I still do not feel a hundred percent, tired all the time, headaches, dry skin, hair dry eyes, heart palps on and off. Had a sore throat for about 2 months on and off and recent flare up and very enlarged glands on neck at the same time my ears feel heavy and perception of world is very spaced out.
Anyway if you could let me know what you think of my results. Plus can someone inform me is it your t4 or t3 that should be high or low? Plus what's the best tsh level and what's the best treatment to be on for hypothyroid condition. I've been on thyroxine since in my early 20s I'm now 34.
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Cheekycharlie1981
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From what I have gathered from this forum your nutrients should be in the upper quarter of the range, but no doubt those more experienced than I will provide you better information on these individual items.
A lot will say that T4 only meds long term isn't good, and you need to be on T3 too. I'm not experienced enough to really comment on this.
Cheekycharlie1981 Your vitamins and minerals are not at optimal levels, your thyroid hormone will work better when they are optimal.
B12 should be 1000 according to the Pernicious Anaemia Society. Supplement with Solgar or Jarrows sublingual methylcobalamin lozenges 1000mcg.
When supplementing with B12 you need a B Complex to balance the B vits.
Ferritin should be at least half way through range so you should supplement with iron (Ferrous Fumarate or something more gentle like Solgar Gentle Iron which is supposed to be non-constipating). Take iron with 1000mg Vit C and 4 hours away from thyroid meds.
Vit D should be 100+, supplement with D3 and also K2. Vit D aids absorption of calcium and K2 directs calcium to bones and teeth rather than arteries and soft tissues.
TSH is in a good place, in a treated hypo patient the aim is for TSH to be 1 or below or wherever is necessary for both FT4 and FT3 to be in the upper part of their ranges.
There is no 'best' treatment for hypothyroidism, each of us is different. Some do well on Levo alone, some need the addition of T3, some need T3 alone and some need natural dessicated thyroid. It's what suits the individual.
Do you have FT4 and FT3 results and have your antibodies been tested?
I currently take solgar b 12 and the gentle iron aa well as a vit d suppliment, my levels where a lot lower a month ago. Bit I still feel spaced out and get various other problems which make me feel tired all the time.
I paid for private bloods a few months ago and here are the results,
Tsh 0.81 iu/L
T4 total 113.2 nmol/L
Free t4 18.09 pmol/L
Free t3 4.32 pmol/L
Anti - thyroid peroxidase abs 18.9 klu/L
Anti- thyroglobulin abs 69.8 ku/L
CRP 1.00 mg/L
I don't know any of the other test and I've had no reason why I'm on thyroid med except the obvious but I don't know the cause.
I just feel so tired and look it, recently my neck and cheeks are constantly red and eyes dark and dry.
Could you please edit your post and put in the ranges (numbers in brackets)? This is because different labs have different machines that use different ranges.
Cheekycharlie1981 If you continue with your supplements then your vits and mins should eventually reach their optimal levels, it can take a bit of time, particularly ferritin. It would be best to continue with a B Complex as it's needed when taking B12 to balance the B vits. It can be a bit of a pain taking all these supplements, I get fed up and sometimes would love a few days off!! But they are making a difference so I plod on .
That looks very much like a Blue Horizon test so I will say first of all that both antibody tests are negative, however your TG antibodies aren't that low at 69.8, BH range <115. I think further antibody tests, particularly TG Abs, would be an idea as I don't think Hashimoto's can be ruled out completely.
At the moment your TSH is in a good place. The BH range for FT4 is 12-22 so to be in the top third it would need to be around 19ish and you're just slightly low there. The BH range for FT3 is 3.1-6.8 so you'd need a level of 5.8 ish to be in the top quarter so you're low there.
Your FT4:FT3 ratio is approx 4.2:1. Best for conversion is 4:1 or less and you're not converting very well going by your test results. Optimal vits and mins will help, and selenium can aid conversion. A small amount of T3 in addition to your Levo could make a difference.
For vitamin D as you are over 75 you only need to take around 2,500IU every day. Then get yourself tested in October to see what level you are at. The cheapest test is from City Assays - thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...
The reason to test in October is your level is suppose to be highest at the end of summer so supplementing with some sun should mean your level is over 100.
You can get decent vitamin D tablets from an independent pharmacist or on Amazon. The ones in stores e.g. Boots, Tescos and health food stores e.g. Holland and Barrett either don't sell vitamin D on it's own or only sell 800IU tablets.
With Iron make sure the amount you take equals between 60-70mg of elemental iron otherwise your level will struggle to rise. Most supplements in health food stores contain a maximum of 15mg which is the RDA for menstruating women.
Ferrous fumerate contains 65-70mg per tablet so you only need to take one a day there as Solar Gentle Iron (ferrous Bisglycinate) contains around 20mg so you would have to take 3. You can take generic ferrous gluconate instead of ferrous fumerate but like Solar Gentle Iron it is more expensive. You can get ferrous fumerate (and probably ferrous gluconate) from a pharmacy such as Boots, Tescos or an independent one. Alternatively just buy it online from Amazon which sells all the forms, as some pharmacies sell products on there. Ferritin rises slowly so don't expect a good level for 4-6 months.
As well as taking the iron 4 hours away from thyroid meds take it 2 hours away from other food and supplements, apart from the vitamin C, that way you don't have to worry about it interacting with other things.
I have just started the solgar gentle iron after the spartone liquid had not made a difference to my levels. I have also started taking solgar easier digested less acidic vit c. Im visiting the loo more so taking more iron I think I might struggle as my digestive system is pretty sensitive.
I've been taking b12 sublingual for months now and my levels are up a bit. I did however stop taking my multi b vit which was called fem eeze as felt I already talking loads of tablets.
I also take magnesium citrate as I get cramps.
Think I'm doing my best.
Already taking thyroid med first thing with just water. Then with brecci I take my magnesium and probiotic and molkasan fibre.
Then usually around my mid morning break I take the vit c, iron and vit d and the b 12.
Oh, dear. You are taking your magnesium far too soon after your levo. You should leave a gap of 6 hours between levo and magnesium.
You should not take iron and vit D at the same time, either. Does it say to take your iron with food? Very often you should take iron just by itself, apart from vit C. I think you need to rethink your routine.
And you do need to continue with that B complex! I know it's a lot of tablets, but you don't take half as many as I do! lol
Cheekycharlie1981 I posted a reply above before this post appeared.
If those results are from tests done after the test results in your first post then your ferritin is looking better, it's passed 70 which is the minimum for thyroid hormone to work properly and if you can get it up a bit more, 100+, that would be better.
The top post is my recent post on my levels so my iron has dropped again even after suppliment.
Just want to feel as prepared as possible for the endo today and not get talked down like my gp normally does.
I know my vits are not optimal but I still think a lot of my issues are thyroid related and levothyroxine does not suit me. The lactose for starts is something my body does not tolerate and seems to be in every pill on the NHS these days.
When I was younger and clueless and thought taking levothyroxine was all I had to do. I however did start to feel worse after a few years from taking it as the brands changed and lactose also added.And I was given multi brands which gave me heart palps and murcary pharma made me the worse. I now take activis.
I have a healthy diet work outside and to feel this energy less is just not normal.
Also my neck is worrying me as my gland seem to be swollen now around my neck for sometime.
My immune system just seems pretty useless at fighting anything off.
Cheekycharlie1981 It's possible for your doctor to prescribe lactose free thyroxine so you might want to discuss that with him as lactose is a problem for you thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/treatm...
If your vits and mins are not optimal then your thyroid hormone can't work properly so that's probably adding to your problems. If you make a post listing everything you take then members can suggest timings for them so that nothing affects the absorption of anything else.
Also, you can help your immune system with certain supplements (I know, more stuff, but if it helps.....). I don't remember the last time I had a cold or flu type virus, it's well over 10 years. The only thing I do get is lung infections and that's because I have a lung disease so my lungs are weak.
I hope your appointment with the endo goes well, let us know.
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