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Can things get any crazier for UK Thyroid Patients? Apparently so. Horribly so.

Doctors will have more lives to answer for in the next world than even we generals.       
~Napoleon Bonaparte

Is it possible that what was already awful….can be MORE awful?? Apparently so in the UK (United Kingdom).

If you are a thyroid patient in the United Kingdom (UK), the absurdity is increasing, becry patients!

Absurdity Part One: Yes, like everywhere else, UK hypothyroid patients have been put on T4-only, aka Levothyroxine for decades with the idiotic expectation that it would convert to the amount of T3 one needs. It hasn’t for all too many.

But the absurdity deepened.

Absurdity Part Two: Next came the idiotic idea that a TSH lab test (a pituitary hormone, not a thyroid hormone) had to get over 10 before one would receive any treatment. Over 10?  Really?? How many of us have had a TSH in the 2’s with raging hypothyroid symptoms! The answer: a lot. It’s NOT about pituitary hormone that LAGS behind what is going on.

Insanity Part Three: 2017 saw the worse become total insanity: the National Health Service (NHS) stating that T3 (the active thyroid hormone) has “little or no clinical value”  thus removing the availability of liothyronine (T3-only) medication as an alternative or adjunct thyroid replacement therapy. And with that removal of T3 medication from the NHS, patients have watched doctors go absolutely loco, loopy and wacky.

A nightmarish example by UK hypothyroid patient Elaine, told to lower her T3

Here are her own words of what is happening to her:

I was on 55 mcg T3-only via the NHS for over 4 years (with some improvement, even if not optimal). But earlier this year, the new Endo who I saw for my osteoporosis diagnosis insisted that the osteo was in part caused by my suppressed TSH on the 55 mcg T3 (False. See below), and started me on (with my agreement) a mix of T4/T3 to be slowly introduced.

First I was on 25 mcg T4 (in July) and less T3 at 35 mcg.
Then was moved up to 50 mcg T4 and down to 25 mcg T3 after 2 months
Then I was moved up to 75 mcg T4 and down to 20 mcg T3.

Immediately with the last change, my immune system began to deteriorate and I got frequent colds, even though it was summer. This sickness issue has continued. My immune system was already precarious, but it worsened and I had immunoglobulin tests which confirmed this. I have low IgA and low IgG, but not low enough that they would refer me.

I then had 4 migraines in a week, rather than once a month as I had been doing.

So I have stopped the regime and backed the T4 down to 50 mcg and the T3 up to 25 mcg. The trouble is that it doesn’t feel like enough. My energy is flat and my joints are beginning to hurt. I have written to the Endo but I suspect that they will not agree with my reasons, and that I will be pressured to conform ‘for the sake of my bones’. But I cannot allow myself to become more ill just to suit their agenda. I was even told by the thyroid nurse that I would not feel as well on this regime!!!

I think ultimately I may be forced to treat myself to have any quality of life. I have begun to stockpile T3 which I have bought privately to prepare myself for this scenario. Not good, either way at any rate.

Why did Elaine get osteoporosis? Does a suppressed TSH equal bone loss??

Elaine’s osteoporosis may have had nothing to do with a suppressed TSH–the latter which is quite normal, with no issue, when one is on NDT (Natural Desiccated Thyroid) or T3. It is NOT the same as a suppressed TSH with Graves disease!!

In fact, when optimal on NDT or T3, which suppresses the TSH, patients have REPEATEDLY reported strengthen bones as revealed by testing, and/or a reversal of osteopenia.

Instead, Elaine was still hypothyroid.

The evidence? She had adrenal issues/low cortisol as proven by saliva testing. Finding oneself with low cortisol is COMMON for those who have been forced to live for conversion alone with Levo or Synthroid. And the side effect? Thyroid hormones like T3 don’t get to the cells well, and instead, start pooling high in the blood. She did find herself with a high free T3 long after she had taken her thyroid meds–too long after.

Bottom line, contrary to the suppressed TSH with Graves disease, it’s NOT a “suppressed TSH” from being on T3 which is causing bone problems. It’s about still being hypothyroid!

1) T3 regulates bone turnover and mineralization in adults. http://www.endocrine-abstracts.org/ea/0004/ea0004s5.htm

2) The skeleton is considered as a T3-target tissue  https://www.karger.com/Article/PDF/345548

3) Thus, all the factors required for locally regulated T3 action, including thyroid hormone transporters, metabolizing enzymes and receptors, are present in cartilage and bone indicating the skeleton is a physiological target tissue for thyroid hormone throughout life  https://www.karger.com/Article/PDF/345548

4) ….during bone formation, T3 stimulates osteoblast proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis, and increases the expression of osteocalcin, type 1 collagen, alkaline phosphatase, metalloproteins, IGF-1 and its receptor (IGF-1R). Subsequently, during bone resorption, T3 increases the expression of important differentiation factors of the osteoclast lineage such as interleukin 6 and prostaglandin E2 (5). Moreover, T3 acts in a synergistic manner with osteoclastogenic hormones such as parathyroid hormone (PTH) (9) and VD (10). It has also been demonstrated that T3 increases the expression of mRNA of the ligand of receptor activator of nuclear factor-κβ (RANKL) in the osteoblast, which activates RANK present in osteoclast precursors a key step in the osteoclastogenesis (7).  http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0004-27302014000500452

5) Without sufficient T3, then, normal bone remodeling is disrupted, and bone resorption happens at a more rapid rate than bone building. The result: decreased bone density and osteoporosis.  https://saveourbones.com/can-a-slow-thyroid-cause-low-bone-density/

And the above five examples only touch the surface of the information out there about T3 and your bones. Read this: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/bones/

Bottom line, UK thyroid patients have it rough when their National Health Service has withdrawn the availability of T3 to patients who outright need this powerful thyroid hormone…and when doctors are clueless and push patients to lower the T3 they are already on…and to levels which do NOT work. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* See the April 2017 Guest Blog Post about the NHS stating that T3 has little or no clinical value: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/2017/04/02/stupidity-award-nhs/

* Here’s why Levothyroxine has not worked as reported by millions of patients, whether from the beginning or the longer they stay on: http://stopthethyroidmadness.com/t4-only-meds-dont-work

* Here’s a UK-based facebook group attempting to fight for better treatment in the UK: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ITTCampaign/

* Are you a Hashimoto’s patient? Here are ten questions you need to ask yourself: https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/10-gut-health-questions/

 

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Stupidity Award of the Year: the UK’s NHS states that T3 has “little or no clinical value”

The following Guest Blog post has been written by UK Thyroid Patient Carolyn and contributions added by Janie A. Bowthorpe

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Just when you think things couldn’t get more ridiculous….

Just a few days ago, the BBC reported that the National Health Service (NHS) of the United Kingdom has proposed that the medication T3-only, aka Liothyronine, has little or no value. Let me repeat: LITTLE OR NO VALUE.

The article also states: “The proposals could see an outright ban or tighter restrictions on some products being prescribed by GPs.”

Here’s the list, as reported by the BBC, of those they consider as low value medicines (and their annual cost to the NHS):]

  • £30.93m on Liothyronine to treat underactive thyroid
  • £21.88m on gluten-free foods
  • £17.58m on Lidocaine plasters for treating nerve-related pain
  • £10.51m on Tadalafil, an alternative to Viagra
  • £10.13m on Fentanyl, a drug to treat pain in terminally ill patients
  • £8.32m on the painkiller Co-proxamol
  • £9.47m on travel vaccines
  • £7.12m on Doxazosin MR, a drug for high blood pressure
  • £6.43m on rubs and ointments
  • £5.65m on omega 3 and fish oils

Also mentioned in the article after the above “low value” medications comes “suncream, cough and cold remedies and indigestion and heartburn medicines”. i.e. T3-only, which patients report has brought back MUCH better health, is on the same level as suncream.

The article states that the “NHS England confirmed the review would begin in April, but did not put any timescale on how quickly a decision would be made.”

Living in the UK as a hypothyroid patient

Those like me living in the UK and using the NHS (which by the way is not ‘free’, as we all pay into it through our taxes), appreciate that it isn’t a bottomless pit of money which can fulfill every single person’s desires. Some of the items on this list (see above) are easily and cheaply available over the counter in pharmacies and supermarkets.  I believe people also have a responsibility to purchase some things themselves rather than incurring the excessive cost of processing an unnecessary doctor’s prescription.

But T3 isn’t available over the counter, although it is in some other European countries.

The sole reason T3 is on this list at all is the cost. Just look at that amount of money: £30.93million annually— that’s a lot of money, and who wouldn’t want to save that.

But despite this drug called Liothyronine (aka T3) costing pennies to make, and costing a couple of Euros on the mainland, it costs over £9 A TABLET to the NHS. No wonder they don’t want to prescribe it.

A loophole in legislation around generic medicines has been massively exploited and the cost has been steadily increased by the sole licensed supplier. So rather than investigate that situation of being totally ripped off and putting a proper system of value-for-money purchasing in place, the answer that is being proposed is to withdraw T3. What a failure of proper management of resources; I expect better of my government officials.

I have friends with the genetic mutation which means they literally cannot convert T4 to T3, even before we get into the debate about T4-only thyroid hormone replacement detailed below. They are being condemned to a long slow death.

A health care system which is held up as a model for the rest of the world is going backwards.

We aren’t all able to change doctors and a private prescription would be prohibitively expensive for most people, even if the doctors working in the private sector would be prepared to step outside the cruel guidelines still in place for treatment of hypothyroidism in the UK.

I can only hope that someone listens to the cries of outrage following this proposal and takes some sensible action to correct this massive pricing discrepancy. Getting proper treatment with T3 or NDT shouldn’t be this difficult and is a false economy.

Before I was refused any treatment due to the guidelines, I was off work ill for months. I was working full time within weeks of starting Natural Desiccated Thyroid; back paying my tax and supporting the NHS.

Let’s talk a minute about T3

For those who might be new to this, a healthy thyroid produces five known hormones: T4, T3, T2, T1 and calcitonin. Those five hormones are a wonderful symphony of what makes a healthy thyroid function. (Chapter 2 in the revised STTM book gives excellent detail about all this)

And hypothyroid patients were treated with all five hormones from the 1800s onward via pig or sheep thyroids…until the early 1960’s when Knoll Pharmaceuticals decided to promote its “new and modern” treatment for hypothyroidism–T4-only. i.e. no direct T3. T4 is a storage hormone meant to convert to the powerful and health-giving T3. And everyone fell for this promoted fallacy that somehow, giving patients only one of five thyroid hormones was a hunky-dory way to treat hypothyroidism. (See Chapter 1 in the Revised STTM book! Learn the truth!!)

But they were dead wrong. T4-only, aka Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothyroxine, Unithroid, Eltroxin, Levaxin, Norton, Eutrosig, Oroxine, or Tirosint, seems to have failed millions of patients in their own degree and kind, over the years, forcing all who are prescribed it to live for “conversion” alone. Yes, some do better than others! But the large amount of people who have NOT done well is profound….just as it’s profound how many T4-users report feeling far better when they added direct T3 in their treatment, or Natural Desiccated Thyroid.

My final message to the NHS

You are seriously wrong to state that the medication Liothyronine (aka T3) has little or no value as a way to cut costs.

Your conclusion means that you will end up subjecting your fellow UK residents to a lifetime of continued hypothyroidism thanks to being forced to live for conversion alone on levothyroxine as a sole treatment for hypothyroidism (See seven studies/articles at the bottom of this blog post). Your conclusion also seriously harms those who have the DIO1 or DIO2 mutation, which prevents these individuals from converting T4 to T3 adequately.

Get with it, NHS. Wise up. Stop this massive ongoing cruelty to thyroid patients.

UK THYROID PATIENTS: Share this blog post anywhere, everywhere. Let’s send a firm message to the NHS. Copy and paste: 

https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/2017/04/02/stupidity-award-nhs/

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RESEARCH SHOWING THAT T3 COMBINED WITH T4 GIVES BETTER RESULTS (from https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/medical-research):

  1. Here’s a study from 1996 which underscored that both T4 and T3 are needed to remove hypothyroidism: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8641203 (And it followed research from the previous year showing that T4-only did NOT do the job—see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC185993/)
  2. As far back as 1999, the New Journal of Medicine reported superior results of a synthetic T4 and T3 combination treatment, especially on the brain and other tissues.  http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/340/6/424
  3. And another one titled Thyroid Insuffiency: Is Thyroxine the Only Valuable Drug,   http://www.encognitive.com/  Journal of Nutritional & Environmental Medicine (2001), 11, 159—166
  4. And here’s another one from 2009: http://www.eje-online.org/cgi/content/abstract/EJE-09-0542v1 (has a fee) but here’s where you can at least see the abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19666698 They evaluated depression and anxiety rating scales as well as patients own preference.
  5. Also this one:  http://www.endocrine-abstracts.org/ea/0013/ea0013P316.htm
  6. At first blush, this Amsterdam study appears to give the same propaganda of T4 only. But as you read on, it mentions this: Third, recent animal experiments indicate that only the combination of T4 and T3 replacement, and not T4 alone, ensures euthyroidism in all tissues of thyroidectomized rats. From 2001, Developmental Endocrinology to Clinical Research: http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/produkte.asp?Aktion=ShowAbstract&ArtikelNr=48140&Ausgabe=227546&ProduktNr=224036
  7. John C. Lowe’s Four 2003 Studies of Thyroid Hormone Replacement Therapies: Logical Analysis and Ethical Implications  Excellent article (16 pages) about the efficacy of using T4 and T3 in treatment, and not using the TSH, and so much more.

 

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Medical Boards and the TSH: how they fail thyroid patients worldwide!

STTM Texas Medical Board“A learned fool is more a fool than an ignorant fool.”
                        ― Molière

 

In 2008, a news press appeared about the discipline of a very popular and well-liked doctor in Texas, USA who treated many hypothyroid patients.

And for what?

Under the column titled NONTHERAPEUTIC PRESCRIBING, it stated:  The action was based on Dr.________ prescribing Adipex, Adderal and Armour Thyroid to patients when such medications were not indicated.

Adipex and Adderal are both central nervous system stimulants, and we can’t comment one way or the other.

But the mention of Armour thyroid as “not indicated” was a sure sign that this medical board was using the ridiculous TSH lab test range to decide whether a thyroid medication was needed or not. We’ve already seen numerous and similar disciplinary actions brought upon well-liked and wise doctors like Dr. Peatfield and Dr. Skinner of the UK, Dr. Derry of Canada, and Dr. Springer in the US–all who dared to make obvious symptoms of one’s hypothyroid state more important than ink spots on a piece of paper. There have been many others.

Just to clarify: TSH stands for Thyroid Stimulating Hormone and is a messenger hormone released by your pituitary gland with the purpose of “knocking” on the door of your thyroid to tell it to produce thyroid hormones. So the implication is that if the TSH lab result falls in this so-called “normal range” (which in itself is a travesty), by golly everything must just be fine with your thyroid. You will read an interesting and explanatory chapter on the TSH in the revised STTM book as well as more information by Dr. Jeffrey Dach in the STTM II book.

But thyroid patients all over the world know first hand that the TSH lab result has been a complete failure. It can look “normal” even while we have clear symptoms of hypothyroidism. And it can take years and years before it rises high enough to show that something is quite wrong with the function of our thyroid.

A side note: the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) filed a lawsuit against the entire Texas Medical Board (TMB) and its officials in 2014. Though unrelated to thyroid treatment, they cited Manipulation of anonymous complaints, conflicts of interest, violation of due process, breach of privacy, and retaliation against those who speak out.

Kymm is a good example of the TSH fallacy in diagnosis

Take Kymm, a 45 year old woman. She had manifested hypothyroid symptoms for 15 years since the birth of her daughter. Yet during those entire 15 years, her TSH lab result had been completely “normal” in the upper 1’s and lower 2’s. Her hypothyroid state had never been “indicated” based on the typical and widespread gold standard of diagnosis used by medical professionals: the TSH.  As a result, she simply continued to suffer with easy weight gain, chronic depression, thinning hair, rising cholesterol, dry skin and an increase in stress on her adrenals. (And she did finally start on Natural Desiccated thyroid aka NDT, with adrenal treatment…and soared).

Kymm is not an oddity.  Thyroid patients on internet groups report going years with a normal TSH and no diagnosis, yet clear symptoms which are ignored by their TSH-obsessed doctors.  So their doctors may have avoided disciplinary action by going strictly by the TSH lab test, but did they truly practice the art and science of healing??

A doctor is disciplined for allowing a patient’s TSH to be suppressed

A horrendous disciplinary action happened to a California physician when it came to the thyroid treatment of one of his patients named as V.G who had had her thyroid removed. She had dizziness, dry skin and fatigue. He first put her on .125 levothyroxine, which only barely raised her T4 with a low T3. She continued to have the above symptoms, but also complained of nervousness, palpitations and weakness. He then moved her over to two grains of Armour, one brand of natural desiccated thyroid (NDT). The disciplinary action states:

Lab test results dated November 2, 2010, indicated that THS [sic} levels were suppressed, suggesting that V.G. was receiving too much thyroid hormone. However, at V.G.’s subsequent office visit on November 30, 2010, Respondant made no change to V.G’s thyroid medication. (#15)

The patient also had high cholesterol, plus symptoms of PCOS–both clear symptoms of continued hypothyroidism even though they claim she was receiving too much thyroid hormone! By point #17, after the patient had been raised to 3 grains, it reports a slight lowering of cholesterol and normal triglycerides, yet it was stated once again that she was on too much thyroid hormones due to a suppressed TSH. The bombshell comes in #19, it which states:

Respondent was grossly negligent in the care and treatment of V.G when he failed to recognize abnormal thyroid function tests and failed to properly adjust thyroid medications.

In other words, the California Medical Board was claiming that this doctor should have LOWERED the medication due to a suppressed TSH, in spite of the fact that she continued to have clear hypothyroid problems on the lower dose of 2 grains. Scores of thyroid patients who’ve had their thyroid meds lowered due to a suppressed TSH will tell you that their hypothyroid symptoms got worse, not better.

(If symptoms improve from lowering desiccated thyroid due to a suppressed TSH, that is more about the relief of hyper-like symptoms caused by low iron or low cortisol–either which NDT will reveal and aggravate until treated. See www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/ndt-doesnt-work-for-me  Also, there is a possibility that V.G.’s low T3 was due to a high Reverse T3, which will occur in the presence of low cortisol, low iron and/or inflammation.)

As far as a suppressed TSH, informed thyroid patients worldwide, who when optimally treated on NDT with the complete removal of hypothyroid symptoms (plus a healthy blood pressure and heart rate), find that it’s quite normal to have a suppressed TSH without one hint of symptoms of being on “too much thyroid hormone”!!!

Medical Boards can be a problem for thyroid patients and good doctors alike!

In the United States, there is a Federation of State Medical Boards with the stated purpose of “protecting the public from the unprofessional, improper and incompetent practice of medicine…”, yet the very boards which state they are protecting us from professional incompetence end up supporting incompetence via their flagrant ignorance about the TSH lab test and their dubious “discipline” of doctors who end up changing our lives and well-being!!

Or in the United Kingdom, we have the General Medical Council with the stated purpose of helping ” protect patients and improve medical education and practice across the UK”….yet they completely hounded Dr. Gordon Skinner who successfully treated thyroid patients, even though their TSH results erroneously implied that not a thing was wrong. Additionally, the GMC has brought at least 30 cases against Dr. Sarah Myhill, who also had the courage to treat her patients in spite of a so-called normal TSH.

Dr. Myhill so wisely stated: “Doctors who fail to toe the drug-industry-driven, conventional-medicine, symptom-suppressing line are singled out for special attention by the establishment”

Are Medical Boards useless?

Most informed thyroid patients would clarify that Medical Boards have good intentions. They can play a role in protecting us from true incompetence or negligence from those we put our trust in. They can serve a role in protecting us from sexual misconduct and the inability to practice safely due to substance abuse.

But when it comes to the highest and best treatment of our thyroid disease, medical boards DO THYROID PATIENTS NO FAVOR by disciplining doctors who….

  • have the wisdom and courage to look at the clinical presentation of clear symptoms rather than simply a “pituitary hormone” lab test with both its ridiculous normal range and its FAILURE to measure whether all organs and tissue are receiving enough thyroid hormones…
  • pay more attention to symptom relief on natural desiccated thyroid  (with good heartrate and blood pressure) rather than obsessing about one’s suppressed TSH lab test when thyroid patients are optimal.

As Albert Einstein so wisely stated, the measure of intelligence is the ability to change. Will Medical Boards grow up and change in their knowledge of thyroid treatment? No one more than maltreated thyroid patients worldwide can fervently hope so, as well as forward-thinking doctors who have been wrongly harassed by their medical boards in their treatment of hypothyroidism.

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

 

*For more detailed information on the history of Medical Boards and problems, check out the book titled Medical Licensing and Discipline in America: A History of the Federation of Medical Boards. 

* Join the STTM Facebook page for tips, information and inspiration. 

* Do you have both the STTM books? They are extremely useful in making you an informed thyroid patient based on the experiences and wisdom of patients before you worldwide!

 

 

 

22 replies

Hidden Danger of Treating Hypothyroidism: the Subtle Importance of Iodine

Screen Shot 2015-05-09 at 10.26.16 PM

The following Guest Blog post is from Dr. Malcolm Maclean of the UK. It’s a timely topic as there has been sporadic mention on the internet of a connection between even the best of thyroid treatments and certain potential risks! He feels the risk between a good thyroid treatment and an increased risk of breast cancer may be very real, and he suggests what you need to do about it. 

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For some people who experience symptoms of hypothyroidism, achieving a diagnosis of “Hypothyroidism” from a practitioner may be difficult. Even for those who are so diagnosed, the standard Thyroid Hormone for treatment tends to be Thyroxine, also known as T4-only (Trade names: Synthroid/Eltroxin).

For others, Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT) tablets are necessary to achieve any improvement and for others T3 may be the treatment of choice, with or without NDT.

However, the point of this text is not to dwell on such difficulties, which can include:

  • ** Is adrenal function adequate for initiation of thyroid hormone replacement?
  • ** Is the iron level right?
  • ** Have the levels of estradiol and progesterone been rectified? …and so on.

Rather, this blog article picks up at the point where thyroid hormone replacement therapy is in place and the patient has started to feel better.

In other words, if you are feeling great with your thyroid treatment, does that mean everything is alright?? Maybe not when it comes to breast cancer risk and some other conditions.

It has to be said that although many people do feel better once diagnosed properly and treated appropriately with Natural Desiccated Thyroid, there are the  prima facie puzzling reports of an association between “thyroid treatment and breast cancer risk” (as well as the risk of other cancers, lupus and of diabetes which have been associated with those who are taking thyroid hormone replacement) .[1-6]

Indeed the risk of breast cancer has been stated to be doubled in this situation and trebled for women in this situation who have not given birth.

The hazards of breast cancer is counter-intuitive. A person may say: “I feel so much better now that my symptoms of hypothyroidism have been improved, so why should I face the hazard of greater risk of breast cancer?”

A possible answer is that estrogen dominance, (a common predisposing factor in the development of hypothyroidism for some) down-regulates the IODINE PUMP, the active transport system of iodine. And this effect with down-regulation of the iodine bump has been produced experimentally, as well.[5]

It seems that whatever thyroid hormone preparation used, in the situation of this estrogen effect (i.e. estrogen dominance), thyroid treatment is liable to conceal a continuing hazard of Iodine-deficiency-induced breast cancer. This is because:

a) The cause of the original Iodine Pump down-regulation (estrogen effect) has not been addressed.

b) The thyroid hormone replacement used in therapy is liable to down regulate the Iodine pump further.

Apart from estrogen, the following agents are also said to down-regulate the Iodine Pump:

  1. T3
  2. T4
  3. Fluoride
  4. Perchlorate
  5. Interferon
  6. Interleukin [5,7]

This line of thought supports the mainstream view that, in thyroid hormone replacement, the TSH level should remain in the middle of the normal range. However that dosage does not always relieve symptoms. There’s a paradox and a therapeutic difficulty! What might/can be done to address that therapeutic difficulty?

The question is: in the situation of Estrogen Dominance, treated by thyroid hormone replacement, does Iodine supplementation overcome this hazard? (Together with the “Companion Nutrients” as advocated by the “Iodine Research” group). [8] .

The evidence suggests that the answer is “Yes”. The implication is that most females who are being treated with thyroid hormone replacement should be on the “Iodine Protocol” to overcome the cancer hazard, caused by impaired Iodine absorption.

Unfortunately, the standard test for Iodine status in the human body (the urine iodine test) tells us nothing about the state of Iodine absorption and therefore the true state of the body’s Iodine status. Saliva Iodine level (after Iodine loading, 50 mg) appears to be a more reliable test of the body’s true Iodine status. [9]

It is also appears that exposure to Fluoride, by depressing Iodine uptake, potentiates the cancer risk here.

Unfortunately, when Thyroid Hormone Replacement is used in the treatment of symptoms of hypothyroidism, iodine supplementation is not always used together with the “Companion Nutrients“. The evidence suggests that this supplementation of iodine should be in place to lower your risk of breast cancer, even if you are feeling great on your thyroid treatment.

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1. Turken O, Narin Y, Demirbas S, Onde ME, Sayan O, Kandemir EG, Yalaci M, Ozturk A: Breast cancer in association with thyroid disorders.

Breast Cancer Res 2003, 5:R110-R113. PubMed   Abstract | BioMed   Central   Full   Text

2. Eur Thyroid J. 2013 Jun;2(2):83-92. doi: 10.1159/000351249. Epub 2013 May 28.

3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3765368/

4. //www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2013/08/12/t4-only-lung-cancer/

  1. 5. http://www.hormones.gr/1/article/article.html
  2. 6. http://www.icjpir.com/sites/default/files/articles/ICJPIR%20-%2014-104%20Atta%20Abbas.pdf

7. Daniel H.Y. Shen,1 Richard T. Kloos,2,3 Ernest L. Mazzaferri,2 and Sissy M. Jhiang1,2 Sodium Iodide Symporter in Health and Disease THYROID Volume 11, Number 5, 2001 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc

8.  http://iodineresearch.com/supplementation.html

9. http://optimox.com/pics/Iodine/opt_Research_I.shtml

To read more on iodine plus groups you can discuss this in, go to the Iodine page on STTM.

About Dr. Maclean:

Screen Shot 2015-05-10 at 9.59.39 AMThe following text was kindly provided by Dr Malcolm Maclean, a Scottish doctor, who himself was diagnosed as having symptoms of hypothyroidism in his mid-fifties. He writes:
“Hypothyroidism evidently runs in my family. Looking back on my school days, I now realize that my mum had a royal flush of symptoms of hypothyroidism. Despite consulting an eminent specialist, the diagnosis was not made and she ended up with a diagnosis of “Narcolepsy” (Episodic sleepiness, not otherwise specified) and, as treatment, a prescription of long-acting amphetamine (Durophet).
It is clear that even in the 1950s there was a bias against proper diagnosis and treatment of hypothyroidism. 
My own diagnosis of hypothyroidism was not made until I started falling asleep at my desk in the mid afternoon. Starting Natural Desiccated Thyroid treatment, and I had the wonderful experience of mental fog lifting, which many, similarly affected and treated, will recognize.
As a medical advisor to the UK charity: Thyroid Patient Advocacy, I press (With others) for better diagnosis and treatment of symptoms of hypothyroidism as well as better education of doctors. The present unsatisfactory state of medical education concerning endocrinology, cannot last much longer, seeing that many patients now know more endocrinology than their doctors.
My particular interest lies in the management of those who make an incomplete recovery, having embarked on thyroid hormone replacement therapy and the attached text attests to that.

 

50 replies

Check out this photo, about Vitamin D, 64 symptoms removed, and life after thyroid cancer~

OOPS. THIS GAL’S DOCTOR WAS A BIT CLUELESS…

Look carefully at the photo to the left. You will see the actual outline of this woman’s thyroid. It’s obvious. It’s swollen. A swollen thyroid is called a goiter, and can be due to an autoimmune attack of the thyroid called Hashimotos, aka thyroiditis.

Yet, this woman’s doctor insisted she just had a throat infection, gave her penicillin for 12 days, and the outcome?  It’s still inflamed and sore. Jeez, doctor!! WHAT were you thinking!  She states: I always feel something pressing down on my neck and food gets stuck and then I’m having a chocking session. CLEAR thyroiditis and a blind doctor!

Thanks to this gal’s participation in the Stop the Thyroid Madness Facebook groups, she knows the truth, is empowered, and is going to try and get the RIGHT labs and treatment this time! Her biggest challenge is where she lives–the UK with a very dark- ages medical system that worships T4-only and doesn’t get the efficacy of Natural Desiccated Thyroid. It’s not a pretty picture in the United Kingdom or a lot of European countries if you have thyroid disease.

VITAMIN D–DON’T DISMISS THIS IMPORTANT VITAMIN FOR YOUR THYROID HEALTH!

Vitamin D is considered a steroid plus a prohormone, i.e. it’s not yet a hormone, but has affects on real ones. And your body can get it from sunshine exposure, or you can supplement with it. Why is it a great vitamin? It helps balance out your calcium levels and bone density, can help lower stress and blood pressure, and promotes a good immune system.

Vitamin D is found in two forms: cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) which is made via skin exposure to sunlight, or ergocalciferol (vitamin D2). D3 is the natural form and why it’s often preferred for supplementation over D2. After vitamin D3 is formed in your skin or taken as a supplement, it is then metabolized into two different substances: 1) 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), known as calcidiol and your storage Vitamin D, and 2) 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D3), known as calcitriol. The former is the Vitamin D you measure via blood.  Good information on both can be found in the abstract here.

So why bring it up?  First, it’s important for your thyroid, i.e. it has to be in sufficient amounts for thyroid hormones to work in your cells. And second, a huge body of thyroid patients find themselves with low levels of this important vitamin! How to raise it? It can take 10,000 IU’s of D3 daily. Some doctors even prescribe more and sometimes once a week in these very high amounts. Add an acid to the drink you use to swallow your Vit. D–like one tablespoon Braggs Apple Cider vinegar, or lemon juice. It will promote better absorption.

SHE ELIMINATED 64 SYMPTOMS THANKS TO NDT AND TREATING HER LOW CORTISOL!! 

Next time you hear that NDT is not good, think twice. Her name is Mary, and you should check out the 64 symptoms she eliminated thanks to NDT, here.  You will see that she’s still working on a few more, but the difference is stunning!

A TESTIMONY FROM A COLLEGE STUDENT OF HOW NDT CHANGED HIS LIFE AFTER THYROID CANCER (even more than being on T4 with T3!)

I’m a male college student and in 2008 I was diagnosed w/ thyroid cancer. Cancer aside, I was placed on Cytomel followed by Synthroid. When I asked my doctors for natural options they said there were no such meds. For four years I was a prisoner in my own body. I had rapid mood swings, I was always cold, had a lack of energy and worst of all dry skin. The dry skin became so bad that I started to develop cystic acne covering my entire back and many on my face–I had no confidence and work out 5x a week yet I was scared to take off my shirt. I knew that there had to be a solution being that I didn’t have any of these symptoms prior to getting my thyroid removed so I began to research. This website, Stop the Thyroid Madness, got me in the right direction as far as understanding the role o f T3 and T4. After many lies, and doctors who denied to write for Armour or Naturethroid, I finally found a woman who knew about the “madness”. I have only been on Naturethroid for one month and my TSH, T3 and T4 levels may be off but I feel like the old me again! I have energy, I have steady moods, I have less brain fog and my skin is finally producing oil again and my acne is almost cleared 100%! Thanks for your work your site had changed my life for the better!

DID YOU KNOW THAT THE STTM BOOK IS AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH, SWEDISH AND GERMAN?? A perfect gift for your friend or loved one who speaks any of those languages. Go here.

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