LEVOTHYROXINE or NATURAL THYROID ?

[bridgetfig]

LEVOTHYROXINE or NATURAL THYROID ?

I see often people raving the natural" pig" thyroid making them feel so much better, levothyroxine only contains one T not both T 's ...T what?

So I am guessing Levo is chemical based and the other all natural?

In England it's just Levothyroxine isn't it?

As you can see loads of questions from me ...lol

Also which one helps you to keep your Wright down and how much ?

Surely we all won't to know that question.

[bobsmydog]

Levothyroxine is synthetic T4 and is the standard treatment here in the UK

NDT is natural pig thyroid and contains T4 and T3 (and others thought to be less important)

[Clutter]

Bridgetfig, the only 'natural' ingredient in natural dessicated thyroid is the pig thyroid from which the T4 and T3 is obtained. The other fillers which go into formulating the tablets are synthetic.

NDT isn't licenced for UK use so is rarely prescribed on the NHS. Most members using it buy it online and self medicate with, or without, guidance from their GP or endo.

Being on an optimal dose of either and being active should prevent further weight gain but exercise will be needed to lose weight already gained.

[Glynisrose]

Its not a matter of synthetic versus natural its more basic. T4 (synthetic) versus T1, T2, T3 and T4 in natural thyroxine.

[silverfox7]

Most people are perfectly well on T4 only as it converts to the T3 that we need. Remember when people are well they are less likely to be asking questions on a forum. But not everyone finds that they do convert well and so ask what they can do about it. To know if you have a problem converting you need more than the seemingly standard TSH. You need FT4 and must have the FT3 as well. For instance if the FT4 was very high in the range and the FT3 below half way then you are not converting well. With a thyroid problem we are often low in vitamins and mineral and these are necessary to conversion so you may find supplements necessary. These should help but if that does not raise levels enough then you may benefit from either NDT or extra T3.

[bridgetfig in reply to silverfox7]

Thank you for your reply x

[greygoose]

NDT suits some people. Levo suits some people. Neither suited me. I need T3 only to feel well. We're all different, and the only way to know what suits you is to try.

T4 (Levo) is often fine if you can convert it into T3. If you can't, it's not good. T3 is what is needed to lose weight. Diets and exercise won't do it if your T3 is too low. So, if you can't convert, you either need an NDT, which contains T3 as well as T4; or T3 (Cytomel/Cynomel) added to your Levo. (T3 then goes on to be converted into T2 and T2 to T1.)

[bridgetfig in reply to greygoose]

Thank you will ask for blood results

[greygoose in reply to bridgetfig]

[julie11]

hi, bridget. some people argue that, because NDT has components that levo doesn't--like calcitonin, in addition to t1,t2,t3, and t4--it ends up healing and preventing symptoms that levo can't. some people who feel fine on levo end up having to be treated eventually with high blood pressure and high cholesterol medicines because the levo doesn't sufficiently address those issues (again, even though the people feel fine on the levo--this actually happened to my mother, for example). the Stop the Thyroid Madness website has a lot of information on this topic.

on the topic of natural: all NDTs contains natural porcine or bovine hormones (usually porcine) as well as binders/fillers. the most natural NDT brand out there seems to be WP Thyroid, in terms of fillers/binders (they have a website, too). works great for some people but i found that it just wasn't as strong as other versions. might have been fine had i increased the dose but it was just easier to stick with my other brand, which was working fine.

[bridgetfig]

Thank you for your replies which has helped me immensely.

I will ask my doctor about this and read out your results. I am guessing Levo is the main tablet handed out as it's no doubt the cheapest?

If Levo was given to you higher would that not sort out Wright loss or would that cause more problems?

[RedApple Administrator]

That is rather a blanket statement. It does not work for everyone, but some people do resolve their weight issues by being on their optimal dose of levothyroxine and of course eating sensibly.

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

Desiccated thyroid products became available in the last few years of the nineteenth century.

Synthetic levothyroxine was developed in 1958 and liothyronine shortly after. So a period of about sixty years in which desiccated thyroid was the usual treatment, then around twenty years in which both desiccated and synthetic were available, followed by the last thirty-five years in which treatment has been almost exclusively synthetic forms. Desiccated thyroid is only available as an import. (All this applies to UK.)