Bloods for Comment

[ColinK]

Had to re-post this as I got no replies to previous post.

Just had my results back from Blue Horizon Thyroid Check + 12 test and would be grateful for any comments.

Taking 3 grains of NDT

18th Jan 2016

TSH L 0.01 0.27 - 2.4

T4 16.63 12 - 22

T3 H7.27 3.1 - 6.8

Reverse T3 H33.0 10 - 24

Just had my results back from Blue Horizon Thyroid Check + 12 test and would be grateful for any comments.

Previous tests

Taking 1.5 grains of NDT

16th Nov 2015

TSH 2.03 0.27 - 4.20

T4 L9.23 12 - 22

T3 5.06 3.1 - 6.8

Looking at the difference between my latest test and Nov last year I'd guess I need to drop my dose to around 2.25 - 2.50 grain to be optimal on my T3.

Does my low TSH cause any concern?

I don't really understand the reverse T3 function, but would that drop when reducing my dose?

Any other observations?

Also on 18th Jan 2016

Still optimal on B12 and Vit D.

Serum Folate 31.94 10.4 - 42.4

Ferritin 114.1 30 - 400

Still have muscle ache/joint ache. Not able to loose any weight. Went for a half hour walk the other day and was pretty knackered at the end (due to, too high a dose?). Clicking joints (Knees/Hips/Neck)

Many thanks in advance

Colin

Looking at the difference between my latest test and Nov last year I'd guess I need to drop my dose to around 2.25 - 2.50 grain to be optimal on my T3.

Does my low TSH cause any concern?

I don't really understand the reverse T3 function, but would that drop when reducing my dose?

Any other observations?

Also on 18th Jan 2016

Still optimal on B12 and Vit D.

Serum Folate 31.94 10.4 - 42.4

Ferritin 114.1 30 - 400

Still have muscle ache/joint ache. Not able to loose any weight. Went for a half hour walk the other day and was pretty knackered at the end (due to, too high a dose?). Clicking joints (Knees/Hips/Neck)

Many thanks in advance

Colin

[marram]

So sorry, Colin, that you had no replies.

Your high reverse T3 is what strikes me. It should drop if you reduce your dose, certainly the symptoms you have could be because your dose is a little bit too high, and paradoxically that could cause you to have weight problems.

Reverse T3 is sometimes the body's way to handle some sort of infection, have you had a cold or anything which might explain that?

When taking NDT it is quite normal to have a very low or suppressed TSH. A small decrease in the dosage could raise it a little bit but the most important thing is the T3, it is no t too high, say, for me, but it may be a little bit high for you personally.

I would hope that someone who is on NDT might be able to give you a bit more help.

Marie xx

[ColinK in reply to marram]

Marram, many thanks for replying. Looking back over the last couple of weeks I had been suffering from what felt like hot feet, hot in bed and disturbed sleep, I guess signs of overdosing?

Not had any kind of infection, so not sure about the high reverse T3.

Colin

[galathea in reply to ColinK]

If you are taking meds which contain t4. ( as in levothyroxine or ndt) then the t4 is either converted into t3 to give you energy, or it needs breaking down and getting rid of. When its broken down it cannot be broken down into t3 because that woukd give you too much and woukd send you hyper. So its broken down into inert, reverse t3, The receptors cannot use the rt3 as it is the wrong shape... The rt3 is further broke. Down into t2 and t1 and then is eventally washed out of the body. The rationale behind breaking the t4 down is to conserve the iodine for later use.

Sometimes the whoke system seems to get overwhelmed and too much rt3 is made.... The only way to stop this is to not have any t4 to be broken down in the first place.

This site might give you more insight.....

thyroidrt3.com

Xx g

[ColinK]

G, Thats very informative, I just wish this thing was a lot simpler.

[galathea in reply to ColinK]

Oh it is really simple according to some docs. Give the patient a minimal dose of levothyroxine and so long as the tsh is in range, all other symptoms can be ascribed to a mystery. Illness with no name or cure.

Xx g

[humanbean]

I'd be interested in seeing your B12 and vitamin D, even though they may be optimal.

Your ferritin (iron stores), in my view, is too low. Middle of the range you've provided would be 215. I feel at my best when my ferritin is mid-range, and some people consider this to be optimal.

I had huge difficulty getting ferritin up to mid-range. I couldn't get it there until I gave up gluten.

Raising iron levels is fraught with traps for the unwary. People have to know how well they absorb iron. Overdoing iron supplementation and getting a high ferritin level is bad news. The body has no direct iron-shedding mechanism, and so iron can get deposited in tissues where it shouldn't be, like the heart and the brain. So, the moral of this is, test iron/ferritin regularly to avoid overdoing it if you supplement.

[ColinK in reply to humanbean]

HB

My B12 was noted as high at 880 and to consider reducing to 725, at my previous test last November it was over 1400, so has dropped into a more acceptable range.

My Vit D was at 96, my previous test last November was 125.

[humanbean in reply to ColinK]

I would have no quibbles with the vitamin D - around 100 nmol/L is good. (I'm assuming that nmol/L are the units, not ng/mL).

But I don't know of any problem with a high level of B12 if it has been reached by supplementation.

One little nugget of info that is often quoted on this forum is that B12 is considered deficient under 500 in Japan, and the top of their range is about 1300.

The levels of B12 considered acceptable in the UK are abysmally low. Also, vitamin B12 is not poisonous. So if allowing your levels to drop makes you feel worse, then carry on supplementing if you want to. My blood level is recorded as >2000 and gets no comment from doctors other than to say they don't have a problem with it.

If you do supplement B12, please make sure you take it in the form of methylcobalamin rather than cyanocobalamin. The latter is the one found in vast numbers of supplements but it is not a natural form that you would find in the environment. The body can make use of the methyl-B12 much more easily than the cyano-B12.

Anyone supplementing B12 should take a B Complex to go with it. There are different kinds of B Complex - the ones with methylated forms of B vitamins are the best. They are easier for the body to absorb and use. You need one which contains methylfolate rather than folic acid. I use Thorne Research Basic B Complex, but there are others on the market.

[ColinK]

HB, I do supplement both B12 and Vit D. Jarrows 5000 lozenges methylcobalamin, also Jarrows complex. Vit D is Invita D3 25,000IU on prescription from GP.