went from ndt to levo

[passwordagain]

Hi I was on ndt but could not afford it. went on levo and my ft3 has dropped to well below the reading I had before I was medicated.l why? I am on 100 levo and got my test done 3 weeks later

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Levo is only T4. You have to convert to T3. Often we struggle to convert for various reasons

Highly likely to now have low vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12

And/or if you have Hashimoto's (high thyroid antibodies)

All these lower our ability to convert T4 to T3

Tests should be after 6-8 weeks. 3 weeks is probably too soon

For full evaluation you ideally need TSH, FT4, FT3, TT4, TPO and TG antibodies, plus vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 tested

See if you can get full thyroid and vitamin testing from GP. Unlikely to get FT3

Private tests are available

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

Medichecks Thyroid plus ultra vitamin or Blue Horizon Thyroid plus eleven are the most popular choice. DIY finger prick test or option to pay extra for private blood draw. Both companies often have money off offers.

All thyroid tests should be done as early as possible in morning and fasting and don't take Levo in the 24 hours prior to test, delay and take straight after. This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results

Link about antibodies

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

Link about thyroid blood tests

thyroiduk.org/tuk/testing/t...

[humanbean]

What kind of NDT were you taking? There are several different kinds of NDT available. (It's amazing how many people think Armour Thyroid is the one and only.) If you bought NDT from Thailand you might be able to afford it - it's a huge amount cheaper than the American or Canadian brands.