hi everyone! I have hypothyroid / hashimotos. I am going to see a new endo next month. I have been on Armour 30 since I was 18! I am 26 now. I am recently experiencing hair loss.. its been going on about a year for me. It is diffuse and constant. Some days are worse, others are manageable. I feel so sad by this it consumes my day. So far these are my thyroid readings. any help would be greatly appreciated!!
TSH - 2.26 (0.450-4.5)
Thyroxine (t4) - 5.4 (4.5-12.0)
T3 uptake - 26 (24-39)
Free Thyroxine Index - 1.4 (1.2-4.9)
Thyroglobulin Antibody - 4.7 (0.0-0.9) HIGH
Thank you in advance!
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gtripp92
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When taking NDT it tends to lower, even suppress TSH and yours is way too high for a treated hypo patient.
The best markers for knowing if you are optimally medicated when on NDT are symptoms (lack of) and Free T3 result. You need to test your Free T3, it could well be low in range.
I agree. problem was, when I added 15 msg of armour I had anxiety/jitters and hoarse throat almost instantly! I am seeing a new endo this coming month. Will see if I can get my free t3 tested. Thank you!
Have you had your ferritin levels tested? Low levels appear to be linked to hair loss. My hair loss definately was and once I managed to get it to at least 3 quarters up the range my hair started to come back in. It took almost a year to see hair growth. Just a thought.
yes. My ferritin was a 20. I got it up to 40 and stopped taking iron. I might need to continue to see more results. I have baby fine hairs coming in but still shedding...
I think you need to get it at least to 70 or three quarters up the range and keep it there. I never experienced obvious or profuse shedding. If this is the cause you have to be very patient as it does take time. Good luck and try to enjoy Christmas.
It is a good idea to have your ferritin tested quite regularly. My experience is it takes several months to get it optimum level and does not drop quickly. Not wanting to sound like the prophet of doom but Alopecia is also an autoimmune disease. If you still have hair loss following ferritin adjustment, you may want to check this out. Autoimmune disease seem to present as ‘buy two get one free.’
I agree (!) Once levo was controlled my hair was a bit better (also with selenium aNd vit E) but I would still shed hair and it would come away even if I ran my fingers through hair.
I was always told my iron and ferritin were fine but when I checked levels they were low for 18 months always at 13-25.
After 2 months of taking iron raised ferritin to 90 Nd my hair was so much stronger and hardly falls out now.
Still get it when I wash or brush my hair a bit but hopefully will.improve in time
As vocalEK says below though you have to be careful not to oversupplement as it can cause other problems and be toxic in high amounts
Medical folk constantly say vit and mineral levels are fine if they are anywhere in the range. Not so as many of us know. They really know didly squat about nutrition and optimism levels.
Luckily I managed to figure out I also had a b12 deficiency aswell by closely.looking at my FBC results
Despite having microcytosis clearly written in !! On my lab results and low ferritin for 18months+ and crawling into the doctors office complaining of extreme heavy bleeding all day for 3 weeks plus and my legs so restless they were practically having a seizure and I feel like I'm actually dying (to the point i get a Pvt ultrasound of my abdomen done because I think I have a tumour!) the GP tells me that it's a bit of a myth that women's iron stores actually deplete during menstruation 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Of course I was also taking iron sachets at the time (which I told him) so my actual serum.iron levels were 'normal' - no they were still low in range - and I'm not anaemic 😥
Despite family having strong anaemia and beta thalassemia trait which makes our Red blood cells smaller naturally
I despair ..... And this GP is actually one of the best I've had (!) He's normally very understanding and empathetic and generally a bit more willing to look into things but they absolutely have no clue how to link symptoms with results and interpret them
During the menopause I was bleeding daily for about four years. Why did I not think something was wrong? Well I actually had a benign tumor inside the womb causing this. I never felt ill, my haematocrit was fine but I believe this was the time when my ferritin was heavily depleated and of course my GP didn’t test this.
I think the general message is tha medics are not God. They are busy folk and know little about nutrition and it’s importance to good health. Sounds like a very obvious scenario but actually not. They also by nature work hand in glove with pharma companies and therefore their hands are tied and they are often blinkered to the obvious. We, therefore have to take our health into our own hands, read all we can about medical issues we have, join forums like this, eat well, excercise sensibly but effectively and act like a dog with a bone to secure the very best treatment possible. The latter is often and unfortunately an uphill battle.
Would you believe that high levels of ferritin are also linked to hair loss. Apparently where your hair is concerned, there is a "sweet spot" for iron levels. My ferritin score came in at 175, and I have been losing hair like mad for at least a year. irondisorders.org/iron-over...
Strange you should say that. My hair is not so thick since I have hit the top of the ferritin range. Not obviously shedding but not as good as it was three quarters up the range. I find trying to keep ferritin at a constant level difficult especially when the hospital keeps blocking the testing. They are happy to give out the tablets but not to monitor the results!
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