Take armour before blood test ?

My endo has said he wants me to take my early dose of armour 5.30am before my blood test at 10am ? This goes against what I have read and been told before ? Does anyone know why he might want me to do this ? ! When I said your not meant to do this he said it should be all used up by then and shouldn't affect my results !

[shaws Administrator]

I wouldn't believe him. T3 is absorbed quickly but even I would not take mine before a blood test. The reason being they only take account of the blood tests alone and ignore the patient's symptoms and can mean the difference between remaining on the dose you're on or having it reduced. NDT contains T3/T4 etc and T4 isn't absorbed quickly.

[Clutter]

Nataliesue,

If, as most people think, T3 in NDT peaks in the blood for up to six hours it will still be peaking in your blood 4.5 hours after last dose and FT3 will show high.

[jimh111]

It depends on how many doses of NDT you take each day and the timing. If this is the only dose it would be a little too soon (many patients leave too long). If you only take NDT once a day I'd switch to taking it at bedtime and then the 10 am blood draw will give a reasonably accurate result. When do you take your NDT?

If you take NDT once daily (some patients do) and 'it should all be used up by then', how do these patients survive?

[Hidden in reply to jimh111]

Thanks for reply, I take 4 doses a day, 4 and a half grains throughout the day, I take a small dose at night as it was stopping me from sleeping, I've tried lots of different times and amounts and this suits me fine, as I'm now managing to work 4 and a half days a week

[jimh111 in reply to Hidden]

If you take it four times a day, on average you would get the most accurate result from taking the blood three hours after a dose. So, your doctor's recommendation is fine. If it stops you getting to sleep this is a clear sign that you are over medicated. However, if you can't work without it then there obviously has to be a compromise. If you can't function without this dosage I'd suggest you get your GP to prescribe a beta blocker such as sotalol to protect your heart a little and make sure you exercise and have good vitamin D levels. Sometimes there's no choice, this happens in medicine, the drugs that make you function can cause harm. So, it's a matter of staying on the minimum effective dose and taking what steps you can to reduce any risks.

[Hidden in reply to jimh111]

Thanks for that, yes I do need this dose to function, I do check my pulse and bp everyday, bp is usually around 106 over 67 and pulse is 70 , I have a very active job , a pony to exercise everyday and I cycle every wk end. I also take vit d , and a few other supplements that I require, apart from pulse and bp it's hard to tell if over or under medicated as symptoms the same ? Also if I go lower dose I start to put on weight ! And hair falls out ! I'm intolerant to a lot of foods , I am very careful what I eat, and I eat very healthy, ps I'm 8st 6lbs , thanks 😊

[jimh111 in reply to Hidden]

OK. The timing of the blood draw will give a reasonable measure of your T3 levels. It is very important that your doctor takes account of your sings and symptoms on this dose and doesn't let the blood test override your clinical response.