Would appreciate some input on newest labs!

I went to the lab two weeks ago and got my results today (seeing hormone doctor later this week). I feel quite confused and I'd really appreciate some feedback on them (long post!)

I have been on 5 grains of Thyroid-S for the past two years. Last year, I even tried raising it after labs came back:

TSH <0.01 (ref 0.2-4.5)

FT4 0.8 (0.7-1.5)

FT3 2.9 (1.7-3.7)

But then I read here that FT4 levels will be lower when you take T3. Also, I take NDT once a day and wait 24 h before having labs, so my FT3 levels were likely 20% higher the previous day so around 3.48 which is good. Plus, I felt good, so I decided to stay on 5 grains.

Lately, I have been having some hyper symptoms such as excessive sweating and disturbed sleep, but I attributed them to the heatwave and menopause. However, this is what my new labs look like:

TSH< 0.01

FT4 1.2 (0.7-1.5)

FT3 5.6 (1.7-3.7) so seriously out of range and even higher on the previous day

I have no idea what has changed since last year or the year before that; could the fact that I am now peri-menopausal mean I need less hormones than before? I have weaned off Medrol for adrenal fatigue, and added adrenal cortex instead, but I doubt that would make much of a difference...I simply do not understand this, as my FTs have not even been close to the upper normal range on this dose before, quite the contrary. Any input would be most welcome!

I have been taking a multivitamin supplement for the past year (MultiVitality Daily Essentials Complete by Healthspan UK). However, both my vit E and vit D levels are below range, and my vit A, iron and ferritin levels only midrange. I have read that multivitamin supplements are no good, and I will now stop taking it and start taking each hormone individually instead. Any recommendations about good vitamin A, D, and E as well as iron supplements would be most welcome; there are literally thousands of products out there, so impossible to know which ones are really good.

However, one thing really worries me, and that's my zinc levels. They have always been well in range (around 110; ref 84-135). This year, however, they were seriously out of range: 250. The lab has even made a comment in the margin, saying that they double-checked the result...

I have read about excess zinc levels which seem pretty rare as it's almost impossible to get too much zinc from food. Zinc deficiency seems much more common...in one US article, it says excessive zinc levels can be deadly and that you need to contact the poison information centre asap; British articles seem more relaxed on the subject and say that excessive zinc levels are not really dangerous, but can cause some discomfort in the GI tract...no sure whom to believe. However, one article said that calcium lowers zinc uptake, so I will invest in a calcium supplement.

I don't understand this, as I don't eat much food containing high levels of zinc (meat, dairy products, shellfish...). I have never had this problem before in my life, I eat and drink the same things I have always done, so where does this excessive zinc come from...? The supplement I've been taking for the past year contains 10 mg of zinc which is said to be 100% of daily requirement, but I read that up to 25 mg of zinc daily is considered safe...and there is no way I would be getting more than twice as much from food than from supplements. So this is a true mystery to me...

[shaws Administrator]

Blood tests were introduced along with levothyroxine. Levothyroxine alone is T4 and converts to T3. ThyroidS contains a collection of hormones. Dr Lowe only took blood tests for the initial diagnoses and thereafter did not and it was all about how the patient felt on a particular dose. This is from his archived site.

web.archive.org/web/2010103...

[Hidden in reply to shaws]

Yes, and it was a great method developed by a great doctor! It's a shame he's no longer around...

[Hidden in reply to shaws]

I just read that zinc is needed to optimise T4 to T3 conversion, so it makes sense that elevated zinc levels would cause more T4 to be converted to T3...

I will not lower Thyroid-S just yet, but try to normalise my zinc levels first and see if that makes a difference. There are very few articles on elevated zinc levels as most deal with zinc deficiency, but I have found a few, including one stating that women need 8 mg of zinc daily and that most will get it from from a varied enough diet, making supplements superfluous...The supplement I have been taking for the past year contains 10 mg of zinc, which may be too much for me (more in line with what a man needs; 11 mg daily).