Help Please! First Medichecks bloods results- I wish I'd done them a year ago as I've nothing to compare with!

[Avidreader]

"Please find our comments below regarding your latest test results. Comments on any previous results can be viewed in the Test Results section.

Thyroid Check UltraVit

18 Oct 2018

Here I am reporting a Thyroid Check Ultravit.

We note that you are taking this test to monitor your thyroid function for which you take natural desiccated thyroid. Despite this, I am sorry to hear that you are symptomatic again.

Your thyroid stimulating is low whilst your thyroid hormones are normal. This suggests that your dose of natural desiccated thyroid may be too high. You should discuss these results with your doctor who can advise on the appropriate dose. Natural dessicated thyroid can cause quite suppressed TSH levels and there is debate about whether this is due to the combined effect of thyroxine and T3, or whether it indicates overtreatment.

Having very low levels of thyroid stimulating hormone for several years has been associated with the development of osteoporosis. If your thyroid stimulating hormone always tends to be substantially below the normal range then it may be worth discussing with your GP whether a bone density scan is advised to monitor for the development of osteoporosis. You do not need to worry about the occasional low reading, only if you get repeated very low levels.

Your antibody levels are within normal limits and so an autoimmune condition of the thyroid is not detected.

Your levels of vitamin B12, folate and vitamin D are normal.

Your CRP level is high. This may indicate increased inflammation and/or infection within the body. If you are experiencing pain, fever or other symptoms that suggest infection or inflammation then I recommend that you discuss this further with your GP.

The type of CRP test that you have had is one which can also indicate future risk of cardiovascular disease. I recommend repeating this test in 6-8 weeks to see whether it remains above 3. If it does then I recommend that you take a more aggressive approach to managing other cardiovascular risk factors such as blood pressure, cholesterol, diet, smoking and exercise levels.

Your ferritin level is normal indicating healthy iron stores.

These results do not appear to explain your symptoms. If they are still bothersome then I recommend that you see your GP for a comprehensive history, examination and further investigation as required but I appreciate that you have already been down this route. Lifestyle improvements may help but I cannot comment further.

Dr Emil Hodzovic

MBBCh

Based on your Thyroid Check UltraVit results we recommend that you have the following test:

- CRP (High Sensitivity) in 2 months" Medichecks

ME....

I bulk at the advice to take EXTRA care over diet , etc as I am on strict autoimmune & live like a NUN ! I walk & swim daily too ! !!

RESULTS :

TSH 0.01

Freee Thyroxine14.7000

Free T3 6.78

Thyroglobin Antibody 49.300

Thyroid Perioxidase Antibodies 17.7

active B12 68.500

Folate serum 15.09

25 ob Vit D 105

BIOCHEMISTRY

Inflamation Marker CRP HIGH SENSITIVITY 8.22

Iron Ferratin 51.1

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Avidreader

We need reference ranges please

I know some of them but not all.

How do you feel?

For someone on NDT your results look good. Low TSH, low FT4 and top of range FT3. Not unexpected.

Both antibodies are in range.

Active B12 is rather low. This article suggests that anything below 70 should be tested for B12 deficiency viapath.co.uk/our-tests/act...

Check for signs of B12 deficiency here b12deficiency.info/signs-an... and list any to take to your doctor if asking for further testing.

I can't remember folate reference range.

Vit D is within the range recommended by the Vit D Council (100-150nmol/L).

CRP is high, this is a non-specific inflammation marker so could be due to infection possibly, or if you have Hashi's that can raise CRP sometimes.

Ferritin is a bit low, for thyroid hormone to work (that's our own as well as replacement hormone) ferritin needs to be at least 70, preferably half way through range. If you're not vegetarian then eating liver regularly will help raise your level (max 200g per week), or black pudding or liver pate.

[Avidreader in reply to SeasideSusie]

Ok I will try again tomorrow- I feel ok but not as good as a year ago when first started on NDT ( felt great for 2 months only !)

Now hair falling out

Tired in pm

Cognitive not good

Two frozen shoulders ( could this be the inflammation?🤔)

Black pudding ( I have managed to source a gluten free one ! That’s quite unusual ) I do eat a lot of meat & also chicken livers & heart 😚once a week - will try to up it -

Will try to put up that JPG again tomorrow or type more out - ( reference ranges ) I even did a screen grab - nothing would load - Must be a glitch ? Thank you both

[Avidreader in reply to SeasideSusie]

Oh looking at those symptoms!

I have rather lot of those 🙄 thank you SeasideSusie for taking the time to flag up

- strangely I’ve got so much better on Nature Throid - and yet upper arms weakness and pain in shoulders has worsened - hair loss also and Tinnitus is new ! Also feeling faint and weak at times - intact so many of these symptoms ring a bell - I put them all down to thyroid -

I have. Numbness in toes - but thought that may be OVER dosing on B Vits !

I ll need to look into this

[Avidreader in reply to SeasideSusie]

I have now uploaded the photo- I really appreciate your time & advice

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Avidreader]

The only thing I haven't commented on is Folate. This should be at least half way through range, so that would be at least 15.35. Yours is 15.09 so not too bad. Everything else in my previous reply stands.

[Avidreader in reply to SeasideSusie]

I have spinach & dark green leafy green veg most days - I'm not sure if folate is in B Vit complex?

So I'm thinking that if my thyroid levels are ok - there must be something else going on? I will up my liver intake. I still don't know why I'm getting this inflamation..

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Avidreader]

Depending on which B Complex you take it will contain B9 as either folic acid (not the best form) or methylfolate (recommended form).

I would seriously look at your B12. You say you have a lot of the signs and symptoms of B12 deficiency, your Active B12 level is below 70 so you should have further testing, as mentioned. But you need to be off B12 and B Complex supplements because they mask signs of B12 deficiency. And if you have B12 injections prescribed, then folate supplements (including B Complex) are started after the B12.

[Avidreader in reply to SeasideSusie]

Blimey ! Ok - thank you for this ❤️ I say blimey cos I find it all exhausting- I’m not being ungrateful-

I take SOLGAR 50 high potency ( seems to have only folic not Methylfolate 🙄

And sub lingual is MY Kind Organics

So if I go to my GP ( how long do I need to be OFF the B12 & Vit B before testing ) ?

Should I also cut down on eating liver before tests ?

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Avidreader]

So if I go to my GP ( how long do I need to be OFF the B12 & Vit B before testing ) ?

I don't know, maybe make a new post asking about that, but remember to mention you have signs of B12 deficiency and what you've been taking and for how long.

Should I also cut down on eating liver before tests ?

If you're having ferritin/iron tests then don't eat liver for a week before.

[Avidreader in reply to SeasideSusie]

I asked a renowned nutritionist I know he says “ B-vitamins are water soluble, and apart from B-12 are not stored in the body. When testing B-vitamins, avoid supplements for 24 hours”

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Avidreader]

I'm not quite sure what you're mean here.

Excess B vitamins aren't stored, they are excreted. But that has nothing to do with testing for B12 deficiency. If you're supplementing B12 you are boosting your levels and you're not getting a baseline when testing. If you want to test for B12 deficiency then taking a B12 supplement will boost your level and folic acid/folate masks signs of B12 deficiency.

And because a B Complex usually contains Biotin, you need to be off that for 3-5 days because it's the Biotin that can be a problem when doing blood tests. If the testing procedure uses Biotin then the results will be skewed unless you leave the supplement off for 3-5 days.

[Avidreader in reply to SeasideSusie]

Ok I will not take the supplements for over a week - If I can ever get to see my GP to arrange blood tests !

[alannalifts]

Glad you found a way to post your results :). As mentioned above, reference ranges are also helpful - you can put them in brackets after each result. I agree that your thyroid hormone levels look decent, but there is room for improvement with your vitamin levels (even though they are in the "normal" range), which could explain some of your symptoms (take the advice of the Medichecks doctor with many grains of salt since they do not compare your levels to the optimal ranges).

One question I did have, though, is when you had your blood drawn relative to your dose, and if you split your NDT dose (e.g., taking half in the AM and half in the PM). Free T3 has a short half life and will vary depending on how soon you do your blood work after taking your dose.

[Avidreader in reply to alannalifts]

I had bloods taken early morning 8-15 am last NDT at 6pm night before - yes I take 1 grain 3 times a day on empty stomach - my diet is ridiculously squeaky clean -

I found it exhausting having to type it all in ! Which is why I didn’t do the rest - I’m very bad cognitively - especially with computer or brain stuff - 😩

Vague - forgetting words -

Don’t know why jpg wouldn’t load ? I tried for ages - sizing it smaller etc -

[alannalifts in reply to Avidreader]

No worries - just add them when you feel better rested, or try uploading them again tomorrow and see if the error has been fixed. In the meantime, I'll compare it to my Medichecks reference range, since they should be the same :).

I'm actually wondering if you might be slightly overmedicated (which can also cause fatigue) given that your free T3 is at the very top of the range about 14 hours after your last dose - i.e., it's going to be higher for a good chunk of the intermediate time. Additionally, your subsequent two doses will be closer together than 14 hrs, so it's likely higher than 6.78 during the day, as well. However, someone else should comment on this possibility, since I have less experience interpreting thyroid hormone levels.

One other note, in case you do want to check your daytime levels at some point - you can draw the blood later in the day (e.g., I do mine about 3 pm), even though Medichecks advises early in the day for shipping reasons. You just have to go to a post office afterwards and ship it guaranteed next day delivery, rather than first class, which costs several extra quid.

[Avidreader in reply to alannalifts]

I have now uploaded the photo- I really appreciate your time & advice

[SlowDragon Administrator]

What supplements do you take?

Do you take vitamin B complex? B12 and folate could be improved

[Avidreader in reply to SlowDragon]

Yes I take B12 sub lingual ( last thing at night ) so as not to be near my 6pm Nature Throid - & B Complex

I eat chicken. Liver & it’s heart 💓 😩once a week with my bone broth !

[Avidreader in reply to SlowDragon]

I stopped taking it for 1 week before my blood tests - (B12 sub lingual & Vit B complex )