“Led by Dr. Begoña Ruiz-Núñez at the University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands, the researchers compared thyroid function and markers of inflammation between 98 CFS patients and 99 healthy controls. Remarkably, the CFS patients had lower serum levels of certain key thyroid hormones such as triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4), but normal levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone.”
Well, until they can figure out the science CFS and a treatment that prevents the buildup of reverse T3, it makes sense to trial T4 and T3 medication for such patients. They are, after all, just hormones.
So basically hypothyroid people with normal TSH. Have they tried giving them thyroid hormones? Probably not. Too crazy idea. My TSH was normal - lovely one point something but had every symptom going. All gone on thyroid hormones. TSH dogma is idiotic and is used for the convenience of doctors. They rather invent brand new disease and call it incurable.
CFS has unknown causes which is distinct from primary (Hashimotos) or central (pituitary problem) hypothyroidism. There seems to be some mechanism creating inflammation resulting in a build up of reverse T3 and hence decreased T3 in tissue, resulting in hypothyroid symptoms.
Btw KT77 just curious, were your antibodies normal? Pituitary function? Would be interested to learn more about what your TSH and T4/T3 were and how you got a doctor to start you on treatment!
I have read that CFS, Fibro were only diagnosed about ten years after the introduction of levothyroxine which is T4 only.
The following is by a doctor who was also a Researcher and scientist would also never prescribe levothyroxine as he stated it was due to corruption that it overtook NDT which was the original thyroid hormone replacement which contains all of the hormones a healthy gland would.
He also stated that some people were Resistant to thyroid hormones in that they need T3 to resolve their symptoms. He himself was resistant and took 150mcg of T3 daily.
I have also read is that CFS and Fibro were 'named' about ten years after the introduction of levo.
Dr. Lowe: I respectfully disagree with your endocrinologist. Studies indicate that T4 is of no use to anyone except, figuratively, as a storage unit for the metabolically-active thyroid hormones T3, T2, and possibly T1. When T4 ends its long ride through the circulating blood, it enters cells. There, enzymes convert it to T3, and, after a while, other enzymes convert T3 to T2. The T2 becomes T1, and eventually T1 becomes T0 (T-zero). T0 is just the amino acid backbone(called "tyrosine") with no iodine atoms attached. Because it has no attached iodine atoms, T0 is no more a hormone than is T4.
Rather than being a hormone, T4 is a “prohormone.” That means that enzymes have to convert T4 to T3 before T4 benefits us. T4 is no more a hormone than beans in an unopened can are a food. For all practical purposes, canned beans become food only when a can opener frees them so you can eat them. Hence, T4, like canned beans, only potentially benefits us, but actually does so only after being freed from its metabolically unusable form. Excerpt:
Your endocrinologist may say that T4 is a gentler way to get T3 into your body. This to me, however, is a specious argument. When taken properly, T3 can effect one as gently as T3 derived from T4.
I read about CFS a bit. I played with the idea I might have it what with the normal TSH and all that. But then my thyroid was swollen since I was a teen and it went down when put on t4 for couple of years. Then endo stopped it and of course it came back and as i was getting older symptoms like weight gain, thinning hair, body aches, stiffness and worst of all heaviness of the body started to appear. Also total apathy towards life, depression, anxiety. I tested my antibodies twice and it came back low before I started thyroid treatment and even lower once on ndt. So I probably don't have hashi. T4 before medication was 14 (12-22) and T3 not too bad just below mid-range (4.5 I think). So I don't qualify neither for primary or central hypo. I'm truly puzzled what it is that I have: ) If you have any idea feel free to express it: ) I think in my case its genetics as my father had hypo symptoms all his life, body aches, low temp, tired, sedentary, he takes t4 now finally at the age of 70 and I remember his mother could barely walk thru the pain and was wrapped in a blanket even in the middle of summer and just sit around all day. Basically like me before medication.
Never had pituitary function tested. My NHS GP said my thyroid is fine as my tsh is normal and doesn't know I'm taking medication. I found a private GP who is treating me.
Andy, high rT3 does not reduce T3. It's when you can't convert T4 very well, and the FT4 builds up to the top of the range, that it starts converting to rT3. rT3 may have some effect on FT3 but we don't really know. But, it's not the cause of poor conversion, it's the result. Or, if you mean that it stops T3 getting into the cells, that's not true, either. It has been discovered that rT3 has its own receptors and does not block T3 receptors. rT3 is gone in a couple of hours, anyway, converted to T2.
But, explain to me how CFS is different from Central hypo, if Central hypo is also 'normal' TSH and low Frees?
Unfortunately this study isn't much use. The only differences are in the total hormone levels and it is likely the severe symptoms of CFS have an effect on thyroidial output. They shouldn't place reliance on ratios when the underlying factors (e.g. fT3) do not differ, this introduces a statistical error, sorry I can't remember what it is called.
However, I very much agree that a good number of CFS cases are caused by a form of hypothyroidism with normal blood hormone levels, as advocated by John Lowe. The point is this hypothyroidism is often severe and not caused by marginal hormone deficiencies, rather due to some form of peripheral resistance to thyroid hormone.
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Frontiers in Endocrinology paper: 'Higher Prevalence of “Low T3 Syndrome” in Patients With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome' advocates T3 trials
Daily Rhythms of Thyroid Hormones + TSH
A New Thyroid Subset For Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)? The Low T3 Syndrome Group by Cort Johnson www.prohealth.com
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