Help required Please for my daughter badly fatigued,breathless and dizzy!!

[spacestar]

My daughter aged 31 has recently had some blood tests done because of the symptoms described above. I have included her results plus normal range in brackets.

Vit B12 850 (200-883) I had been given her Vit B12 injections, but stopped for four months ago so it has stayed surprisingly high, not sure why.I self inject as positive for intrinsic factor but hers was negative last year but she felt this helped her.

Serum ferritin 26 (15-200)

Serum folate 3.9 (3.1-20)

WBC 4.5 (4-10)

Neutrophilis 1.3 (2-7) this is to be repeated in two weeks as this is the only one the Gp says is abnormal!

Thyroid Perox Ab's 225.1 (<6)

Vit D 39 ( above 50) she was advised to buy supplements over the counter for this

TSH 0.72 (0.35-5.00)

FreeT4 12.2 (9.0-21.0)

She has never been on any thyroid meds. I have Hashimotos (have posted on here for advice in past I now take NDT) Her grandmother and an aunt also have "thyroid problems" I am guessing also hashis. We both avoid gluten as both sensitive , my daughter gets terrible stomach pains with even a trace of gluten. The Gp has told her she has Hashimotos last year but no referral to an Endo was forthcoming.

Recently her fatigue has gotten much worse and she has been really dizzy. Gp looked at these results and apart from advising her to buy some Vit D nothing else suggested. We are worried about her health hoping someone be able to look at results. Thank you in advance for any advice.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Spacestar

Her Ferritin is very low. It can indicate iron deficiency anaemia. I would ask for an iron panel and full blood count. Low Ferritin can cause breathlessness and other symptoms. A couple of articles

healthline.com/health/ferri...

drhedberg.com/the-ferritin-...

I have read that for females 100-130 is best.

Eating liver regularly will help raise Ferritin, maximum 200g per week due to the high Vit A content.

Folate is too low, it should be half way through range. A good B Complex will help, eg Thorne Basic B (1 capsule) or Igennus Super B (2 tablets) will provide 400mcg methylfolate.

Vit D needs to be 100-150nmol according to the Vit D Council. She needs to supplement with 5000iu daily, retest in 3 months. She also needs to take D3's important cofactors vitamindcouncil.org/about-v...

D3 aids absorption of calcium from food and K2-mk7 directs the calcium to bones and teeth where it is needed and away from arteries and soft tissue where it can be deposited and cause problems. Magnesium helps the body to use D3.

D3 and K2-mk7 are fat soluble so should be taken with the fattiest meal of the day. Magnesium can be calming so best taken in the evening.

Her raised thyroid peroxidase antibodies confirm autoimmune thyroid disease aka Hashimoto's so eventually this will destroy her thyroid and she will develop full blown hypothyroidism.

Dr Toft, past president of the British Thyroid Association and leading endocrinologist has said that where antibodies are present then Levo should be started to 'nip things in the bud'. If you email Dionne at

[e-mail]

she will send you Dr Toft's Pulse article, print it to show the GP, you will find his recommendation in reply to Question 2.

Supplementing with selenium l-selenomethionine 200mcg daily can help reduce antibodies.

Don't start all supplements at the same time, start with one, give it 2 weeks and if no reaction add the second one, continue add g one new one every 2 weeks. That way if there is any reaction she will know what caused it.

[spacestar in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thank you so much for replying yes I thought it showed she was anaemic, so we will concentrate on this first then move on to other supplements I am wondering if she should go down the non dessicated thyroxine way instead of levo ? But will look at this once iron and other things sorted out. Thank you so very much for your detailed reply.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to spacestar]

Spacestar

Levo really is the best to start with. It suits the majority of people (you won't find them on here, if they do OK on Levo they're not looking for help). It's on prescription and once diagnosed all prescriptions for anything are free in England (the rest of the UK don't have prescription charges).

NDT (Natural Desiccated Thyroid) isn't licensed in the UK so almost impossible to get on prescription, and T3 is going the same way, so they have to be sourced at our own expense from overseas, can be expensive, and often if we go down this road we don't have the backing of our doctors so end up having to do our own private blood tests. NDT and T3 certainly have their place, as many here will testify, but trying Levo first is the most sensible thing to do.

[Cooper27]

I have high antibodies, but am not yet hypothyroid, so similar to your daughter. From the information I'm reading, they believe autoimmune disease starts in the gut, and it may be helpful for your daughter to try an auto-immune paleo diet for a while. If she can afford to, it would be beneficial to see a nutritionist, who will also help with gut healing supplements and getting the other numbers in check.

According to Izabella Wentz, it possible to reduce antibodies, and it's worth trying now, while it hasn't yet destroyed the thyroid gland.

If she ever plans to have children, it will be important for her to get her thyroid tested before trying to conceive as well.

[spacestar]

Thank you Cooper Yes we thought could reduce antibodies by going gluten free, will look into paleo too Thanks for replying.

[Cooper27 in reply to spacestar]

The Hashimotos protocol by Izabella Wentz is worth a read. In that, she lists the foods people benefitted most by cutting out. 76% benefitted from going gluten free, but there are a few besides gluten: 57% benefitted from avoiding dairy, 42% caffeine, 41% soya, so gluten may not be the only trigger. The idea of the autoimmune diet is to avoid the majority of the trigger foods for a couple of months, before introducing them slowly to see if they cause problems.

[klr31]

Get your daughter onto thyroxine. She needs it.

Karen

[spacestar]

Thanks for all replies, we really appreciate the advice as we feel a bit lost. I will get her to push GP into an Endo referral, the one I see is very good, although his hands are tied and he just "monitors" me as I self treat.

I tried Levo for a few years it did zero for me but it doesn't mean it will not help her It's just many Hashis don't do well on it. I know all about T3 have tried that too and I am now on NDT which I buy myself from America so i know all about the cost but it works well for me and allows me to be able to work albeit part time.

I think we will get anaemia treated look at upping supplements as suggested, then look at Levo at a later date. I am just really upset I have passed this horrible condition on to her, and at a younger age than I got it.

Thanks again for replies, so grateful once again for this forums help.

[Hidden]

B 12 deficiency because it effects the red blood cells can cause anaemia, I had severe vertigo and dizziness for many years it went away after I started talking B 12. Research B 12 deficiency yourself and see the symptoms if it relates to your daughter then you should try it first, I know what it did for me. I also know a young woman 31 who tried to get pregnant but couldn't because she was B 12 deficient, after taking B 12 she has a beautiful 5 year old daughter!

[spacestar]

Thanks J'm I already have been giving her B12 it was the first thing I thought off when she was feeling ill because I have been self injecting for a year now and it really helps a lot of my symptoms. I have tested positive for intrinsic factor and was low in my blood test but Endo said I would have to wait till it got extremely low before I would get it on NHS and I wasn't willing to wait, so I get it from Germany and it has made a real difference. I now inject once a month . At last appointment the Endo said your B12 result have really came back up, I said yes I self inject, he said I don't want to know !!

Her B12 looks fine and I haven't given her any for 4 months so I think its more the anaemia, I will keep an eye on it as we have a family history of pernicious anaemia as well as Hashis! families eh!!! Thanks for replying.