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This and that–an array of interesting info for your thyroid pleasure

I’ve been distracted the past week, having to do extensive research and traveling to find the perfect “new used car”.

Then I caught a cold from hell–rare for me.  I was taking zinc and Vit. C. But a good friend reminded me about Vit. D and it’s immune enhancing effect. OMG, I forgot about it!  So later last night, I took what I thought was 12,000 IU on the first night of being sicker than a dog.  They say to take 1000 mg per 10 lbs of weight. Turned out the gel caps were not 1000 IU each, as I thought, but 2000 IU each. So I ended up taking 22,000 IU.  lol. But the long and short of it is this: though I woke up this morning quite tired and weak, I’ve slowly gotten better all day!! My congestion has hugely improved.  Read this: http://pandemicsurvivor.wordpress.com/2009/11/28/eliminate-the-common-cold/

Love your green powder drink? Just a word of caution: much of what is in many of those powdered greens are goitrogens, which inhibit thyroid production, such as wheat grass, barley grass, broccoli, spinach,  cabbage, maca and spinach, plus much more. But that doesn’t mean you can’t use the green powder. You’ll just have to be sure to use it in moderation, and not consume too many other goitrogen foods each and every day. Or, raise your thyroid meds.

Dr. Peter Gott can give even better information to readers. I noticed that a column on the Tulsa website by Peter Gott, MD of the Newspaper Enterprise Association  could have given different information to a distressed reader who couldn’t find Armour anywhere.  He recommended to this reader, who already stated that Synthroid is not a well-handled treatment, to see if her physician could “alter the Synthroid dosage to find a level”  that could be tolerated.  Actually, there are far better options during this backordered time, which I have compiled here, and includes Erfa’s Thyroid and more.

Naturethroid is appearing in pharmacies! Yup, patients are reporting it! No, it’s not all pharmacies. But you might want to call and see if YOUR local pharmacy has it. Otherwise, it’s coming.  For options during the current natural desiccated thyroid shortages, go here. To see why we are where we are today, read this.

Is there research to prove having a free T3 in the upper quarter of the range when on desiccated thyroid?? A gal emailed me, wanting studies to show her doc. But unfortunately, the answer appears to be no. Instead, this is what patients all over thyroid groups discovered from their lab results when they were feeling fabulous again with no lingering symptoms.  So we simply spread the word. Patient experiences DO count for something.  P.S. Here’s an ongoing list of research that DOES prove some things patients KNOW first hand.  And by the way, when you have a high free T3 and continuing symptoms, time to do labs for ferritin and adrenal fatigue.

By using a code, you can save on labs from HealthcheckUSA. I was informed from HealthcheckUSA that many patients were forgetting to mention the discount code. So look again, and be sure and use it from the Recommended Labwork page.

Janie on radio shows, and a great guest for the upcoming Talkshoe Thyroid Patient Community Call. Can’t say much more, because it’s in the works. Watch for announcements soon.

A new way to be informed of these thyroid posts. The former Notifixious notifications went out of business. But we have a new and GOOD one, referring to the notification as a newletter, and you can sign up free and with no strings attached.  See on left below on the links. :)  Also, there are many more important posts right below this.

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Will the FDA be more transparent for thyroid patients? We’ll see.

TransparencyFDAA press release just came out stating that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has “unveiled the first phase of its Transparency Initiative which is designed to explain agency operations, how it makes decisions, and the drug approval process.”

Of course, this doesn’t mean thyroid patients can stop what seems like an inane decision to require makers of desiccated thyroid to “prove” , via expensive clinical trials, that it’s a safe and effective medication. RLC Labs, for example, the makers of Naturethroid and Westhroid, will be affected.  Over 110 years of patient use, with 70 years by RLC, certainly reveal it’s a safe and effective treatment. But at least this transparency initiative will “potentially”  give us better information about the process. We’ll see.

About the upcoming Part 2 with Dr. Lowe (see the blog post right below this): Some folks were booted off last Thursday and had to quickly get back on. The problem is when you get back on, you may lose your ability to chat.  i.e. the system stops the chat ability once there are 300 individuals already on the chat.  You can listen, but you can’t chat after 300 are on.

So there are three things you can do to prevent being booted off and having to get back on:  first, make sure you have closed anything else on your computer–i.e only Talkshoe should be up. Second, make sure no other programs are running in the background, or will come on, like your anti-virus, and 3) ahead of time, download Live Pro from Talkshoe and use that. It’s more stable.

I, in turn, will be doing a strategy to strengthen this call from boots.  Additionally, if necessary, some who aren’t chatting out of the first 300 will have their option changed to no-chat to allow those who came in latter to do it.  It’s not personal because I don’t know who a lot of you are. It’s just spreading the ability into the call.

Do you take regular aspirin? Just as we warn about swallowing your meds when you have just eaten anything with calcium, iron or estrogen (they bind the thyroid hormones), you need to be aware that aspirin can have a negative affect on your thyroid levels, as well.  i.e. though it may help lower high thyroid levels, it’s not good for your thyroid treatment if you regularly take it.

How did we get to where we are with the FDA’s actions towards desiccated thyroid today? Go here.

Erfa’s “Thyroid” has been our saving grace–here’s more info from Dr. Knafo and Erfa!

erfalogoThe year of 2009 will long be remembered for two nightmares straight out of Twilight Zone for thyroid patients: 1) Armour desiccated thyroid by Forest Labs was reformulated with patients globally reported a return of symptoms and new frustrating ones, and 2) shortages of all US-made natural desiccated thyroid like Armour, Naturethroid and Westhroid occurred, as well as no more generics thanks to the FDA.

Additionally, as I write this, Naturethroid and Westhroid by RLC Labs are still hard to get–making too slow a return on pharmacy shelves which may not improve until 2010. You can read details and a good summary about this on about.com.

But there’s been a silver lining to this situation: Canada’s “Thyroid” by Erfa.

Many patients made a switch to this desiccated thyroid product, using online pharmacy websites and their prescriptions from their doctors. And overall, the experience of patients with Erfa’s Thyroid has been extremely positive.

I had a wonderful chat this week with Dr. Henri Knafo, the Director of Medical Affairs at Erfa Canada Inc.  My first and most important question: Is there enough Thyroid for all your patient customers?? And I got an unequivocal “Yes” from Dr. Knafo.  He explained there are no concerns with running out and they have plenty in stock, now and in the future. He stated that if their stock gets low from sudden demand, they can easily get more and quickly.

I also asked: Is shipping timely? Definitely yes, Dr. Knafo stated. But he also qualified that Erfa is overloaded with orders. And though they are keeping up, your prescription order can take time to process. But, he stated “Be Patient. It will arrive!”

What is going on with the FDA and Erfa? He underscored that the FDA is cooperating completely, and they see a good future with the FDA.  They are completely tolerant, said Dr. Knafo, because they seem to understand the shortages. Erfa’s Thyroid is also completely approved and regulated by Health Canada. As far as the future and the FDA, Dr. Knafo strongly feels that once the FDA is reassured about desiccated thyroid, things will only get better for US patients with brands and availability. He feels that issues with the FDA are far more positive than many thyroid patients and leaders seem to get or want to see.

Do you see changes towards opinion of desiccated thyroid?  Definitely, yes. Dr. Knafo recently attended a European medical conference with over 50 specialists and he saw many doctors not satisfied with Synthroid and noticing the better treatment with desiccated thyroid. “It’s booming in Europe”, he underscored about Erfa and desiccated thyroid  “Even Endo’s are noticing”.  He also said that Belgium was experiencing a huge medical trend away from T4 and towards desiccated thyroid.

Why has the cost of Erfa’s Thyroid gone up even more than 50%?? His explanation was three-fold:  it was first a financial decision, since they have never made much of a profit on desiccated thyroid. Second, Health Canada requires a lot of expensive testing from Erfa on products. And third, since they buy their powdered desiccated thyroid from Europe, an increase in Euros meant they needed to increase the price.

Any final comments? Dr. Knafo clarified: Erfa has been making Thyroid for 30 years and not only will that continue, they will not change the formula. He thinks the sugar in Thyroid is what makes absorption so good, and that will continue as an ingredient just as it is.  Nothing will change! To see ingredients of Erfa’s Thyroid and other brands, go here.

You can read more about Erfa from my September 2nd post.   Thank you to Dr. Knafo for being so candid and informative!

See my post below about my mother, who lived her entire adult life undertreated on T4 with depression and electric shock treatment and had no internet to compare notes. If you have a relative from the past with a similar story, add the story to the Comments.

*HO HO HO! Have a STTM book sent to someone  you care about as a CHRISTMAS or HOLIDAY present. A card will be included, and the book will be in an envelope with a red bow!! Save money the more you buy!

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Oprah leaves her show behind in 2011, and also leaves millions of thyroid patients in the dust

opraharmsupThe news this morning about Oprah made me pause.

Yes, it’s being announced today that there will be no more Oprah Winfrey Show on CBS after Fall of next year.  She’s saying goodbye. And the rumor is that she will move her talk show to The Oprah Winfrey Network, which replaces the Discovery Health Channel. We’ll see when she formally announces it today on her show.

But the change sure does shine a bright spotlight on a colossal and complete failure by Oprah and The Oprah Winfrey Show for hundreds of millions of thyroid patients. Though she had her own bout with thyroid disease (and may still be dealing with it when you consider her weight issues), we all winced a year ago when she stated that a month long Hawaiian vacation and eating fresh foods with soy milk (a goitrogen) were a great way to treat her thyroid condition. Yikes.   We equally squirmed in our seats when Dr. Christiane Northrup made the comment that our thyroid problems were due to an “energy blockage in the throat region, the result of a lifetime of ‘swallowing’ words one is aching to say.” Double yikes.

And since then, we have watched nothing, zilch, zero from Oprah and The Opray Winfrey Show about a horrendous 55-year medical scandal of thyroid treatment that has negatively affected the lives of hundreds of millions of thyroid patients worldwide. T4-only meds like Synthroid, the darling medication of the medical community for hypothyroidism treatment, has left hundreds of millions sick.  The TSH lab test has equally sent us to hell.  Because we have been forced to live with continuing symptoms of hypothyroidism, we’ve endured much more testing and have been put on many other medications to bandaid our continuing symptoms. And a majority of us have had to deal with the additional burden of adrenal fatigue thanks to all the above.

It’s been hell, Oprah. But you never listened.  So for me personally, I could care less what you do now. You’ve let millions of us down.

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On a far better note:  Last night’s Thyroid Patient Community Call on Talkshoe was excellent. From thyroid/adrenal patient Valerie Taylor, who is absolutely one of the most knowledgeable patients in the world about adrenals and RT3, we gained good information how it raises its ugly head when you have high or low cortisol, low B12, low ferritin and other untreated issues, and how to treat it. You can go back to Talkshoe and listen to the broadcast, which was Episode 7.  See my blog post right below this. As far as future Talkshoe Community Calls: they will always be announced here first.

Below that, you’ll read how cellulose as a filler just may be a huge problem in natural desiccated thyroid meds. But we are also discovering that a good desiccated thyroid like Naturethroid, even with its cellulose, can seem even worse if we have undiscovered and untreated issues like low B12, low Vit. A, low ferritin, low Vit. D and other conditions common with hypothyroidism.  Make sure you have tested for these.

*HO HO HO! Have a STTM book sent to someone  you care about as a CHRISTMAS or HOLIDAY present. All the work is done for you!

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Reverse T3–do you have this problem in excess? Let’s talk!

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This blog post has been updated to the current day and time. Enjoy!

Most thyroid patients have heard about T4…the thyroid storage hormone, also called a pro-hormone. You’ll see it in literature as “thyroxine” or “l-thyroxine”–the latter as the name for a man-made T4.

And many know about T3…the active thyroid hormone which rids us of hypothyroid symptoms.

And as patients become more informed, they learn that the body not only converts T4 to T3 through what is called deodination, it also provides some of that T3 directly. That is an important distinction! The latter fact can be why thyroid patients report getting far better results with natural desiccated thyroid (NDT) like Naturethroid, NP Thyroid or other brands.

Patients might also learn that there are actually five thyroid hormones made in your body, which is also what’s found in NDT: T4, T3, T2, T1 and calcitonin.

Reverse T3

But in every individual, whether a thyroid patient or not, a thyroid can also convert T4 to the inactive RT3 (reverse T3).  RT3 is an inactive thyroid hormone, as compared to T3 as the active thyroid hormone. And converting to RT3 is a natural and necessary process, even if there are consequences.(1)  The body might convert T4 to RT3 as a way to clear out excess T4, or as a way to reduce your metabolic rate.  It can happen if you go through any of the following:

  • surgery
  • a major physical accident
  • certain heart problems
  • intense chronic stress
  • restrictive low carbohydrate diets (2)
  • chronic inflammation

When Reverse T3 is a problem

Unfortunately, many thyroid patients make far too much RT3, as well, and patients with their open-minded doctors have been making cutting edge discoveries about this fact.  Many patients have seen that their high levels of RT3 can be found with the following conditions:

  • high cortisol
  • low cortisol
  • low iron levels
  • possibly low B12
  • lyme disease
  • gluten intolerance or Celiac
  • other undiscovered and untreated underlying issues that can go hand-in-hand with being hypothyroid.

Why is a high level of RT3 is problem? That excess RT3 is making itself lazily comfortable on your thyroid cell receptor sites, preventing the active T3 thyroid hormone from doing its job on that same receptor to get you out of your hypothyroid state.  It becomes akin to a clogged up drain to your organs and cells. So you stay hypo and symptomatic, in spite of seemingly “normal” other labwork.

The solution

Informed patients discovered they needed to discover and treat all the reasons contributing to their body converting to excess RT3.

Want to read more? All the below is based on patient experiences and wisdom to share and work with your doctor:

For those with the revised Stop the Thyroid Madness book, there is also more good detail in Chapter 12 called T3 is the Star of the Show, page 155, to continue your education. This is all good information to take into your doctor’s office.

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(1) http://press.endocrine.org/doi/abs/10.1210/jcem-41-6-1043

(2) http://press.endocrine.org/doi/abs/10.1210/jcem-42-1-197

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