Hey everyone, does anyone here have low aldosterone? i have no diagnosis for my symptoms of dizziness, lightheadedness, trouble sitting up or standing without my symptoms getting worse and getting to pre syncope, nausea, tremor, extreme fatigue etc. im so lost right now
aldosterone was <70
Says normal levels vary with posture
Adults recumbent overnight 90 - 405
random sample &/or upright 90- 720
TSH 2.14 0.35 - 5.50
(i also had some thyroid tests done privately which were normal, including thyroid antibodies)
Serum Sodium 139 133 - 146
Serum Potassium 4.3 3.5 - 5.3
Serum Creatinine 87 62 - 115
Serum Urea 4.1 2.5 - 7.8
Estimated GFR >90
Morning Cortisol blood test
289 133.00 - 537.00
Vitamin B12 and Folate
B12 289 211 - 911 (think i was taking a b complex at the time)
Folate 3.03 >> 5.38 ug/L LOW
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leahcim
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Have you texted your cortisol levels by doing a saliva test? Your symptoms are almost identical to the symptoms my daughter experienced recently. A saliva cortisol test & visit to a doc in London confirmed adrenal insufficiency and postpartum hypothyroidism.
I'm not too good at interpreting results but I do know that cortisol output should be highest in the morning - near top of the range and a gradual decline throughout the day. My daughter is much better, getting there with adrenal support and once her adrenals are supported she will introduce thyroid support.
Edit : I posted the wrong link, now fixed - sorry!
Take a look at the simple diagram showing the basic relationships between cortisol and sex hormones and several other hormones. (And watch the video.)
1) A healthy person would have enough pregnenolone to make sex hormones and to make sufficient cortisol to allow people to cope with the stresses and strains of normal life.
2) There are conditions that can arise - and having reduced thyroid hormones is one of these - where the body needs more cortisol to keep going. Under those circumstances the body prioritises the production of cortisol and reduces the production of sex hormones. People can live without sex hormones, but they can't live without cortisol.
3) I am guessing here, but if the body starts struggling to make cortisol, even after ditching the sex hormones, then aldosterone will start disappearing as well.
4) The thing to do with these issues is not to just replace what is low, such as testosterone for example or aldosterone, although that may help - you'd need to experiment. You need to find out what is causing the huge demand for cortisol in the first place, and try and fix those things and reduce the need for cortisol. Then, if all goes well, the body will start dividing up its resources differently, so that some aldosterone gets made, or sex hormones or whatever. It's very easy to say what I've just said, but a lot less easy to actually do anything in real life.
I notice you've posted quite a few times in the last few years on Thyroid UK and the Pernicious Anaemia (PA) Society forum. Has anything changed? Have you been diagnosed with a thyroid problem? Do you take thyroid hormones? Have you been diagnosed with PA? Do you treat any of your problems yourself or get anything prescribed? I noticed your ferritin was low in one of your posts from a couple of years ago. Have you done anything about this? Found out whether you're anaemic?
We really need a bit more up-to-date info.
For info on blood test results, one of the best sources of info is this one :
As far as I can tell - and I'm no expert on the things you listed above, your Estimated GFR suggests that your kidneys are nice and healthy. As for the rest of them they are all well in range and look fine to me, but I wouldn't know what I was looking for.
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TSH 2.14 0.35 - 5.50
(i also had some thyroid tests done privately which were normal, including thyroid antibodies)
Saying that you had some tests done privately and the results were normal is not very helpful - it's exactly what a GP or an endo would say. If results are in range then they're normal - end of conversation. But in thyroid terms this isn't really enough. It matters far more where results lie in range than whether they lie in range.
For some people a TSH over 2 might suggest your thyroid is beginning to struggle a bit, but is in the early stages. Or your results are perfectly fine, which is more likely at this stage. But so many things can be wrong with a TSH that looks fine, so we would need to see the other results and the reference ranges to make any serious comments.
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Vitamin B12 and Folate
B12 289 211 - 911 (think i was taking a b complex at the time)
Folate 3.03 >> 5.38 ug/L LOW
I think you should write a post on the PA Society forum, copy in your Vitamin B12 and Folate results, and ask for feedback.
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aldosterone was <70
Says normal levels vary with posture
Adults recumbent overnight 90 - 405
random sample &/or upright 90- 720
I've never investigated aldosterone before. You could read the following page and the other tabs :
Notice the other tabs - Test Sample, The Test, Common Questions etc. Click on each of them and read the info.
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Morning Cortisol blood test
289 133.00 - 537.00
What time of day was the blood taken for this test? Was it done between 8am - 9am? Was it done fasting? Were you stressed at the time, or quite relaxed?
When testing cortisol via blood and testing it via saliva the thing being measured isn't the same in each case.
You may have seen, in thyroid testing, that people can have (for example) Total T4 measured or Free T4 measured. Free T4 is preferable and more reliable than Total T4 as an indicator of thyroid status.
Similar considerations occur when measuring cortisol. Cortisol can exist in its Free form (also called unbound cortisol), or it can be attached to a transport protein (Transcortin) for moving it around in the bloodstream - this is bound cortisol.
When cortisol is measured in blood, the total of the bound and unbound cortisol is measured. The body can't make instant use of bound cortisol, it has to be able to split the cortisol from the transport protein.
When cortisol is measured in saliva, what is being measured is unbound cortisol only - and this is the thing the body can make use of.
Some people can have normal results in blood, and low results in saliva, or vice versa, or any other combination of low and/or high in blood or saliva.
Having written the above, the only thing I can say about your cortisol result is that it is 39% of the way through the range. Whether that gives you enough cortisol first thing in the morning I don't know.
The graph you posted suggests that your cortisol was struggling four years ago. But things could have stayed the same, got worse or got better since then. I have no way to know.
no i havent had any diagnosis or anything i didnt do anything about ferritin as my blood iron was high in a blood test in 2016, sorry im just so lost in everything, thanks for the reply im going over it now
heres my thyroid results from around the same time in 2013.
Aldosterone helps to maintain blood pressure by retaining sodium in the kidney & secreting potassium into the urine. Research has also shown good levels of Aldosterone help in preventing hearing loss.
Accurate measuring of free active aldosterone is done using a 24 hrs urine collection.
Blood pressure is also measured standing up, sitting down, and lying down.
Aldosterone declines with age and declines even more with low salt intake. Your sodium levels are on the lower end of the range
Dr Thierry Hertoghe describes the symptoms as dizziness, absentmindedness, feels better laying down, Low mood & energy when standing up, and difficult visual focusing standing up, frequent urination and indeed craving salt.
In addition to all the above signs, check your tongue, if indented, it could be an added confirmation.
Your thyroid is struggling a bit, you have low adrenals, with very low folate and very low B12. All should be addressed and very soon and my final question, have you discussed these results with your GP mainly your levels of GFR >90. I think you should!
Hey there thank you for ur reply. I thought GFR >90 was good? I thought it meant my kidneys were good but I'm not sure tbh I'm stupid with stuff like this. Yup I match all them symptoms u said that Dr hertoghe says.
No, you are not stupid. Don't say that! You are only struggling with poor health and you deserve better
All results best looked at as a whole and GFR normal levels depending on your age. Hence, my question just to eliminate any risks.
What were your thyroid antibodies levels? you only mentioned they were normal. If you posted all thyroid profile tests in here with their ranges, I am sure you'll get some help with their interpretation.
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is your daughter better now?
If results are in range then they're normal - end of conversation. But in thyroid terms this isn't really enough. It matters far more where results lie in range than whether they lie in range.
Does low ferritin cause low FT3?
Can low SHBG levels cause hair loss
DHEA - what would cause it to be so low?
Low temperature causing low white blood cell count? 
FT3 low in range. How do I help GP understand this could be the cause of some of my symptoms?
