Hi there, Dr Peatfield has recommended I change from thyroxine to NDT. He mentioned 'naturethyroid' & 'armour'. Can anyone give any thought, experience or opinion as to which brand of NDT I should try? Open to ideas re any brand.
My issue seems to lie with not having enough T3, hence him wanting to try a product with it in as opposed to T4 only thyroxine. If that doesn't work, he said next step would be T3
My remaining symptoms are brain fog, memory, dizziness, fatigue & insomnia, although I'm better than I was before starting the thyroxine (a month ago). I'm on 100
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Scorchio
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Scorchio, different brands suit different people and you'll need to trial them for yourself to see which suit best.
Of the branded NDT Armour is the most expensive. NatureThroid and WP are supposed to be hypoallergenic, and some like Canadian Erfa. Many members do well on Thai NDT, Thyroid-S or Thiroyd, which are the least expensive.
If low FT3 is your only issue on Levothyroxine you could try adding Liothyronine (T3).
I'm on 100mcg Levo daily. I haven't had my levels checked since I started 4wks ago.
Before that they were -
TSH 4.68 (cut off was 4.7)
T3 was around 3.4 & T4 was around 14.2
I did 24hr urine thyroid test which
showed T3 at 300 (range 800-2500)
& T4 1000 (550-3160) & T3:T4 ratio 0.30.
Dr P wanted me to take nutrithyroid but I wanted GP on board. She trialled me on Levo. I've def felt some improvement, but still have some symptoms. Dr P now asking me to change onto NDT
Scorchio, You haven't trialled Levothyroxine long enough. 3 months would be a reasonable trial. 100mcg Levothyroxine is a replacement dose but 4 weeks isn't long enough for it to work fully as it takes 6-8 weeks for the full impact of the dose to be felt. Symptoms may lag behind good biochemistry by a couple of months whether you're taking Levothyroxine or NDT. I'd give Levothyroxine another couple of months before trying NDT.
I can't interpret thyroid urine tests but your GP should be retesting serum thyroid levels at 6-8 weeks after you started Levothyroxine. Arrange an early morning, fasting (water only) blood draw as TSH is highest early and drops post-prandially. Take Levothyroxine after the blood draw.
1 grain NDT is bioactively equivalent to 75-100mcg Levothyroxine so you'll probably need 1.25 grains. Buy a pillcutter to quarter the one grain tablet. You can transition by reducing Levothyroxine by 50mcg and introducing 1/2 grain NDT. Hold for 2 weeks before stopping Levothyroxine and increasing to 1 grain NDT. After that increase by 1/4 grain increments every 2 weeks as required but hold at 2 grains and have a thyroid test, including FT3, before increasing further.
I am not a medical professional and this information is not intended to be a substitute for medical guidance from your own doctor. Please check with your personal physician before applying any of these suggestions.
Levo/T4 is a storage hormone which means that you can take it once a day and your body should then convert it to the active version (T3) as needed.
For some of us this conversion doesn't work properly so we need to take T3 in some form, either on its own or as part of NDT. However T3 gets used up fairly quickly, so needs to be topped up during the day by splitting the dose.
You have to see what works best for you.
I'm currently on 1 and 3/4 grains of NatureThroid which is 3 and 1/2 half grain pills. I take 1 and 1/2 first thing then 1 late morning and 1 mid afternoon. Some people find 2 doses works for them.
Don't take the last dose too late.
I find NatureThroid splits well. It seems to have a skin which keeps it together. There is a capital N on one side of the pill and I try to line my cut with the slope of the N (if that makes sense).
If you can get a private prescription from your doctor you should be able to get NDT from one of the suppliers on the ThyroidUK list
I have taken several NDTs and Nature-throid suited me best. I have also read some members haven't done so well so we are all different. I am also well on T3 only.
Hello..... I just started sublingual dessicated thyroid I chew it first thing in the morning 15 minutes before breakfast. My doctor says its superior to synthroid/thyroxine. He says my weight will return to normal in no time. His success rate with dessicated thyroid has been high. I'm from Canada so the names of thyroid meds etc may vary
You said you are from Canada. I am too but have been unable to find any doctor who agrees that NDT is worthwhile in any way. I also can't seem to get my lab results. Would you mind telling me what part of Canada you live in? I am in Southern Ontario. If there are any doctors in my region who understand the intricacies of thyroid disease I would be so happy. I have been sick for so long I finally am self medicating on NDT.
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