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The Makers of Naturethroid & WP Thyroid have contacted Janie Bowthorpe

An update from Janie after this original 2018 post below

Sadly, since I posted the below, there have been a large and growing body of patients who have found that the “new” Naturethroid (in the same amount that once removed their hypothyroid symptoms) has left them with with major symptoms, plus free T3 and free T4 very low in the range and a high TSH. Those who have tried raising state it has done nothing to return them to their former state. Something pretty bad is going on now with Naturethroid.

There are a very few who report feeling fine…but, we notice that the longer someone is on the new Naturethroid, the more the hypo symptoms creep up.  i.e. it can be the adrenaline being released that fools people into feeling better…until they crash. 

So below, which I wrote before writing what I am now, seems to counter the comment that RLC has a commitment to quality, say many patients in groups.

2nd update from Janie as of August 2020

It turns out that Naturethroid was recalled in 2020 due to sub-potency.

And now the original blog post from 2018, below.

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Here is a May 16th, 2018 update directly from RLC Labs to me via email (and perhaps on their site)–the maker of Naturethroid and WP Thyroid, both natural desiccated thyroid brands. Comments from me, Janie Bowthorpe, below that. 

Since we went back into production, there have been a lot of questions–understandably so– around what caused the backorder, why certain strengths have been released ahead of others, and why available strengths are not yet at some pharmacies. We have done our best to communicate updates throughout the delay but deeply apologize if they did not reach you or answer your questions. It is not our intention to keep anyone in the dark or hide anything, and we hope this letter helps clear things up a bit more.

After expanding our operations to better accommodate growing demand and overcoming hurdles in obtaining raw material–the primary factor behind the backorder–we are happy to say that everything needed to ensure ongoing, full-scale production is in place. We are actively shipping and are focused on filling backorders.

We are far from being a “big pharma” company, however, and do not have the scale of one, but we are maximizing our working capacity and mean it when we say every effort is being made to expedite things. We are a small but dedicated team, many of whom take Nature-Throid® and WP Thyroid®, that has been and continues to be committed to keeping patients, not profits, the top priority. We also have very strict quality standards. Every batch of Nature-Throid and WP Thyroid is rigorously tested to ensure it meets or exceeds United States Pharmacopeia (USP) monographs for potency and consistency.

Our commitment to quality has been a huge factor in why no RLC Labs® medication has ever being recalled for inconsistent hormones and we do our due diligence to keep it that way. Working through our existing orders at our size and with our strict quality standards takes time, but progress is being made–including with WP Thyroid, which we will share updates on as soon as they become available.

We remain committed to staying as transparent as possible throughout this process, but just like any other company, some of our information–such as our processes and sources–is strictly internal-only. This has been understandably frustrating in some instances, but please know that we are sharing what information we can when we can. We will continue to do so, just as we have from the start, until all strengths are fully stocked and available again.

In that spirit, here are the real facts of some rumors you may have heard along the way:

● RLC Labs is not going out of business, nor have we been acquired by any other company.
● There are no issues with our licensing and the backorder is completely unrelated to any governmental or FDA-related rumors.
● Neither of our medications, nor any strengths of them, are being discontinued.
● We stay committed to maintaining the affordability of our medications. Pharmacies set their own prices, but ours have not changed.
● Our strict quality standards apply to every part of our operation–from our guaranteed hormone levels to our materials and manufacturing–which is why we carefully source our thyroid from the U.S. and Canada and are only in production in the continental U.S.

It has been difficult not being able to serve our patients at the level you have come to know and expect from us, but we know that what we are dealing with is a far cry from the challenges our patients are facing and for that we are truly sorry. Our teams are working around the clock to get us back on track, but below are some suggestions if your doctor or pharmacy is having trouble obtaining available strengths, or if you are having trouble locating them. Your continued understanding, patience, and support are greatly appreciated as we work to make things right.

ORDERING AND LOCATING AVAILABLE STRENGTHS

Please check the availability statement on our website (getrealthyroid.com) for a list of actively shipping strengths. If your doctor or pharmacy is having trouble obtaining available strengths, they can contact us directly for assistance via the ‘Provider’ tab on our contact page. Any pharmacy of your choice that is not required to order through a wholesaler can also contact us through our website for a direct account–this applies for many healthcare providers as well. Please note that most pharmacies do not order directly from RLC Labs but through third party suppliers, and many large chains are required to order through a wholesaler. Once product is out our doors, we have no control over how it is prioritized or distributed among pharmacies, nor do we have any insight into a specific location’s inventory. If you are having trouble getting an available strength from your local pharmacies, we recommend checking any of the mail-order pharmacies listed on our website. The states shown only indicate where they are located; please check the pharmacy’s website or contact them to see where they ship. When getting your prescription filled through any pharmacy–brick & mortar or mail-order–we also recommend asking for both the cash price and insurance price (pending coverage) as all pharmacies set their own prices.

Comments and summary from Janie Bowthorpe

As long as I’ve been doing this, I’ve always been amazed at the false information patients receive from Pharmacists especially, then from each other, which spreads like wildfire in groups.

For example, note above that RLC has not been bought out by another company, and they have their tablets produced in the continental US, i.e. NOT in Puerto Rico. Both rumors were rampant and widespread. I even approved a few comments on the STTM blog posts that stated the Puerto Rico comment, and had massive doubts. But the rest of their comment was too good to reject the post.

Also note that RLC labs is working on getting WP Thyroid back as well i.e., no, it has not been discontinued–another rumor. The lesson is: don’t believe everything you hear!!

Also note that the reason this all happened, says RLC Labs, is because of increased difficulty in obtaining their Thyroid USP–that means the desiccated porcine powder. Costs were getting higher, as well. So they state they are now sourcing their thyroid powder from both the US and Canada…they wouldn’t state from whom. The latter is also on top of “some infrastructural upgrades (bigger facility, updated technology, refined processes) not too long ago”, stated RLC, to better meet the growing demand for their medications.

Finally, I think it was a good recommendation to ask for both the cash price and insurance price at your pharmacy. There may be a savings there.

In the meantime….

There are other good Natural Desiccated Thyroid products like NP Thyroid made by Acella–many good reports on that one. Even the less popular Armour has been working for some, even if not all. Here is a summary of your choices for a much better treatment of your hypothyroid state.

Also please note: if you switch and don’t feel you aren’t doing well, consider two things:

  1. The amount that did you well on Naturethroid or WP may be a different amount with another brand. REDO YOUR FREE T3 and FREE T4 and see how you stand after being on the different brand a few weeks, because you may need to tweak. Optimal puts the free T3 toward the top along with a free T4 mid-range.
  2. Some people have developed either a cortisol problem and/or iron issue, and it’s being revealed on the different brand. Find out by doing all four iron labs and cortisol saliva testing. Too many people are blaming brands, and it’s most likely either 1 or 2 are the real problems.

Don’t hesitate to comment below! Could RLC Labs have done all this better than they did?  Does the above give you peace of mind? Have YOU been able to acquire the latest Naturethroid? How are you doing??

  • Need a good discussion group with integrity? Go here.
  • STUDY the Natural Thyroid 101 page on how patients have learned to use Natural Desiccated Thyroid–it’s important, as too many patients under dose themselves!
  • STAND UP AGAINST A DOCTOR who tries to dose you by the TSH. Be educated to counter his or lack of education!!
  • READ the STTM books! YOU have to become informed and confident to stand up to bad doctoring. 

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A Pandora’s Box is being opened, and some thyroid patients will have strong opinions

When I found out about natural desiccated thyroid in 2003, which at the time was Armour (and when it used to be a better product), I was lucky to find a Nurse Practitioner to put me on it, even if I had to drive far.  Today, I use a different doctor who totally supports my new health on desiccated thyroid. Natural desiccated thyroid has saved my life.

I’ve been lucky. But some thyroid patients have not.

It’s been clear that a certain percentage of thyroid patients, who desire to be healthy and live again after the nightmare of T4-only treatment, have had a hard time finding a doctor to either prescribe desiccated thyroid, or to understand how to dose it even if they did prescribe it. Even harder have been those thyroid patients with adrenal fatigue in finding doctors who understand this widespread and debilitating condition and how to treat it.

As a result of the latter tragedy…and here comes the big elephant in the room…some thyroid patients will state they have felt forced to self-treat and find their needed medications via online websites in order to live again.

And now comes some breaking information that I think all thyroid patients who feel forced to self-treat, and even those who don’t but use legitimate prescription-required online pharmacies, need to read:

  1. Apparently, we now have a possible explanation of why “some” online pharmacies have disappeared: a company called LegitScript LLC, which seems to have some power to push online pharmacies out of business.
  2. Also, says PharmacyChecker.com, LegitScript has been targeting some of the “legitimate pharmacies” i.e. those who require prescriptions.
  3. And here’s another twist: PharmacyChecker.com, who is “the leading online verification company for U.S. and international online pharmacies” commends LegitScript for fighting the pharmacies who send out meds without a prescription, but does not agree with LegitScript’s attack towards legitimate on-line pharmaceuticals. If this is true, the former will concern thyroid patients who feel forced self-treat in order to have their health restored, and the latter is good news for those who use these “legitimate prescription-only pharmacies”.
  4. Additionally, there may be some governmental push to get ICANN, the organization that works with URL names of businesses, to forbid URL’s to certain pharmacies across the world, and that may have huge legal implications. Last week, the Santa Monica headquarterd eNom, which is a domain name registration and wholesaler, has agreed to work with LegitScript in “identifying customers who are operating online pharmacies in violation of U.S. state or federal law”.
  5. There is going to be a White House meeting on September 29th which is focusing on addressing “illegal online sales” via these internet websites.

You can read more about PharmacyChecker’s opinion about the White House and online pharmacies here and their opinion of Legitscript here. You can read about an investigation request against the president of LegitScrip here and his rebuttal here. I am just now reading about this, and reporting above on what I know right now. I’m sure there is more to come, and I also have no doubt that this is going to produce a lot of discussion and/or action by thyroid patients. If you want to contribute to discussion on this, here is where to go. BUT REMEMBER: unlike what has happened before, let’s keep a level head and stick to facts.

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Are we running out of desiccated thyroid powder???

And now that I have your attention, here’s the answer straight from the mouth of Kenny Soejoto, Chief Operating Officer of the only North American maker of desiccated porcine natural thyroid powder (American Laboratories): a firm NO!

“We have amply supply and so do the distributors for compounding pharmacists”, underscores Soejoto when I chatted with him today.

He also added in response to the recent shortages:  “We didn’t spare an expense to push it along”.  i.e  “American Laboratories have caught up with all backorders, with the exception of one major company which has tight specifications, but they should be caught up by the first quarter in 2010”, explained Soejoto.

So what about specific rumors we keep hearing??

  1. My compounding pharmacy said they weren’t able to get it. Kenny explained that a small compounding pharmacy often can’t afford the minimum order that American Laboratories requires, nor does the smaller pharmacy want that much, which is an 110 lb drum of powder.  So, says Soejoto, they need to contact their distributor, who is the middle man between a compounding pharmacy and American Laboratories. “The distributor for compounding pharmacies, “ explained Kenny, “will buy the larger amounts, make smaller packets, and then sell those to the compounding pharmacies”.
  2. American Laboratories can’t be the only North American makers of powdered thyroid because my compounder told me a different name. The different name you heard is the middle man mentioned above–a distributor for the thyroid powder to the compounding pharmacy. But that distributor got their supply from American Laboratories.
  3. My regular pharmacy said there is a supply issue for the brand I wanted. Again, Kenny explains there is no supply issue–they have plenty. Any pharmaceutical company that makes desiccated thyroid has to have ongoing credit worthiness and documentation before AI can sell to them. Also, we are simply experiencing continued demand being greater than supply, and it can take time to catch up.  i.e. there may be more to the story than you hear under any comment about a supply issue problem.

In conclusion, Kenny Soejoto said they simply got into trouble from the growth of interest in desiccated thyroid the past few years, and they are much better prepared. Even Europe is inquiring more about it, he said. And my response to him?? Get ready, because you are doing millions of potential thyroid patients a HUGE favor by making it,  and we’re going to continue to spread the world about natural desiccated thyroid.  🙂

Check out posts below about other important issues, including more from Erfa, plus the problem of cellulose in compounded and regular desiccated thyroid.

*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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Interesting information about Compounded Natural Desiccated Thyroid

We had a great Thyroid Patient Community Call Friday night on TalkShoe with John Voliva, RPh, the President of Hooks Apothecary in Evansville, Indiana. Hooks Apothecary is a compounding-only pharmacy that has been in existence for ten years and is a small and high quality family-owned business.

And with our current shortage of desiccated thyroid via the tablets we were used to, compounding pharmacies are a good alternative in the meantime. Here’s what we learned from Mr. Voliva:

1) Different compounding pharmacies will use different fillers. Hooks Apothecary, for example, uses powdered acidophiles, the “active culture” which helps replace the good flora in your gut and improves digestion.

2) Compounded desiccated thyroid can be more expensive for two reasons: they acquire smaller amounts of the powder as compared to the huge amounts obtained by a pharmaceutical like Forest, and it takes time to compound it.

3) A good compounding pharmacy will give you the Certificate of Analysis right when you ask for it, and you should ask for it. This Certificate will tell you how much T4 and T3 is in one grain..and it’s not always simply 38/9 mcg.  It could be 35/8.6 or 39/8.5 per grain…for example.   Find out because there are allowed deviations of 10 mcg +-.  A really good pharmacy will shoot for an even better deviation and will also produce that Certificate right when you ask for it, not a day later. To not receive that documentation right when you ask implies they really weren’t paying much attention to the deviation.

4) A compounding pharmacy will get better deviations when they create a 65 mg grain of compounded desiccated thyroid than when they create a 60 mg grain.

5) Top notch Compounding Pharmacies will be accredited by, or be close to completing the steps towards, the Pharmacy Compounding Accreditation Board.

6) Compounding pharmacies can’t make a desiccated thyroid trouche because of the problems with heat in the processing of the trouche.

7) Mr. Voliva feels it would be too easy to overdose with transdermal (on the skin) desiccated thyroid.

8 ) Compounding pharmacies, via their 5-6 distributors, get the powder from American Laboratories.  But not all compounding pharmacies will be as diligent as others to make sure the deviation is closer to 5%.

9) If the compounding pharmacy is getting their powder via the distributor PCCA (Professional Compounding Centers of America), you can be assured you are getting a good product.  Ask the pharmacist where they are getting it.

10) Compounding pharmacies generally have plenty of desiccated thyroid powder.

My apologies to a group of callers whose chat questions I wasn’t able to see. I have sent a question about that to Talk Shoe’s Customer Support to find an answer before the next Community Call. But on the good side,  the audio worked on everyone’s computer.

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The gnarly man and what we can do in the face of this crisis

ogre

There once was a gnarly, bottom-scratching and tuna-breathed man who terrorized a neighborhood as if he was above the law. He intimidated people, used threats to stop others from telling the truth about his actions, and he mooned his hairy buttamous to anyone he didn’t like. He brought other criminals into his large house, took bribes to do some of their own dirty work, and stole every single vegetable and fruit from all his neighbors gardens.

Finally, all the fearful, frustrated and hungry neighbors got angry, sick and tired of it all. So they sent him emails, letters and phone calls, asking him to stop what he was doing, and explaining how he was hurting their lives and well-being,  and speculated how he was going to do this or that.

And do you think he stopped doing what he always did?

Finally, the neighbors got wise. They reached out to the police, to local radio and TV stations, to the newspaper, and even to local political leaders.  They stated the facts as they knew them, how specific actions affected their lives, how they had speculations that they couldn’t prove but were quite uncomfortable…and they made sure everyone knew what was going on to get the help and support they needed. 

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For over 100 years, thyroid patient lives have made a huge and positive turn-around on natural porcine desiccated thyroid, a superior, safe, and effective medication as expressed by all our lives for over a century.  But today, we face a crisis.

The most popular desiccated thyroid brand, Armour, was reformulated by 2009  and most patients reported a return of their hypothyroid symptoms. Then, the only other major pharmaceutical, RLC Labs, has their quality Naturethroid and Westhroid on backorder in August of 2009. The only North American makers of the desiccated powder, American Laboratories, is out.

And finally, the remaining two generic makers, Time Caps Labs and Major Pharmaceuticals, are told to cease production by the FDA.

We are now without desiccated thyroid other than the remaining 10 tablets there, or 5 tablets here. They will all be gone soon.

The facts we know are this: because of the 1962 “Drug Effi­cacy Amend­ment”, the FDA is suddenly demanding phar­ma­ceu­ti­cal drug manu­fac­tu­rers (with medications which have been used successfully for 80-110 years) pro­vide proof of the effec­ti­ve­ness and safety of their drugs before they can receive true FDA appro­val, aka potential cli­ni­cal trials and the data that results. i.e. 110 years of patient success, and a website like Stop the Thyroid Madness, and testimonies all over the net and in patient groups with desiccated thyroid…is somehow…just…not…enough.  What is obvious, is not enough.

In other words, they want proof of efficacy and safety of desiccated thyroid—a medication which has a safe and effective track record in a huge body of patients for 110 years…in the same way they give an FDA-stamp-of-approval on a whole variety of drugs which, in 2004, killed 783,936 individuals per year (according to the article Death by Medicine, co-authored by By Gary Null, PhD; Carolyn Dean MD, ND; Martin Feldman, MD; Debora Rasio, MD; and Dorothy Smith, PhD).

Does THAT make any sense to you?

And now, because there is hint that they may require RLC Labs to apply for a New Drug Application…and because we wonder if that will mean expensive and drawn out clinical testing to provide data…and because we wonder if they will allow RLC to continue manufacturing our only good supply of desiccated thyroid which saves our lives in a completely healthy way…we are left with a lot of uncomfortable and unanswered questions.

Of course, we can admit that all the above is pure speculation. We don’t know what will happen until it happens. But we are strongly uncomfortable with the unknowns, frustrated by the possibilities, and scared to death we might lose the only medication which has removed our lingering and debilitating symptoms while we were once on synthetic T4–aka Synthroid, Levoxyl, levothyroxine, etc.

And by the way, synthetic T4 is an FDA-approved medication which has left most of us sick or with lingering symptoms to our own degree and intensity for YEARS. Perhaps THAT is what you need to write the FDA about.

So do we email the FDA about this situation?? I am of the belief that writing/emailing the FDA is no different than asking the neighborhood ogre to change.  I could be wrong, but it is my deep suspicion. In fact, I am suspicious that the onslaught of communication with the FDA is going to do more harm than good…if it hasn’t already…just as writing and emailing the neighborhood ogre would probably cause him to laugh and do even MORE harm.

So what seems the best and most logical action to take with our current situation? Write/email your senators. Write/email your representatives. Write/email newscasters, talk show hosts, radio personalities, newspapers of merit, and anyone who has the power to spread the word. In my mind, we cannot expect to face what may be with power unless we inform the world of our plight ahead of time.

How to say what we need to say? I think, for our integrity in the eyes of whom we speak/email/write to, it’s important to state facts first and foremost. For me, if I need to mention speculation, I turn them into questions: Will RLC be able to afford clinical trials? Will the FDA stop all desiccated thyroid? You may not agree but that’s what seems wise for me.

I have compiled a list of particular congresspersons who just last year, made a resolution against the FDA. You will see a list of those supporters at the bottom of the page with their contact info. Email them.  You will also find links to contact each and every other political office. If I have missed something, let me know and I’ll add it.

I have also compiled a simple template letter you can use, or change exactly as you need it changed, for these emails.  It will not fit every single individual who uses it, so change it as you may. But keep it short and succinct. Too much to read will turn off the reader.

I have tried hard in this post to communicate my thoughts and intuition. I also still have some strong hope and faith that this IS going to work out, one way or the other. I’m just not into fear-mongering based on speculation.  Some of you may not agree with my sentiment, but that’s okay. And some of you may agree that it’s time to strongly communicate with our congresspersons, and I will hope you follow through. All of us need to follow through. I need to follow through. You need to follow through.

NEED OPTIONS FOR THYROID TREATMENT during this hard time? Go here. You’ll also find several Canadian Pharmacies to use with a prescription, as well, that is much easier than ordering directly from Erfa.

NEED A GOOD DOCTOR? Go here.

NEW TO DESICCATED THYROID? Here’s everything patients have learned.

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13 replies