Hi, My wife has Hashimoto disease as well as nodules (the biggest one is 2.2cm) she has been taking Levo since last june, can anyone please advise what are the risks of having babies or even getting pregnant. What are the risks of the newborns to have Hashimoto?
Thanks
The risks are in the first three months before the baby makes its own thyroid hormones. If there isnt enough thyroid hormone around the baby can fail to develop properly and can have a lowered IQ. Babies born to hypo mothers used to be called cretins but its probably not a pc term or something now.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cre...
Ideally a person contemplating getting pregnant needs her thyroid to be stable with t4 and t3 at sensible levels and a tsh below 1, Thyroud meds are increased during the first 3 months.
More info on the website attached to this forum. thyroiduk.org.uk
xx g
Many women have successful pregnancies but with thyroid gland dysfunctions we can also have 'female problems' i.e. fertility etc. This is just for information:-
web.archive.org/web/2010112...
Welcome to the forum, Bougasam.
There is a risk that Hashimoto's may cross the placenta but it's very unlikely a newborn will have Hashimoto's as it can take decades for autoimmune thyroid disease to develop. Newborns in most developed countries are given a heel prick blood test which should identify congenital hypothyroidism.
Fertility may be compromised in women with TSH >2.0 and high TSH increases the danger of miscarriage should pregnancy occur.
hypothyroidmom.com/hashimot...
Your wife is being medicated and her chances of conception and a healthy pregnancy are good when her TSH is in the low-normal range 0.4-2.0 with FT4 in the upper range recommended by NICE. Levothyroxine dose is usually increased by 25-50mcg when pregnancy is confirmed to ensure good foetal development.
cks.nice.org.uk/hypothyroid...
Adopting 100% gluten-free diet can be helpful in reducing Hashimoto's flare ups, symptoms and antibodies.
chriskresser.com/the-gluten...
thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...
thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...
_______________________________________________________________________________
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.
Thanks everyone for a replies.
There are so many questions crossing our heads and i will be grateful to get in contact with someone who has experienced hashimoto and has gone through all the pregnancy thing.
Is it that simple, taking hormone replacement (Levo) would be sufficient to live a normal life similar to someone with healthy thyroid? or your health will deteriorate in the long run with more medications needed?
If my understanding is right, the immune system attacks the gland until it kills it. would the immune system be attacking other organs once the gland is dead?
How likely our kids will have hypothyroidism?
Sorry so many questions.
Thanks
Bougasam, the majority of hypothyroid patients will be restored to normal health on Levothyroxine when dose is optimal. Being undermedicated is the most common reason patients don't regain normal health.
Hashimoto's will progressively damage the thyroid gland and Levothyroxine dose will need adjusting as natural thyroid function fails. When the thyroid gland is dead Hashimoto's should burn out and won't go on to attack other organs. Progression to complete thyroid failure may be slowed or even stopped by adopting 100% gluten-free diet but it isn't possible to reverse damage already sustained.
Hypothyroidism can impair absorption of nutrients and its not uncommon for hypothyroid patients to be deficient in ferritin/iron, vitamin D, B12 and folate so it's a good idea for your wife to have blood tests to identify deficiencies or low levels which can be corrected with supplements.
There are quite a few Hashimoto's and hypothyroid women on the forum who have had successful pregnancies once their thyroid levels are stable and delivered healthy euthyroid babies.
It's unlikely your children will be born with congenital hypothyroidism but its impossible to say they won't acquire hypothyroidism at some point during their lives and their predisposition may be slightly higher due to their mother having it.
Puberty, pregnancy and menopause are common triggers for hypothyroidism in women and women are 9x more likely to suffer hypothyroidism than men. The gender imbalance evens out >60/65 years of age when men are as likely to develop hypothyroidism as women.
_______________________________________________________________________________
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.
Thank you ever so much Clutter.
Hi Sam, Thyroid levels are important to fertility. From what I understand, the babie's own hormone is separate from the mother's but HER hormone has much to do with her fertility. There are some families with a genetic componant for Hashimoto's but I don't know if that is an immediate risk. Five minute videos explain.
youtube.com/watch?v=U15Pcov...
Low thyroid impacts so many vital areas.
Hello - in my latest check up my doctor asked if I was considering getting pregnant and to be aware that if I was that he would want to monitor my thyroid levels more closely, so perhaps your wife could speak to her doctor to see what advice they would have.
Can i ask what the TSH level was and antibodies level, interested to know. As I have had many miscarriages and I have a feeling the thyroid antibodies have something to do with it. But the doctors refuse to treat me as my tsh is 2.84, they say it's fine. But I will be going with the NICE guidelines
Thanks orangepie, TSH 4.45 and antibodies 246
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