Levo Dose

[Arab]

Hi there,

I'm a support worker, and have recently started working with a young man with hypothyroidism.

He takes 50mcg Levothyroxine daily, taken in the morning. I've noticed that the dose is usually given alongside his other meds, and an hour before food, although it states on thedirectios that it should be given with or after food. Is this going to make any difference to the effectiveness of the Levo?

It has been noted that he has been quite tired in the later half of the day, but it was decided that this was due to him being given vitamin D alongside his other meds. Can anyone help here?

Arab.

[Barrister]

Levothyroxine should be taken at least one hour before food or any other medications as these can stop him from absorbing the Levo properly. And any vitamins/supplements should be given at least 4 hours away from Levo, again because they prevent proper absorption of the Levo. Hope this helps. Clemmie

[Arab in reply to Barrister]

Thank you. I'll make sure the team are made aware of this.

Arab. 😊

[shaws Administrator in reply to Arab]

Next time the young man has a blood test for his thyroid hormones it should be the earliest possible appointment, his last dose of levo should be approx 24 hours before the blood test and he should fast

He can take levo immediately after the test with one glass of water as long as there's been a two hour gap between breakfast and levo and wait an hour before he eats again. The reason for this is that sometimes we're given too low a dose which doesn't relieve the clinical symptoms and you continually feel very unwell. Therefore with the hints above it keeps his TSH at the highest point as it diminishes throughout the day and doctors appear to only take notice of the TSH result and not the T4 or T3 and might adjust the dose which also doesn't benefit us. We want to be on a stable dose continually except for occasions when we do need a rise.

His Vitamin B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate should also be tested as we are usually deficient.

[nightingale-56 in reply to Arab]

Hi Arab, My son is in supported living and I wish all his Carers were as thoughtful and caring as you so obviously are. When you have clients that need a lot of medication I find that Carers are not given enough of the correct information and vitamins and mineralsthat are depleted due to the medication or condition are not addressed either by the Care Company or GP's. Thank you for being so observant and caring.

[sandi]

And can I just say how lucky he is to have you as a support worker It's is wonderful that you have taken the time to come on the forum and ask questions. All the best to both you and the young man.

[Marz]

What other drugs is he taking ? - are they contra-indicated for T4. I would like to comment on the 50mcg dose - it is very small and how long has he been on it ?

[Arab]

Hi folks,

Thanks for your help. Obviously this can be discussed at the team meeting that we're having later. And thanks too for you kind comments. I have Graves, so I already belong to this forum, and have found it so helpful for myself, so therefore felt sure that I could get reliable advice here!

Arab.