Armour and Metformin

[Amandajl]

I have just been doing some research on Metformin (which I take for PCOS) and Armour (for under active thyroid) all the consultant and Dr that I have seen over the last two years know I take both these drugs.

However, this article says they should not be taken together livestrong.com/article/4990...

Does anyone have any thoughts on this, my wight has gone through the roof since taken thyroid meds?

If I understand it correctly it's saying Armour cancels out the effects of Metformin

Thank you in advance

[Jackie]

Hi I always took them together under an endo, no problem. I have had to stop Metformin for diabetes because of kidney failure ( unrelated) now take another diabetic drug for my diabetes.

Jackie

[greygoose]

Well, that's not a very state-of-the-art article, is it? It says that "Hypothyroidism is treated with supplemental thyroid hormone; which your body can also convert to T3 hormone. Rarely do you need to supplement both hormones." And we all know that that isn't true. It isn't even very well explained.

But, it would help if you gave us more information. Do you have any thyroid blood tests that you can share with us? That would help us to see more clearly what is going on.

It could well be that Armour just doesn't suit you. It doesn't suit everyone. I put on a ton of weight (slight exaggeration) when I was on Armour, and I wasn't on Metformin.

[Amandajl in reply to greygoose]

TSH 1.74. (0.27-3.92)

Free T4 12.5 (12.0-22.0)

Free T3 6.6. (3.1-6.8)

I have experience weight gain with both levothyroxin and Armour, I currently take 2 grains of armour

[greygoose in reply to Amandajl]

Yes, so did I. The only way I've managed to lose weight is to go onto T3 only. Some of us are like that.

Your TSH is rather high for someone on Armour with an FT3 of 6.6. But it could be that you are one of those people that needs their FT3 higher. Or maybe you just can't tolerate T4 in any shape or form.

But how are your vits and mins? Have you had them tested? You need them to be optimal to be able to use the hormone you're taking.

But for the Metformin, perhaps you should ask your doctor to put you on another type of medication for your diabètes, as Jackie said.

[Amandajl in reply to greygoose]

I take metrormin for PCOS am not a diabetic, I make too much insulin and it get stored as fat around the body. I have an appointment in Monday to talk about this thank you for helping me

[greygoose in reply to Amandajl]

I'm so sorry I made that mistake! Yes, you did say that, but I didn't refer back to your original question.

But I think I'm right in saying that PCOS is an Under-active thyroid symptom. So, maybe if you get on the right thyroid hormone replacement, that will improve without the Metformin. But I'm not an expert on this aspect (or any other, come to that!).

Good luck for you appointment - fingers crossed!

[Amandajl in reply to greygoose]

drugs.com/drug-interactions...

Found this as well

[helvella]

Agreed. And repeat the "old" way of looking at thyroid as if it were a gas tap - turn it up or down a bit and the temperature (i.e. metabolism) changes. Get it right and you are back to normal.

Ignoring totally the fact that the cakes in the oven don't cook properly if it is either too cold or too hot. Or if it continually switching between the two. (I.e. the effect of thyroid hormone on gene expression is critical and 99% ignored everywhere.)

[Heloise]

Hi Amanda, there is a segment about insulin resistance, etc. in this article although your free T3 is so high, I don't know if it applies to you. nahypothyroidism.org/deiodi...

[Amandajl in reply to Heloise]

Do you know what the significance of high T3 is ?

[Heloise in reply to Amandajl]

Well, it's just that most people with any of the three possibilities mentioned, their T3 is low. It says that conversion is much less in those individuals and therefore have a low T3....... so maybe it rules out

insulin resistance, diabetes, or metabolic syndrome.

[Amandajl in reply to Heloise]

I do have insulin resistance that's why I was put on Metformin and I lost a lot of weight , which I have regained since takin thyroid meds 😵

[Clutter]

Amanda, I've just been chatting with someone who said that high T3 can increase insulin resistance. Not sure whether it would be worth you exploring reducing your T3 by reducing your NDT and adding in some T4 or whether your Metformin needs increasing to compensate for your high FT3.

[Angel_of_the_North]

metformin blocks B12 in some way. That could be the problem. You need extra B12 if you take metformin (which some research suggests might have a protective effect against cancer).

[Hidden]

Have you had your ferritin and vitamin d checked. I had really high T3 and T4 at one time on thyroid meds but felt dreadful and gained lots of weight. It turned out my ferritin and vit D were low and the thyroid meds werent being used by my body to do what they were supposed to do. Just loads of hormone in my blood stream. I started to lose weight when I got taking some iron.