New here - blood test results

[bex177]

Hi there, I've been feeling pretty rubbish for about a year. Low mood, hair loss, cold, aches especially headaches, constipation, pounding heart, breathlessness. Had blood tests and told over phone that all results were normal. So I asked for a print out. My B12 is 269, folate 3.3, ferritin 19, vitamin D is 50, TSH is 2.4. Does underactive thyroid cause the low levels of other vitamins? If I treat myself with supplements would that help the thyroid levels? I don't know where to begin with supplements though and no help forthcoming from GP. Thank you. Pic of full blood test results attached. PS my gran suffered from pernicious anaemia in her 70s, my son has ulcerative colitis so there are auto immune diseases in the family.

[mand82]

I personally think they should of given you vit d tablets as even tho its in range it's right at the bottom at 50 & ive been give vit d tablets for higher then 50 before same with the ferritin it's still in range but still on the very low side I would ask the doctor for tablets for vit d & ferritin, I've seen many people on here who have b12 deficiency symptoms with the same range as you & higher, I'm sure someone else here will reply soon who knows more then me,

[Gambit62 Administrator]

low thyroid doesn't, as far as I am aware cause low levels of B12, folate, iron etc but it is common to have several autoimmune conditions occurring simultaneously so if your thyroid problems are auto-immune other auto-immune problems are possible.

Your B12 could be deficient or it could be okay. It is going to be difficult to evaluate based on symptoms - would suggest that you sort out thyroid and vit D ... and possibly iron as your serum ferritin is potentially low for someone with thyroid problems before assuming and come back to B12 if sorting those out doesn't resolve problems.

What does your GP say about your thyroid?

[bex177 in reply to Gambit62]

Thanks for your response. I haven't seen the GP again - was told by receptionist all results were normal and no action required. Should I supplement with B12? Is 1,000 iu sublingual methylcobalamin the preferred choice? And vit B complex for folate? Really not sure what's best.

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to bex177]

You can try supplementing to see if that helps - choices are sublinguals - tablets or sprays, nasal sprays and patches - its a bit hit and miss as to which suits a person best - or if they work for you at all - and it is the same with different types of B12 - most sublinguals are methyl but methyl doesn't suit everyone and seems to have no effect for some.

[Marz]

Difficult to tell if your thyroid is the cause of your low vitamins and minerals as they only tested the TSH - a pituitary gland hormone which tells the Thyroid to produce hormones. You also need to know the results for FT4 - FT3 and the Thyroid anti-bodies - Anti-TPO and Anti-Tg. The TSH in a healthy person is usually lower. Finger Prick Testing in the home is available if you are unable to persuade your GP to do the correct testing ....

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

When people are hypo it slows down the metabolism and the absorption of vital nutrients - as Hypos can also suffer low stomach acid.

I would supplement 5000 mcg B12 Jarrow Methylcobalamin from Amazon along with a good B Complex to keep all the B's in balance - Folate and B12 work together in the body. When you have completed the first bottle then revert to the 1000 mcg . Further testing will skew your results - so be aware On Thyroid UK it is often suggested that having B12 towards the top of the range is better.

Your low iron also needs treating - I am not able to advise you on Iron supplements - so check in with the Thyroid UK Forum here on HU for advice. You will need to take VitC with the Iron to aid absorption.

VitD needs supplementing with around 5000 IU's of D3 daily. Also take the co-factors magnesium and Zinc - also VitK2 MK7. The latter encourages the improved calcium levels to be guided away from the arteries and into bones and teeth. I take Healthy Origins VitD - containing olive oil - this facilitates the fact that VitD is fat soluble.

grassrootshealth.net vitamindcouncil.org

Good/optimal levels of the above vits and minerals are required to enable the conversion of the storage hormone T4 to convert into the ACTIVE thyroid hormone T3. This in itself can vary from the advice given here when often lower levels are acceptable.

I am not a medic - just a Hashimotos gal - with a B12 issue !

[4101]

This is a dilemma. You could always take sublingual and if you feel better then you know that you probably are deficient. But that won't answer the question as to whether you have pernicious anemia.

[bex177]

Thanks so much for your help. Marz I really appreciate your suggestions!