (not required) and treatment. Let’s show the world what thyroid treatment can do for your mental disorder. 😛

ARE YOUR DUCKS IN A ROW?

Have you been doing your complete thyroid treatment protocol correctly? Because for most all of us, there can be several bases to cover to feel wonderful again. You will find the following information covered on an actual page on STTM, here, as well. Using the revised STTM book can be an important in-your-hand reminder, as well, of the bases you need to cover.

Numbers 1-6 below are key elements to feeling better again, and must be maintained, as well. You will be making a mistake if you underestimate the importance of these.
  1. Thyroid hormones: being on natural desiccated thyroid and finding the right amount, or the amount you can tolerate until you correct #2 and 3 below. (See Chapter 2 and 12 .)
  2. Adrenals: bringing cortisol to right amounts whether through the T3CM or HC ( Chapter 6 of the revised STTM book)
  3. Iron: you need optimal amounts, not just in range. (See Chapter 13)
  4. B12: should be in the upper quarter of any range. Lower and you could have symptoms which resemble hypo. (See Chapter 13)
  5. Vit. D: should be closer to 80 (We go by the Vitamin D Council. Addendum C in book)
  6. Better Absorption: Putting one tablespoon ACV or any acid in the drink you use to swallow your supplements will enhance absorption—key for the low stomach acid too many thyroid patients have.
 Once you have made SURE all the above is corrected and then maintained, and if you still have issues….then it’s time to look at these:
  1. Re-activated EBV (Epstein Barr Virus): very common for hypothyroid patients under stress. My Med Lab tests this. 
  2. Lyme disease
  3. Other viruses: get your doctor to identify and test any other potential viruses.
  4. MTHFR defect: look this up if you seem to need high doses of T3 for “resistance”, have high iron, hard time getting nutrients up, high B12….http://mthfr.net/
  5. Chronic inflammation: can be discerned by too-high ferritin or a CRP test. You need to get this down. Can affect many things in your body negatively!
  6. Candida: promotes inflammation!
  7. Blood sugar
  8. Sex Hormones: low levels can make you feel bad. Also look into PCOS.
STOP THE THYROID MADNESS book is now in SWEDISH, GERMAN and ENGLISH. Get yours here….or send one to your friend or family member and let it help change their lives!
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