vitamins and minerals

[helvon]

what dosages of vitamins and minerals should i be taking for hypothyroidism. i am lucky to have been given a diagnosis but because i have become so low with excrutiating symptoms and feelings of being suicidal my doctor has agreed to try and have my t3s tested although she says the labs in the uk only do them for an endocrinologist. (is this the case ). its just i want to ask her to try me on armour instead of levothyroxine. i am on folic acid but i have read that its better to have normal levels for b12s for example and i want to take whatever i have to before the blood results come back to give the armour (if i get it) the best chance of success. would be grateful for any information .

[PinkNinja]

If you are taking folic acid it is also advisable to take vitamin B12 in the form of methylcobalamin (most easily used by the body). Both are needed for production of an essential amino acid and also to make healthy red blood cells (and other processes too).

As well as folate and B12, it is advisable to check serum iron, ferritin (needs to be around 70-90 for most people) and vitamin D. All are commonly deficient in hypothyroid patients and good levels of all are needed to ensure good metabolic health. You are less likely to have trouble with t3 and reverse t3 if you have good levels of these (not low-normal levels).

There are other vitamins and minerals that are also helpful such as selenium, zinc, magnesium, the other B vitamins and several others. You may find this page on the main Thyroid UK website useful.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/treatm...

I hope that helps

Carolyn x

[helvon in reply to PinkNinja]

thank you so much Carolyn for you speedy reply. bless you x

[helvon]

can i get a good multivitamin or will i have to take separate dosages of all the vitamins and minerals recommended by Dr Arem and can you recommend where and what to get.many thanks

[PinkNinja in reply to helvon]

It depends on whether you actually have deficiencies. It's not a good idea to take vitamins A, D or E without knowing you are deficient, unless you are taking the small amounts in a multivitamin supplement. Definitely don't take iron without getting tested first.

Taking a good B vitamin complex and a separate B12 (methylcobalamin, not cyanocobalamin) is a good idea for many hypothyroid patient. I take the Jarrows B-right and Jarrows methyl B12. If you look here you will find several recommendations of where to buy healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

Some people find they benefit from vitamin C but this doesn't have to be expensive. Supermarket brands should be ok.

I don't currently take any of the others but am looking into a good multivitamin and mineral supplement that has everything I need. I don't currently know which are good.

Carolyn x

[helvon in reply to PinkNinja]

thanks again Carolyn x

[Hidden]

Hello there, just to say I am in kent, my gp has had my T3 measured in with the other thyroid bloodiest twice now in the last 9months when getting diagnosed.so I think it's maybe a regional thing depending on the practice.i know others have had problems also.On neither occasion did I have to request or push for T3 , so I really don't know why there is such differences...... Good luck with getting well now

[helvon in reply to Hidden]

thanks cupi for your time to reply. good health to you too x

[Clutter]

Your GP CAN test T³. My endo won't test rT³ & my GP won't test anything connected with thyroid while I'm still under the 'care' of the endo.

[helvella Administrator in reply to Clutter]

Many labs appear to have a policy of only performing T3 tests when requested by an endocrinologist. That is, if anyone else requests such a test, it does not get performed.

There is an outside possibility that a GP directly contacting a lab could get a T3 test done by agreement but there is no certainty about that. The lab might still flatly refuse.

So, in practical terms, many GPs cannot get T3 tests run.

A few years ago I could not find a single NHS lab that performed an rT3 test. Have a suspicion that a tiny number might do a few - but quite possibly only for research rather than regular clinical use.

Rod