I have just read an article on Hypothyroid Mom which states:-
Women with TSH below 1.0 and those with a TSH above 2.1 had a greater than two-fold higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
This is very worrying for people who have had thyroid cancer and a thyroidectomy, their TSH is deliberately kept low or un-detectable.
Personally, I think it may be due to the fact the most prescriptions are for levothyroxine.
Probably not enough is being converted to T3 essential for brain health, whilst NDT gives us all the hormones our natural working thyroid gland would produce
Dr Skinner, Dr Peatfield and Dr Lowe said we are being given far lower doses of meds than before the blood tests came in plus the reliance nowadays on TSH alone to medicate. Dr Skinner quoted 'parlous situation' for patients.
I thought a normal health thyroid gland would produce a negligible TSH as the pituatory gland wouldn't have to flog itself up.
Where does it put the UK patients where doctors have been given the guidelines not to medicate until the TSH reaches 10. USA is 3 and then GPs tell patients no increase in meds as you are within the reference range which I think it is up to 5 in some labs.
Margo, people with non-suppressed TSH also get Alzheimers, osteoporosis and atrial fibrillation so I think the potential increased risk has to be balanced against the risk of cancer recurrence. I'll go further and say I am prepared to accept the risks if after 5 years remission I'm moved to a replacement dose and experience hypothyroid symptoms because of the decrease in dose. I'm not looking for longevity but a good quality of well being now.
I agree Clutter it is quality of life not quantity.
Margo - I think LOW B12 will have more to do with Alzheimers....
youtube.com/watch?feature=p...
...of course many Thyroid people have low B12 too...
Having low or high TSH when not having a diagnosed and treated thyroid disorder is different from those on treatment. I wonder if the paper from which this came separated the two groups out - or even excluded one group?
Most healthy people have a TSH between 1 and 2.1, so all this research is saying is that less healthy people are more likely to get Alzheimers. Beware of reading too much into statistics!
eeng, I do believe that a healthy persons TSH is between 0.8 and 1.25, something like that. Certainly not as high as 2.1. However, when you are taking thyroid hormone replacment, for most people, this brings the the TSH way down low automatically, and trying to keep it between 1 and 2 leaves the patient with an inadequate dose of replacement hormone on which she is unlikely to feel well.
Once you are on thyroid hormone replacement, none of the rules apply. And as the TSH only does what it says (stimulates the thyroid to make hormone) and nothing else, I fail to see how it can lead to Alzheimers. Once on THR, it has no further significance or role to play. As Rop said, there is a hell of a lot of difference between naturaly suppressed or elevated TSH and artificially suppressed TSH (with THR). The problem is, very few doctors are capable of distinguishing between the two.
Hugs, Grey
Please excuse all the typos! lol
Its really nice to have you back greygoose!
Thank you, foreversummer, it's nice to be back!
Rubbish!! You are more likely to suffer from dementia if you are on LOW meds rather than high!! At least if you go a bit overactive you can dial back the thyroxine yourself.
Thanks for that Glynisrose, suspect you are probably right.
Hi Margo, I wouldn't worry if I were you. Please see my reply to eeng below.
Hugs, Grey
TSH and FT4
Tsh and thyroidectomy 
Thyroxine and TSH
Fatigue and TSH
High TSH causes?
