I am hypothyroid (3 years and adequately replaced on levo 125mcg). I have just got my latest blood test results back and although the GP hasn't contacted me I've looked at the results and think that treatment is required. I'm not sure if low calcium and low B12 are related but if I can understand these results better, I will be able to make a better case to the GP for treatment. He has said I don't need B12 treatment in the past. I have so many things that are actually indicated as below or above range I can't understand why he hasn't contacted me. Can anyone help me understand what is going on here.
Here are my results:-
Serum sodium 138 (135-145)
Serum potassium 4.2 (3.5-5)
Serum creatinine 56 (58-101) Below range
Serum calcium 2.19 (2.25-2.65) Below range
Serum albumin 43 (35-50)
Corrected calcium 2.21 (2.25-2.65) Below range
Serum alkaline phosphatase 36 (38-126) Below range
Serum Bilirubin 14 (3-22)
Serum alanine aminotransferase 28 9-52)
Plasma glucose 4.7
Serum iron 28 (7-27) Above range
Serum TIBC 47 (45-72)
Transerrin saturation 60% (less than 50%) Above range
Vit D 61.8 - Adequate
I was taking iron (ferrous fume rate) but folate, ferritin have risen only a little. And when I stop taking it they (especially ferritin) drop rapidly.
Serum folate 10.6 (4.4-24)
Serum ferritin 42 (10-291)
I don't feel I can keep taking the ferrous fumerate as my mean cell haemoglobin level is also outside of range at 33 (27-32) Above range and Haemoglobin concentration 13.3 (12-15). I've got plenty of iron, just not storing it.
B12 is 270 (210-910) I've taken B12 for the past 2 years in tablet, lozenge and under tongue type absorption.
Whilst my hypoT seems fairly well treated, I am feeling tired again, I have a tingly itchy heel on one foot and don't seem to be able to deal with things quite as efficiently as I know I could. I'm not exactly brain foggy but feel that's where I'm heading. I can't deal with big things and can't remember things so well. I know things aren't quite right but am not sure what is wrong.
TSH 0.4 (0.4-5.5)
Free T4 21.7 (11.5-22.7)
Free T3 4.2 (3.5-6.5)
If anyone can help explain what might be going on here I would be so pleased as it would help me put my case across to the GP.
Many many thanks.
Ali
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I forgot to mention that I am also losing my tooth enamel as well as the itchy annoying tingling heel that I've had for the past 8 - 10 weeks or so. Is this all related?
Alit, which form of B12 were you taking and how much? Your B12 is low and some of your symptoms may be because of this.
Also are you drinking a lot of fluid/water/juice? Most of the tests are based on concentration, so the amount per milliliter or litre. So if a person is dehydrated or overhydrated this will affect the number figures of various tests.
I suppose I only drink about 1.5 litres a day. I take hydroxcobalamin 2000 lozenges at the moment but have taken sublingual in the past. Do you know if low B12 and low calcium are connected.?
yes! B12 needs calcium. I went through a period last year where my teeth became brittle and kept breaking. Since I have been taking B12 and a calcium & magnesium supplements my teeth have stopped being so brittle.
Molasses (organic un-sulphured) are high in many minerals especially calcium and magnesium. I recommend you take 2 Tbs daily and see how much better you feel!
I add half a tps to coffee a few times a day.
In my opinion, with the state of de-mineralised soil these days, everybody, especially those over 50, would benefit from eating molasses at least weekly.
I would say that your FT3 could be higher. It's only just above mid-range and most people need their T3 near the top of the range - or even above - to feel well.
As to the heel tingling and itching, I've had that over the whole of my feet for a while now. At first I thought it was my low B12 and started supplementing. That helped a bit but not completely. I then realised that my magnesium must have been low, so started supplementing that. And that has helped a lot more than the B12! I take tablets but I know that these are not easily absorbed, so I also drink water high in magnesium and take epsom salt baths. The magnesium has also helped my constipation!
Hi Greygoose - that's all very interesting. The Dr didn't test magnesium this time but it was low last time it was tested. I have some tablets so will add them in. I'm aware that there is a fine line with some of these levels/getting the balance right and don't want to over do it. I'm also surprised that the dr doesn't want to investigate why this is happening. I say surprised - I'm not surprised, I'm bitter and angry and fed up with GP's! Magnesium and calcium are interlinked aren't they? All absorption issues for us hypoT's do you think? x
Yup, I agree with all that. I to am sick to the back teeth with GPs (and dentists, come to that! lol). My dr doesn't want to know either. In fact, he doesn't seem to believe that vits and mins have anything to do with anything and told me that supplementing is a waste of time and money! His motto seems to be if it's anywhere in the range, it's perfect, and if it's not perfect you're dead! lol What a cretin! Oh well... His days are numbered, I'm afraid...
What a caring GP you have. Mine us also of the opinion that if in range then all us fine. Normal is normal. I told him I'm not normal I have hypoT. I need to be high in the range etc. he won't have it but not being able to interview gp's before changing to another one I'm worried about jumping out of the frying pan into the fire!
So dentists - interesting that you mention them. I have started to lose my tooth enamel in recent weeks - not down to bad diet or fizzy drinks. I hope he can shed light on what's happening. I shall be taking my blood test results with me to get his opinion. It might give me some ammunition to put up the GP.
Do you get leg cramps? I've just started to and wonder if they are due to low calcium.
I'm currently slim and healthy (well normal) looking but the GP will have me bald and weak with no teeth. Its unbelievable.
HU has been my saviour the last 3 years. Thanks for your advice.
The funny thing is that my GP is extremely caring. He's just very ignorant! The first time I saw him last November, he said oh dear, you are in a bad way, but I'm going to look after you, don't worry about a thing, I'll see to everything. And he did. As far as he could. It's just that he doesn't know much about anything, not just hypo. I really like the man and it's so sad that he's so ignorant! And pig-headed! lol But we will see what we will see. As long as he continues to sign my prescriptions for about half of what I need, I'll see to the rest.
I used to have leg cramps and - worst of all - foot cramps! Oh, that is awful. When you find your big toe coming up to meet your ankle and there's not a thing you can do about it! lol But, I've recently been investigating magnesium and have come to the conclusion that I've been deficient in magnesium for most of my life. So, I'm going all out to boost my magnesium and haven't had a cramp for a long time.
May I recommend that instead of minerals from supplements that you try taking 2 tbs organic, un-sulphured Molasses daily. This is cheaper and contains many minerals all in a more bio-available form.
Yup, you're right. And I did buy some. But I have yet to find a way that I can possibly take the horrible stuff! Perhaps you have some suggestions? I would be very grateful if you had. x
I first started putting it in porridge, just 1/2 tsp with added honey. Then I put a quarter tsp in coffee with sugar. I suggest starting with a smidgen in any food until palate familiar with taste. We all need to become familiar with the smell of a food before we accept the taste. To me it goes best mixed in Camp coffee (a chicory/coffee blend - chicory is a good pre-biotic). Molasses are also a good, natural laxative. The Russians make their famous Black Bread with molasses - attributed to their good health, so worth persevering with to my mind.
By the way Broccoli was another food which made me feel better. It contains sulphur, vitamin K and Folate.
Good ideas, in fact a nutritionist I saw a few years ago suggested taking it regularly. I still have the pot. I must start again with it. Maybe I'll start with the porridge. I also put it in certain cakes.
Thank you for all those ideas! Unfortunately, I'm off porridge at the moment, as it was about all I ate last year when I was ill. Brings back bad memories!
I rarely drink coffee, don't like the taste, but it's very interesting what you say about camp coffee. My mother gave me that when I was a kid. Haven't drunk if for years! I'll have a go with that.
Also interesting about the black bread... I'll see if I can find a recipe!
I have an aneurysm where vitamin B12 deficiency is indicated. I found this out after eating a steak and kidney pie and feeling so much better afterwards. I am now trying to cure it by nutritional methods and have stopped it growing larger. I would recommend that you take a sub-lingual B12 supplement and two Tbs of Molasses (full of minerals) daily. Monitor how you feel. This combination made me feel so much better within an hour.
You don't say how old you are but if over 50 then you may have low stomach acidity which prevents proper digestion of proteins and minerals. Taking digestive enzymes (with HCL) with meals will improve nutrition.
My regards to you and all suffers of health issues.
Sorry, I'm being a bit thick this morning, but what's the connection with steak and kidney pie? That's one of my favourite meals, but never noticed it made me feel any better.
Another interesting idea! You're full of them! Keep them coming, Yanni.
My wife died from complications following an operation to install a 'Stent' to prevent her abdominal aneurysm from bursting. (The NHS states that the cause and cure are unknown!)
A year after her death I was diagnosed with an abdominal aneurysm (are they catching?) After a few years I began to feel really unwell and my aneurysm had grown quite rapidly! Lots of blood tests apparently didn't show anything wrong. I began to feel as though I had multiple food intolerances so started to monitor what food made me feel worse. One day I ate a steak & kidney pie on its own and felt so much better. I then researched what was in meat and kidney which could account for this. I found that kidney was high in B12 so started sub-lingual supplementation and began to feel better. I also noticed that my stomach and intestines were tender so realised I had high inflammation. Having an aneurysm is like having a gun to one's head! If it bursts one has only about 10 minutes to reach surgery before it is fatal. So I have been researching food and supplements to reduce inflammation and strengthen the arteries.
Years ago I read that we need to eat 7 carrots in order to obtain the same nourishment that our grandfathers did eating just one!
Since WWII our farming has concentrated on more food per acre and not on higher quality food. Over production is de-mineralising our soil. Is obesity a cry from the body for more vitamins and minerals and NOT just more food?
The scientists are now concentrating on inflammation as the cause of many current Western diseases.
If we have a good diet AND our digestive tract breaks down and assimilates our food properly then we obtain all the right amino acids, fats, vitamins and minerals to prevent inflammation and oxidative stress on the body.
The scientist are now concentrating on non control of high Homo cysteine levels in the body as the cause of inflammation. They say that it is NOT cholesterol that damages the arteries but high homo cysteine levels! Cholesterol is just the 'band aid' put there by the body to patch-over this damage.
Unfortunately, as we age our stomach lining thins and stomach acidity declines so we cannot break down our food for adequate nutrition. This is why supplementation is advocated to the elderly.
Phew! I can be long winded at times haha!
I hope this is of interesting to you and other readers.
'Is obesity a cry from the body for more vitamins and minerals and NOT just more food?'
I absolutely agree with you there, yannibenji!!! I have been arguing for years that putting on weight is rarely due to over-eating from pure greed, but nobody wants to listen. I had a friend who was grossly obese and all she ate was a couple of yoghurts a day. All sorts of deficiencies - both hormonal and nutritional - can cause weight-gain. But, one of the problems we have here is that people who are not over-weight love to feel Superior and throw stones at the over-weight - figuratively speaking, of course. I've had such a battle over this on Facebook just recently - and one of my oponents was a doctor - no surprise there! They all wanted to say how lazy and lying and hypocritical and just down-right evil a certain woman was because she was obese. It was absolutely disgusting, made me feel sick.
But a lot of this I put down to denial due to fear. There they are, with their perfect figures, eating their perfect diets, and the idea that someone doing exactly the same can start to put on weight scares the daylights out of them. It has to be the fat person's fault, just has to be. It couldn't possibly happen to them. Could it? Well, yes, it could.
Well, you don't have the Monopoly on long-windedness. lol But I do so agree with everything you say about food. Our food is poisoning us. It isn't real food anymore. And, where is obesity worse, and food the most unnatural? I'll give you three guesses. The two definately go together. Our bodies feel cheated and no-longer work properly. It seems to me we are a species in danger of extinction now. And I Wonder if we're Worth conserving, considering that we've brought this on ourselves!
I'm so sorry to hear about your wife. I do hope you manage to sort out your own problems.
Many thanks for your sympathy. I will never get over losing her.
Many years ago I switched to Flora polyunsaturated fat margarine and got eczema! My Doctor put me on steroid cream. I then read a Doctor's report stating "Hydrogenated oil predisposed one to eczema". I immediately went back to eating pure butter and took two EPO capsules. My eczema cleared up in two days when I had had it for two years!
I urge people NOT to eat any artificially produced food. No margarine, no cooking oils except Olive, Coconut oil or lard. (Our grandfathers used lard!)
Many years ago my sister-in-law, who had thyroid problems from a young age and weight 20st (also suffered from Psoriasis), came down for a holiday while my wife was in hospital. I put her on the body builder's diet of low carbs, low fat and high protein. For dinner I gave her salad with 2/3 chickens legs, 1 small boiled potato and a small slice of diet bread (more than she usually ate at home). I also, made her sit in the sun with bared legs to get as much sunshine as possible. After a month she went home. Later her husband rang me and said she had lost a stone in weight and hadn't looked so well in years.
Many people will not put sugar in their tea/coffee BUT they will gladly drink sugary drinks and eat lots of bread, pasta, rice and potatoes which are all starchy foods. Starch is rapidly digested just like sugar.
One of my friends many years ago lost a lot of weight within 3 weeks. All he did was cut out bread and potatoes.
For the last 60 years Body builders have eaten a low carb, low fat and high protein diet not only to build muscle but to NOT store body fat. Some I spoke to ate whole chickens for lunch and dinner! One of my cousins used to eat 48 eggs every week! (And never suffered heart problems!)
Many people make the mistake of thinking that eating less will make them lose weight, however the body responds by ADDING storage of fat (from carbohydrates) for the (it thinks) coming famine! Also, I read that too little protein in the diet makes the body store water.
There is no doubt that home prepared and cooked meat and two veg is the best diet. The modern trend for 'Fast' foods cooked in vegetable oils and containing cheap adulterated meat products full of anti-biotics and growth hormones are the worst way to go. Meat from organic free range grass-fed animals is best.
To my mind there are two criminal acts occurring today: 1. Food manufacturers are only concerned with adding substances to extend shelf life and make their product more desirable to the eye and nose regardless of being healthy and 2. That the health service is driven by the profits of pharmaceutical companies. There are many natural foods, herbs and spices which are known to be as, or more, effective treatments than commercial drugs but will not be researched or suggested by Doctors as there is no profit in them!
Also, the stopping of cookery classes for schoolchildren has resulted in wives and mothers who cannot cook healthy dinners and, due to busy lives or laziness depend on TV dinners and fast food outlets.
I sympathise with all those people who are overweight through medical reasons and get tarred with the same brush as greedy/unwholesome food eaters.
Not so sure I agree with the low fat/high protein bit. You can have too much protein, you know.
But, as far as I'm concerned, you can't have too much fat! lol I eat oodles of butter and use olive oïl - can't stand coconut oïl - and goose/duck fat when I can get it. Love lard! One of my favourite foods when I was a kid was bread and dripping, with some of the gravy if possible and lots of salt.
Here, in France, we can't get lard in packets, like you can in England, or suet (used to love eating that raw straight from the butchers, still wrapped round the kidneys!). But in some places you can buy goose and duck fat. If not, a tin of duck confit has lots of fat. I love it! And I'm still losing weight.
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