Prep for thyroid test

[hoalarg]

I have read that I need to avoid my ndt for 24 hours before the test as well as fast until doing it and taking a sample first thing in the morning. Are supplements ok. Someone mentioned biotin affecting the results. Is that true?

[Clutter]

Hoalarg,

Leaving 12 hours between last NDT dose and blood draw is sufficient and you only need to fast on the morning of the test but make sure to drink plenty of water. If you are taking biotin or B Complex vitamin stop taking them a day or two prior to any blood tests. Take other supplements after the blood test.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

hoalarg Yes it's true. Trust what you read on here, most members who respond to posts know more than the doctors!

Biotin can skew results, so if you take that on it's own, or in a B Complex, then leave it off for 3-4 days.

Also, on the day of the blood draw, take supplements afterwards.

As NDT contains both T4 and T3, it's a bit difficult to know what's best. T4 should be left of for 24 hours and T3 for 12 hours. When taking any medication with T3 then FT3 is the most important result, FT4 will usually be fairly low anyway. So if you leave NDT off for 24 hours you will have a lower FT3 than you would if you left it off for 12 hours.

[hoalarg in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thanks. Oh, I see. Maybe 24 hours is better for a truer reflection of FT3?

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to hoalarg]

No, 12 hours is best for a truer reflection of FT3. 24 hours will give a false low FT3.

[hoalarg]

Thank you very much clutter. Should I leave kelp for 12 hours too? I do take a lot of supps - C, E, selenium, Omega, Calcium, Magnesium, abhwagandha, zinc, probiotics. You name it, I probably take it.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to hoalarg]

Were you tested low for iodine level and that is why you take kelp? You shouldn't supplement with iodine unless you know you need it, and then only under the supervision of an experienced practioner. Was calcium tested too? Again, unless low you shouldn't supplement.

[hoalarg]

Ok, 12 hours it is then. In Dr Peatfields book it mentions taking low iodine supplement, so I take 225mcg. Should I leave it then? Calcium I take because I have joint and back problems and it's one with vitamin d for absorption.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to hoalarg]

Iodine and calcium should be tested and supplemented at the right level if appropriate.

I tested my iodine and it came back exactly in the middle of the range - 150 (100-199). My then practioner advised a multi supplement which contained 150mcg iodine. I questioned this as I wasn't deficient or even low. She said it was fine as it was a low dose.

I retested iodine a few months later, my level had shot up to 250 - same range 100-199. So a relatively low dose supplement can make a huge difference to our levels. I changed the supplement!

Someone who drinks non-organic milk and eats yogurt gets a good amount of iodine in their diet, then there is fish also very good for iodine content. It's very easy to get the correct amount of iodine from diet bda.uk.com/foodfacts/Iodine... so supplementing is really only for people who are deficient or low.

Vit D aids absorption of calcium so a calcium supplement is rarely needed, unless there is a reason for it and testing shows a deficiency. All that calcium needs directing to bones and teeth where it is needed and away from arteries and soft tissues where it can cause calcification of the arterties, kidney stones, etc. D3 has important cofactors that are needed to help it do it's job and to direct the calcium to where it should go vitamindcouncil.org/about-v...

[hoalarg in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thanks for your in depth reply. Interesting what you said about iodine and calcium. I am mercury toxic and that means that many of my key nutrients don't get absorbed into cells. Mercury skews results of vitamins and minerals and makes test results deranged. I can't rely on them too much.

I can see what you mean about being cautious. My diet is strict and it's easier to say what I eat rather than don't. I don't eat fish, soya, dairy, sugar or gluten due to sensitivity. I also have to avoid yeast.

It's not much fun. Thankfully I eat meat and get calcium from chicken and pork.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Sounds like you have Hashimoto's, in which case we should definitely not take any iodine or kelp.

chriskresser.com/iodine-for...

[hoalarg in reply to SlowDragon]

Thanks. An interesting article. My blood test will include antibodies this time as I have never tested for them. I do take a lot of selenium for my toxicity so I guess that would counter most problems with iodine supplementation even with hashimotos.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to hoalarg]

Article states iodine should NOT be supplemented if we have Hashimoto's

[hoalarg]

Ideally. But he did say:

'... it appears that iodine may only pose a problem for people with Hashimoto’s and other autoimmune thyroid diseases in the presence of concurrent selenium deficiency. In the study above where rats developed goiter while receiving excess iodine, when they were given adequate selenium they did not develop the goiter.'