Nature-throid

[Catlover3]

Hi. Anyone know what is going on with nature-throid supplies again? Fed up with this malarky especially as I have a nhs prescription for it but nobody seems to be able to get hold of any. Grrr

[NatChap]

It stopped working for me, I switched to Thai thyroid, much cheaper and effective!!

[Catlover3 in reply to NatChap]

Thanks for your reply. I am ok on nature-throid at the moment but if I keep on having problems getting hold of it I will have to look at alternatives.

[Framboise]

I've been told by one of the main UK suppliers that they are no longer going to supply Nature-Throid as their supplier is no longer importing it. I have yet to hear back from another supplier. Personally I found last year's batches so unreliable in strength that I've switched back to Thyroid-S and am seeing my endocrinologist about this next week.

[Catlover3 in reply to Framboise]

Thanks for your reply. I have contacted the places which have been recommended by thyroid uk and non of them have any in stock nor are able to say if/when stock is going to be available. Its a flipping nightmare again. I went through all this with Armour hence the change to Nature-throid. I have now ordered some from America but can't afford to do this in the long term. I reckon I have about 4 months supply and if its not sorted by then I will have to unfortunately try another brand. I have been lucky to get my ndt on nhs prescription but this is only due to the locum doctor whom has now gone. The regular gp's are forever questioning why I am on it so I haven't rocked the boat with them when I have needed increases, just bought it myself to keep the peace. Fed up!

[Framboise in reply to Catlover3]

Somewhere there's a video by a doctor who went to visit RLC Labs. The doctor said they were taking the complaints very seriously (although they haven't bothered to reply to any of my emails), so I wonder if they're now investigating the problems we're all having and that's why it's unavailable again. Or perhaps they fell back on production because they're also making WP again! It's brilliant that you've got NHS prescriptions, but this sort of problem with production reinforces doctors' distrust of NDT really, doesn't it!

[Catlover3 in reply to Framboise]

Yes that's why I don't request changes of dose when I really need it. Gp is horrified that I'm taking something that she knows nothing about, but the last time I tried, many years ago to add synthetic T4 my heart went bonkers and I ended up in A & E with a resting heart rate of 220bpm! I always tell them that they would be responsible for me having a heart attack by changing my medication. They tend to change their mind then!

[wellness1 in reply to Framboise]

I would love to know more about that video, Framboise. I remembered a rumour about the problem beginning with RLC Labs sourcing their own thyroid USP due to rising costs from their suppler, but couldn't track down the source of the it. Not much transparency from them on this issue, which doesn't inspire confidence in consumers or doctors.

[Framboise in reply to wellness1]

wellness I'll try to find it, I thought I'd saved it but can't find at the moment, but I know it's out there somewhere and I'll post it as soon as I find it!

[Framboise in reply to wellness1]

wellness this is the video, from 1 hour onwards, she waffles a bit but does explain what's happened. I'll also post it as a new post:

youtube.com/watch?v=ia-9eyV...(Not working as expected?)

[wellness1 in reply to Framboise]

Cheers, Framboise. i didn't mean to send you searching, but thank you very much.

Very interesting! I note they brought in practitioners (aka prescribers), but are not being forthcoming with patients or responsive to their concerns.

[Framboise in reply to wellness1]

Yes it's very odd isn't it, and I wonder who the other practitioners were. I haven't found any other mention of any of this! And how can it be legal to carry out some of the process by hand!!

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Framboise]

Somewhere there's a video by a doctor who went to visit RLC Labs, and found they'd started breeding pigs to provide their own thyroid extract because the supplier's price had escalated.

I have a problem with that statement. After all, the doctor goes on about 2 or 3 million pigs a day. I really can't see RLC becoming that big in pig farming!

(Actually, the USA appears to produce around 73 million pigs a year. Which falls massively short of the 712 to 1095 million implied by 2 to 3 million a day. Did they actually mean 2 to 3 million a year?)

[Framboise in reply to helvella]

When I posted that I had seen the video once and was saying what I remembered about it. As I have now found it and posted it I'll leave it to people to make up their own minds and remove my comment which you've quoted.

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Framboise]

The video did indeed say that RLC had started pig farming.

It isn't you or what you have said that I am questioning - more the person who appears in the video.

[Framboise in reply to helvella]

Yes I understand that, and I feel the same the more I watch it. Not least I have the feeling they would only have invited doctors they knew were sympathetic to their situation! So I've altered what I said about the video too on that post. It might all be hog-wash

[Catlover3 in reply to Framboise]

I believe that there suppliers have probably increased their prices to an extortionate price. Could that be caused by other suppliers of thyroid medication having a legitimate way of getting rid of them! I find it difficult to imagine 2-3 million pigs a day having to be used though. When you're talking about micro-grams in a pill which has more filler than active component it seems a ridiculous amount. Just my thoughts though!

[wellness1]

What a shame you've actually got a prescription and can't source it here. Have you contacted RLC Labs to see if they have a UK distributor (with current stock) or plan to going forward? (I no longer take it due to the reformulation.)

[Catlover3 in reply to wellness1]

No I haven't contacted RLC but on the STTM site they are saying that they are still catching up with the backlog from when they changed buildings and the supply of ingredients was affected. Basically, they are saying the same old corporate rubbish that they always say when there is problems. What are you taking now, and have you had any problems with it?

[1975juve in reply to wellness1]

You could order it from Germany or San Marino

[Catlover3 in reply to 1975juve]

Thanks for the reply. I have managed to get hold of some and the pharmacist spoke to RLC and they said that the reason there was a shortage in the UK is that they are concentrating on getting their stocks into the USA first. Once they have caught up with the back orders in the USA then it should be more available elsewhere.

[1975juve in reply to Catlover3]

Oh I see.

Well the important thing is that you take it every day right?

I wish you all the best.

Kati

[wellness1]

Ah, then export wouldn't be their biggest priority. I must say, I don't think they've covered themselves in glory with how they are handling this. I was doing rather well on Nature-throid and then experienced a crash on the reformulation. Very disappointing. I've since trialled Erfa Thyroid and NP Thyroid by Acella. I didn't get on with NP at all and Erfa is so-so. Still trying to figure out proper dose then I'll re-evaluate. Good luck.

[LAHs in reply to wellness1]

Sadly it is very difficult and time consuming to switch brands or types of NDT (or Levo for that matter). 2 grains of, say, Nature Throid is not necessarily the equivalent of 2 grains of any one of the others. I tried to track down some equivalency tables a while back but didn't have any luck. % ingredients are not widely publicized.

[NatChap in reply to LAHs]

I made a straight swap to Thai thiroyd and have been fine x

[wellness1 in reply to LAHs]

Agreed, it shouldn't be this hard. Have you found something that works well for you?

[jjf255]

I'm not sure about the reason why Nature Throid is not available, but I am in the US and can't find it at any pharmacies here or on-line. My husband has been on it for some time now. It has not been available here for several months. I have taken Thyroid S and started him on it since NT has been unavailable. Hopefully it suits him as well as it has worked for me. He's not scheduled for any testing for several months.

[serenfach]

I have a theory that they could not source the basic ingredients so just made the pills weaker and weaker and now have decided, because of all the negative comments, to withdraw it!

I too now take Thyroid-S - much cheaper and more effective. Shame we cannot trust American thryroid manufacturing any more!

[Tweetypie28 in reply to serenfach]

Hi is it possible you could message me where to get thyroid s from? I currently use armour from America which costs a fortune but I had to switch from Nature-thryoid when all this happened. A cheaper reliable product would be better! Thank you in advance!

[ZeilaJee in reply to Tweetypie28]

If you have had a reply to your question - for a cheaper, reliable natural thyroid source, please would you forward to me? [e-mail]. I have just run out of Nature Throid 1/2 grain and have to get an alternative fast as I run out this week. Worried!

[Panda_26 in reply to ZeilaJee]

Hi there ,

Did you manage to find a good alternative?

I'm in a similar situation with nature throid and don't know what to try next !?

Thanks.