Hi all
I am 63 year old male with hypothyroidism! I get nothing more than t4 from the national health..and little understanding of what is going on with my body?..I take supplements iodine iron and vary my diet..last year year I managed to lose 1/ half stone..back on this year! taking t3 supplements changed diet tried exercise even though I am self employed and fit kitchens for a living (heavy work sometimes) makes no difference to weight issues any advice welcome thank you.
Do you know if you have autoimmune hypothyroidism (hashimotos)?
Autoimmune blood tests imminent due to eyes referral,(double vision) appointment eye hospital end August 2016 follow up soon?..
I asked because many people feel that taking iodine supplements makes autoimmune hypothyroidism worse. It can encourage antibody attacks.
Ok not heard of that one yet?.. I will know more after blood test..recommended for under active thyroid? Small dose from seaweed condiment it all seems to be getting the balance right .. But this year is more regressive
Hi Brightrock (short for Brighton Rock? One of my favourite books!) Welcome to the forum - but sorry you need to be here!
Did you get tested before starting the iodine? Because unless you are deficient, it could do more harm than good. Besides, when you take T4 or T3, you are, in effect, taking iodine.
One molecule of T4 contains 4 atoms of iodine. When T4 is converted to T3, one atom of iodine is removed and recycled. Same when T3 is converted to T2 and T2 to T1. So, with that, plus the iodine you get in your food, you could be taking too much iodine.
Exercising is not a good idea until your T3 is optimised, because it uses up your T3 and will make you more hypo - and put on more weight!
In what way did you change your diet? If you started eating less calories, then that too could make you put on more weight, because you need calories to convert.
How much T4 and T3 are you taking? Do you have any blood test results to share with us? If you are still putting on weight, then you are probably Under-replaced. 
Hi grey goose 125mg t4 and a supplement of T3 with ginseng & guarana blood test pending and test for my immune system diet changed to more veg carrots spinach etc iodine from mussels and seaweed condiment just a pinch on most meals could be I am having too much ?..iodine if what you say is correct about iodine in t4 doc said I could not get t3 on script and an endocrinologist will not prescribe either.. But I feel all t4 does is hide the symptoms and I feel not everyone's t4 converts into free t3. Need to get this weight off!!! Thank you for your reply.
What on earth is a T3 supplement with ginseng and guarana??? How much T3 in it? Did you get it on a body-building site? if so, there's probably no real T3 in it!
What I say about iodine in T4 is most certainly correct.
I'm not sure what you mean by 'I feel all t4 does is hide the symptoms'. if the sympotms have gone, then T4 is doing its job. What do you expect it to do?
You're right, not everyone can convert T4 to T3, for various reasons. But the only way to find out if you're converting is to have your FT4 and FT3 tested at the same time. If your FT4 is high and your FT3 is low, then you aren't converting very well. If they're both low, then you aren't on a high enough dose.
But, if you can't lose weight, then it does sound as if your T3 is low. However, 125 mcg is only a tiny dose - especially for someone with a very active job.
Hi thanks for your reply grey goose , up till about a year ago I was on 175mcg of t4 but doctor said I was on too much as feeling awful and apparently I became hyperthyroid and that my pituitary gland had shut down.. Hence the reduction to 125mcg and I presume I am back to hypothyroid. Yes I have a physical job and I find it hard to do a full day as I am used too. Yes the t3 supplement is for weight loss as is the non stimulant t3 I was on last year when I managed to lose 21 pounds in weight basically cut out all bread with occasional gluten free bread.. Seemed to work at the time perhaps I better re-order the non stimulated t3.. How do you know that there is probably no t3 in my current supplement? Is this normal when ordering off the net?.. Alegedly a professional supplier "health site" 100mg guarana 100mgseaweed powder 100mg ginseng root 100mg capsicum powder.. 1 twice a day...?
Sorry to chip in. Can you get your recent blood tests for the experts here to advise you. Also Can't you just add some proper pharmaceutical pure t3 you know liothyronine, to your t4. Instead of these other stimulants or whatever they are. By the way my tsh is 0.01 so my pituitary gland ain't knocking on my tsh door asking for any thyroid hormone to be released cos it's getting all it needs. BUT I'm not hyper as my ft3 is 5.7 within range. And I've lost alot of weight because my ft3 is good and I do not exercise or starve myself either. 125 t4 isn't much for a big guy. I'm 51. Good luck.
P.S I've hashimotos, I stay away from iodine as it's like throwing wood on the fire.
Be very wary of anything you buy from a body-building site. Other people have made the same mistake, that's how I know. And what on earth is non-stimulated T3? That can't be a real hormone, either. You really do need to be more careful, you could seriously damage your health like that.
Why not post a new question asking people where you can buy real T3 - T3 the thyroid hormone - on-line. People will send you, by PM, sources of tried and tested T3 that won't damage your health. On the contrary, it will help you lose weight permenantly, but raising your FT3, which means that all your other symptoms should resolve as well.
And your other pills? More seaweed, which means more iodine. The site you mention is a body-builder site, and I wouldn't trust anything that came from them. I Don't think their products are meant to have long-lasting effects, just quick weight-loos for compétitions, etc. You would be far better off getting your doctor to test your vit D, vit B12, folate and ferritin, and doing your supplementation in a more scientific way. You should only supplement what you need, not haphazardly taking a bit of this and a bit of that because you've been told it's 'good for you'. Because it's very likely that it isn't.
And the fact that is doesn't work is born out by the fact that you put all that weight on again. You are not doing yourself any favours like that.
As for your doctor... he doesn't know much about thyroid, does he. 'became hyperthyroid and that my pituitary gland had shut down' I very much doubt it. It just doesn't work that way. What is more likely to have happened is that 178 mcg Levo lowered your TSH to a level that he felt uncomfortable with, so in order to bring it up again, he lowered your dose.
How could you go 'hyperthyroid' if your gland is so bad that you need thyroid hormone replacement. Having a low TSH when you are on any form of thyroid hormone replacement does not mean you are hyper, it just means that you Don't need as much TSH anymore because your pituitary no-longer has to stimulate the gland as much. It certainly doesn't mean that your pituitary has 'shut down', because it still has a lot of other hormones it needs to produce.
There could have been many reasons why you felt bad, but he didn't explore any of them, just lowered your dose in a knee-jerk reaction and made you feel even worse. It's a pity you didn't ask for copies of your results - it's your legal right to have a print-out, so always, always, ask for one.
What you really need are comprehensive labs :
TSH
FT4
FT3
TPOab
Tgab
and the vits/mins I mentioned above. That would tell us more or less exactly what's going on. I very much doubt if your doctor would do them all, so it would be an investment in your future health to get them done privately. If you stop buying stuff on the body-building site, it would probably pay for the private tests!
Sorry for the strict-nanny lecture, but I'm afraid for your life! Reading your posts makes my hair stand on end! lol I just want you to do what's best for your health, as I do for everyone on here.
Take care.
Hi thanks so much for the good advice.. It's probably the first time after suffering for so long that I have had something I can move forward with instead of stabbing in the dark, I have little faith in doctors anymore. Thank you. I will post when I know more test results.
Yes, good idea. It's true, you won't get much help from your doctor, they are so Under-educated and know so little about hormones, vitamins and minerals. And they care even less!
Thank you for your input grey goose. I shall now ask the relevant questions and see where that takes me!.. You are a star*
You're welocme, Brightrock. Glad to be of help.
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