Heartburn

[Sailfish2019]

The Levothyroxine compound made for me is causing me major heartburn! I took protonix last night hoping it would help. It didn’t. Usually the Levothyroxine medication causes me hard breathing. I’m worried I’m never going to feel good again.

[Sailfish2019]

I don’t have heartburn until I take the medication

[HashiFedUp]

I used to feel sick when I started my T4 and my T3 so I switched to taking before bed as opposed to first thing in the morning. It helped. It’s ok to take before as long as you haven’t eaten anything or had any caffeine drinks for the 3 hours before. So if you take them at 10pm, your last food or drink should be no later that 7pm. It might help...! Good luck.

[Sailfish2019 in reply to HashiFedUp]

I’m going to try that . Thank you

[JOLLYDOLLY]

Funny enough Sailfish2019, I have been experiencing a burning pain in my chest/upper back area, sometimes in the morning but normally after my dinner?? Have been on thyroid meds all my life and never had it before. But I do have respiratory problems, so will mention it next week when I see the consultant. I know it can't be my heart, as I have had a recent heart scan and everything was ok.

I do not get reflux or acid either, but then I have a B12 deficiency so have not got much stomach acid as such. It just feels like a red hot poker going into my upper back area mainly. Not everyday, but quite frequently.

I thought it was just me getting old

Take care

[milkwoman]

Is the base compound used in your medication Avicel? Tablets and capsules that are made at most compounding pharmacies use a filler called Avicel. It's also known as “microcrystalline cellulose” and I know for me, I could not tolerate it. Like you, I had heartburn after taking anything containing it. Another culprit could be the capsule.

There are other bases the pharmacy can use. Sodium Bicarbonate is one. Acidophilus is another. They can also use a vegan capsule.

I tried all of the bases mentioned above and now my meds are made with Acidophilus in a vegan capsule. NO heartburn issues.

It’s important to note that microcrystalline cellulose is used in many OTC supplements as well - particularly the “pure” (and expensive) ones which is very aggravating. I seem to be very sensitive to Avicel and therefore cannot take any supplements or meds that use this as a base.

[crw2ddd in reply to milkwoman]

How in the world did you figure this out? I stumbled on to this thread after I've been experiencing what I believe to be heartburn ...but I'm not too sure. My throat feels incredibly tight all the time like there a lump and I'm constantly nauseous. My stomach also hurts in the upper middle and I have little to no appetite. Mostly the lump in throat sensation with a kind of gag cough - it is horrible and I can't stand it anymore. I've been taking a lot for natural supplements using cellulose. Including daily digestive enzymes, selenium, and for a time I took compounded slow release t3. I'm not on it anymore though. This has been going on for a month, and I'm at my wit's end.

[milkwoman in reply to crw2ddd]

I guess it was a process of elimination. I just knew I didn’t feel well after taking certain compounded meds as well as some supplements. I started researching what was in my compounded meds and spoke with the compounding pharmacist who then said there were other bases (and capsules) they could use. I believe I did try Sodium Bicarbonate as a base and, while I can’t quite remember why, I ended up then trying the Acidophilus base in a veggie capsule and that was the winner. Once the offending base was swapped out, I could take the medication without incident.

It took a bit longer to connect it to my supplements because the supplements didn’t list Avicel but rather, microcrystalline cellulose.

Your compounded slo-release T3 for sure contained Avicel. I was prescribed this years ago and it it only now, after making the Avicel connection, did I realize that back then, it wasn’t the T3 that was the issue with the medication, but the Avicel. So much time and money wasted! (I’ve since moved on to custom compounded liothyronine (T3) transdermal cream which I actually prefer because I can easily change dosage by changing the amount applied AND I don’t have to consider any GI effects since I’m totally bypassing the digestive system).

I’m not sure about the lump in-your-throat symptom as I didn’t experience that. I definitely had bad acid reflux/heartburn and nausea as well as the pain in the upper gut, so much so that there were nights I couldn’t sleep at all due to the pain. I’m very sensitive to the fillers in meds and supplements. While I haven’t identified all the components that bother me, I have managed (somehow) to clear out the offending formulations (whether med or supp) and have found replacements that don’t cause issues.

I bet your digestive enzymes has microcrystalline cellulose (MCC). I was taking Ortho Digestzyme and couldn’t figure out why I was feeling awful after taking it. When dosing recommendations are 1-2 capsules with EVERY MEAL the problem compounds itself very quickly. I also had to stop taking a bunch of supplements I had from Amy Myers MD because they contained MCC. (She does have some products that do not contain MCC, but most of her stuff sadly does).

It was so aggravating but certainly a wake up call and truly, a life changing moment when I figured this out. All these so-called brands that tout themselves as “natural” or “pure”. Oh, the money and time I’ve wasted!

I find liquid formulations to be a pretty good option. I’ve found a very good (IMHO) liquid multivitamin. I also take liquid D3/K2. I have been successful in finding capsule supplements that do not have MCC (my selenium and omegas for example). I’m using a powder formula for my gut issues that seems to help.

The ingredient “cellulose” is also an additive but it is different than MCC. I don’t have issues with cellulose (my selenium caps contain cellulose and gelatin). BUT, it could be different for you.

If you stop taking the meds/supps that contain MCC and your symptoms go away (I found that it occurs rather quickly and you will know in 1-2 days depending upon how much of MCC you were consuming) then you will know that MCC is indeed an issue for you.

I hope this helps.

~Hugs~

[crw2ddd in reply to milkwoman]

Wow! I had no clue that so much did contain the MCC. I just checked the cabinet and almost all of them do have some kind of cellulose as the primary binder. I will take a break from these supplements and see if there's any improvement. I just bought HCL with Pepsin by Thorne, Pure Encapulsations B complex vitamins, Selenium by Thorne, and Pure Encapulsations Digestive Enzymes. All of them are supposedly hypo allergenic and do list some kind of cellulose as a major ingredient. For heaven's sakes, here I am trying to do my best to optimize my vitamin and get the Hashimoto's under control and maybe inadvertantly giving myself gastritis and heartburn. Thank you so much for this post, I would have never thought to try this.

Ive never heard of a T3 cream! Right now, I take 45 mg Armour during the day in two doses and then a 50 mcg of Synthroid in the evening. I'm not sure it's doing the trick. I get nerve pain when the armour wears off. I tried the compounded t3 for like 6 weeks but it simply didn't seem to absorb as well. My doctor mentioned that she's been in talks with a Japanese pharmaceutical company to develop a thyroid patch! Since so many of us have gut problems to start with that seems like a good idea to me. Thanks again.

[milkwoman in reply to crw2ddd]

Of the supplements you listed, the only one containing MCC is the selenium. I’m taking selenium by Nature’s Way. It only contains cellulose in a gelatin capsule and I have not had any issues. The other ones you listed above I think will be just fine for you. It’s not a bad idea to take a break and then introduce a supplement one at a time to see if there are issues. If so, stop taking it. If not, move onto adding in another supplement.

Did any of the supps in your cabinet have microcrystalline cellulose? Those are the ones I would avoid. But keep in mind, there could be something else you are sensitive to. You’ll figure it out. 😊

I hear ya. You’ve no idea how many times I’ve had these lightbulb moments where I realize that in my quest to achieve optimal health (amidst all the chronic illness crap I’m dealing with) I’ve been prescribed something or I’m taking some supplement that’s making me more ill. It’s soooo aggravating and exhausting.

What do your labs say? Are you optimally medicated? If you are having nerve pain then maybe not? Getting dosages right is unfortunately a moving target. HypoT is difficult enough. You’ve got Hashi’s and that’s a whole other boatload of ups and downs.

I didn’t seem to do that well with slo-release T3 either (irregardless of the issues with the base). To be honest, I do pretty well on levothyroxine and only recently added in T3 cream to give me boost. It’s just a small amount in comparison to what is in NDT. (I’m a former patient of the now deceased Dr. Kenneth Blanchard). Is it helping? Not sure yet. I don’t think it’s hurting. I get bloods tested at the end of the month. I’m trying to raise my FT3 and FT4 as neither are optimal yet. The issue may have nothing to do with the thyroid meds I’m taking but rather issues with my blood and iron. I’m waiting on an appt with hematology at the moment to figure it all out.

A thyroid patch? Is it T3? T4? Both? Very interesting!

[milkwoman in reply to crw2ddd]

Just thought of something else. How long have you been on Synthroid? Do you find you have the heart burn and nausea after taking it?

The reason I ask is, I couldn’t tolerate Unithroid levothyroxine - over time I just had worsening GI issues. I’ve never tried Synthroid but have heard folks can have issues with it due to the fillers and/or the dyes.

I take Tirosint which is a gel capsule that only contains glycerin, water and gelatin. It works well for me - no side effects - and I find it to be better absorbed by my system.

[crw2ddd in reply to milkwoman]

I've been on Synthroid for a year and a half or so. That was short after I was diagnosed with Hashimotos. I've been working through an onslaught of symptoms ever since that seem to wax and wane. I've tinkered with my medications over time. But I actually had IBS-D like symptoms as a part of my untreated hashimotos that seemed to generally get better once I started Synthroid and cut the gluten. This new nausea, stomach pain, throat tightness thing that's been going on appeared suddenly on April 10, I even had a fever for a bit that day with nausea ...I thought I had a virus. But the nausea and pain has persisted for weeks now. I don't understand it.

[milkwoman in reply to crw2ddd]

I can totally relate. It’s exhausting trying to figure out “what’s causing what”. Is it the meds? Supps? Is it the Hashi’s? Is it something I ate? Or drank? Am I coming down with a virus?

I keep a daily log of what meds/supps I take, what I eat drink, and how I’m feeling. I note anything strange. I’ve often have used this log to figure out if there’s a correlation. What makes it so difficult is often times, there’s a delay in the symptoms.

I do hope you find out the cause of your current GI issues. Good luck!

[paul211]

Hi I had bad heartburn for 2 years lost voice and burning my osophagus ended up having Nissan Fundoplication operation did fix the heartburn but ended up with other probs gp as always says nowt to do with thyroxine but all these problems are connected gavicon was the only relief by the bottle daily hope you sort it soon

[AnneEvo]

Different brands of Levo have different fillers in, maybe it's the fillers that cause the problem. Not one brand suits everyone but you could try typing the brand you have into the search bar to see if it comes up and if anyone else has had problems with that brand.

[Sailfish2019]

I took Levothyroxine made at a compound pharmacy for only 2 days. I woke up this morning short of breath like before. I had to get on a pack of steroids last time to breath. Don’t know what to do now. I took Zantac the night before for acid reflux and it worked for that.

[kath1029]

Try an over the counter heartburn, the ones that work in an hour, I have to take one every day