Could anyone offer any advice for my daughter on her results. She does have some hypothyroid symptoms which is why she decided to do the test. I had results showing sub clinical hypothyroidism a few weeks ago which I posted on this forum and received a lot of support from members.
She is taking vitamin and mineral supplements and has been for years and has just come back from 2 weeks in Spain so why her vitamin D is low I haven’t a clue.
Any comments or suggestions that will help her welcomed.
Hi Earlyriser,
Can you tell us a bit more about your daughter? Her (rough) age, how she’s been feeling and so on.
Focusing on the non-thyroid stuff, her ferritin levels are really low. (I cannot believe the blood testers think 13 is acceptable!).
I would focus on getting this right. Serious iron supplements, taken with orange juice, a bit of meat - is what helps me.
Her periods may be very heavy (if she is having them) for her to be so low in iron. Which is worth investigating in the grander scheme.
Hi Goegeor
Thank you very much for responding. Sorry for the delay. She is 40 years old and has been very stressed lately. She’s always taken multivitamins as she is vegetarian and knows she needs to take supplements. I’m not sure about all the things she takes but I know she takes cytoplan over 50’s and has been having monthly b12 injections for the last 6 months. Her periods were really heavy until last Christmas when she had an op to correct this and now her periods are regularly and very light. She is a blood donor but the last time she went they nearly didn’t take it because her iron was very low. She is overweight despite a very healthy diet of mostly salads, vegetables and protein. I have sent her a text to find out what supplements she is taking but she is at work today so I may have to wait a while for a reply.
I don’t know how to reply to 2 people at the same time so I will copy and paste it. Wow I’ve been taking them as well. I thought they were going to be really good for us.
My daughter is home now so I can give you some answers.
She feels bloated all the time, palpitations, dry eyes, itchy ears, very psoriasis, high cholesterol, aching joints, eyebrows are disappearing, lack of coordination, very swollen stomach and breasts, loss of eye lashes, dry hair (like straw), brittle nails, puffy cheeks, skin and face feels as though the skin is burning. Temperature 35.6. Blood pressure 113/79.
Supplements are:
Cytoplan 50+, macca root, serrapeptase (just started), flax seed, calcium 750mg, magnesium 125mg and zinc 5mg 3 times a week.
Thank you for all your help from both of us.
Earlyriser
First thing, exactly what vitamin/mineral supplements is she taking so we can make proper evaluation of her nutrient levels.
Does she take a B Complex or Biotin, if a B Complex, does it contain Biotin (B7)? If so, did she take this supplement in the 7 days prior to doing the test?
Hi SeasideSusie. Thank you for replying. As above sorry I’m late responding. I’m not sure exactly what she is taking apart from cytoplan 50+. She stopped taking everything just over a week before the test (I’ve read on the forum to stop everything, fast before the test and get it done early in the morning). I have sent her a text asking for more information but she is at work so it may take a while to get a reply.
Earlyriser
OK thanks.
cytoplan 50+.
I can already comment on this one, it is one that I was advised to take by a practioner but soon found out that multivitamins are not a good idea.
First of all, this contains 150mcg iodine. We shouldn't take iodine unless tested and found to be deficient and then it should be taken under the guidance of an experienced practioner. Iodine used to be used to treat overactive thyroid, so it is anti-thyroid. I know from personal experiece that even this amount of iodine will make a considerable difference to iodine level - which is one of the reasons I stopped taking it.
It also contains iron which affects the absorption of the other ingredients as iron should be taken 2 hours away from other supplements.
I don’t know how to reply to 2 people at the same time so I will copy and paste it. Wow I’ve been taking them as well. I thought they were going to be really good for us.
My daughter is home now so I can give you some answers.
She feels bloated all the time, palpitations, dry eyes, itchy ears, very psoriasis, high cholesterol, aching joints, eyebrows are disappearing, lack of coordination, very swollen stomach and breasts, loss of eye lashes, dry hair (like straw), brittle nails, puffy cheeks, skin and face feels as though the skin is burning. Temperature 35.6. Blood pressure 113/79.
Supplements are:
Cytoplan 50+, macca root, serrapeptase (just started), flax seed, calcium 750mg, magnesium 125mg and zinc 5mg 3 times a week.
Thank you for all your help from both of us.
Earlyriser
OK, thanks. I was looking to see if she was taking D3, B12, B Complex, Iron.
macca root, serrapeptase (just started), flax seed
I can't comment on those as they're not something I've taken so not looked into them. What is she taking them for?
calcium 750mg,
Has she tested her calcium level and is she deficient? We shouldn't take calcium without testing.
magnesium 125mg
That shouldn't be a problem. Even if we test magnesium the test is unreliable.
zinc 5mg 3 times a week
Again, has she tested? Zinc and copper need to be balanced so it's worth testing both and supplement where needed.
So, her Medichecks results which are generally poor and I'd be interested to know what the Medichecks doctor's comments were which came with the results:
As you can see, all her nutrients are out of range.
Active B12: >300 (37.5-188)
Her B12 injections will be producing this result. When having B12 injections (or supplementing) we should take a B Complex to balance all the B vitamins.
Folate: 3.56 (>3.89)
This is folate deficiency. She should see her GP about this.
Vit D: 46.9nmol/L (18.76ng/ml)
This is low. The Vit D Council recommends a level of 125nmol/L (50ng/ml) and the Vit D Society recommends a level of 100-150nmol/L (40-60ng/ml). I wouldn't bother the GP with this, they will give a minimal dose, if anything at all, and only aim to get her level to 50nmol/L. Best thing to do is self supplement.
To reach the recommended level from her current level, based on the Vit D Council's suggestions you could supplement with 4,900iu D3 daily (nearest is 5,000iu)
vitamindcouncil.org/i-teste...
Retest after 3 months.
When she's reached the recommended level then she'll need a maintenance dose to keep it there, which may be 2000iu daily, maybe more or less, maybe less in summer than winter, it's trial and error so it's recommended to retest once or twice a year to keep within the recommended range. She can do this with a private fingerprick blood spot test with an NHS lab which offers this test to the general public:
Her GP won't know, because they're not taught much about nutrients, but there are important cofactors needed when taking D3 as recommended by the Vit D Council -
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 tissues where it can be deposited and cause problems such as hardening of the arteries, kidney stones, etc.
D3 and K2 are fat soluble so should be taken with the fattiest meal of the day, D3 four hours away from thyroid meds if taking tablets/capsules/softgels, no necessity if using an oral spray
Magnesium helps D3 to work. We need Magnesium so that the body utilises D3, it's required to convert Vit D into it's active form. So it's important we ensure we take magnesium when supplementing with D3.
Magnesium comes in different forms, check to see which would suit you best and as it's calming it's best taken in the evening, four hours away from thyroid meds if taking tablets/capsules, no necessity if using topical forms of magnesium.
naturalnews.com/046401_magn...
thefamilythathealstogether....
drjockers.com/best-magnesiu...
Check out the other cofactors too (some of which can be obtained from food).
Ferritin: 11.8 (13-150)
This is dire. Low ferritin can suggest iron deficiency anaemia. Her GP needs to do needs an iron panel and full blood count. She should ideally be given an iron infusion which will raise her level within 24-48 hours whereas tablets can take many months. If she is given tablets then she should take each one with 1000mg Vit C to aid absorption and help prevent constipation.
TSH: 3.3 (0.27-4.2)
FT4: 9.75 (12-22)
FT3: 4.28 (3.1-6.8)
Her TSH is higher than one would expect to see in a normal healthy person, one would expect that to be no more than 2-ish. In some countries hypothyroidism is diagnosed when TSH reaches 3 but in the UK we have to wait until it reaches 10 unless we have a very enlightened doctor who may treat when TSH is over range.
FT4 is below range and one would expect to see that around mid-range in a healthy person.
FT3 is in range and her body is doing it's best to keep going, it wont last and will eventually decline.
I think her below range FT4 should be a red flag to her GP and she should push for a trial of Levothyroxine and if refused she should ask for a referral to an endocrinologist.
TPO antibodies: 11 (<34)
Tg antibodies: 70.4 (<115)
These are within range but the Tg antibodies are rather high. They don't confirm autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) because they're in range; however, antibodies fluctuate and I wouldn't be surprised to see the Tg antibodies over range at some point.
She feels bloated all the time, very swollen stomach
I would take a guess and say that she has some kind of gut problem. SlowDragon is good with these issues so hopefully she'll have some suggestions for further testing.
palpitations, high cholesterol, eyebrows are disappearing
Can be symptoms of hypothyroidism.
aching joints
Can be a symptom of low Vit D
She desperately needs to see her GP about these results. S/he may not accept private test results, in which case invite her/him to do their own tests. I would suggest that someone goes to the consultation with her and if necessary speak up for her. I wouldn't be leaving the surgery without something being done about these dire results.
Oh SeasideSusie thank you so much for your very valuable information. I have copied and pasted the report which to be honest I thought was just copy and paste text because I had a report done in March which had the same text in. Don’t think you are going to like it!
Thank you for providing your medical history and monitoring your health with medichecks.
I understand you are taking this test to investigate your family history of autoimmune diseases. I note from your lifestyle history that you are vegetarian.
Overall your test results are good however there are a few markers that are worth reviewing in greater detail.
Your free thyroxine is low however your thyroid stimulating hormone is normal which suggests a healthy thyroid function. The low thyroxine is likely to be a transient finding and not a cause for concern however it may also be an early sign that you are developing an underactive thyroid. I advise repeating this test in 3 months to review your thyroid function or sooner if you develop new symptoms. Your free T3 is normal as are your thyroid antibodies revealing no evidence of autoimmune thyroid disease.
You have a decreased ferritin level which suggests that you are deficient in iron. This may be due to your diet and therefore I recommend supplementing your iron and repeating this test in 12 weeks. If this is a new finding or you are experiencing any symptoms such as weight loss, fatigue, breathlessness, bleeding or bowel upset then this result should be discussed further with your GP as you may need further investigations.
I recommend increasing your dietary iron intake (beans, lentils, tofu, dark green veg). Orange juice will help you absorb dietary iron better. Over the counter lysine supplements can also help with this.
Additionally, as low iron can affect your red blood cells, I recommend checking your full blood count to ensure you are not anaemic. You have low serum folate. I recommend checking your red cell folate to assess whether this is significant. Following this I recommend increasing your intake of folate rich foods such as broccoli, brussels sprouts, asparagus, peas, chickpeas and brown rice. You may also want to consider an over the counter folate supplement.
You have high levels of vitamin B12, if you are taking a B12 supplement then I recommend decreasing your dose. If you are not supplementing with vitamin B12, I recommend checking a full blood count.
Your vitamin D levels show that you have vitamin D insufficiency. This may progress to vitamin D deficiency if you don’t take steps to increase your vitamin D levels. We recommend supplementing with 20-50 mcg (800 -2000 iu) of vitamin D per day for twelve weeks. Low levels of vitamin D can cause fatigue, bodily aches, poor memory and difficulties concentrating.
Outside of the winter months there is enough sun for your skin to make at least part of your daily requirement of vitamin D, so it is worth trying to get 15-20 minutes of midday sun when the sun is out. Vitamin D can also be found in fortified foods such as breakfast cereals, tofu and some fruit juices. It can also be found in some mushrooms (portobello, maitake, morel, button, and shiitake are particularly good), you can improve this by leaving the mushrooms in the sun before cooking them.
It is important to test your vitamin D levels regularly - most people in the UK are insufficient or deficient in this vital vitamin. We suggest that you repeat your vitamin D test in 8-12 weeks to ensure that your levels have returned to normal. Once your levels have returned to normal then you can decrease your vitamin D supplementation to 10 mcg (400 iu) per day.
I hope you have found this information helpful.
Best wishes.
I wonder why they can't see what we can see? I despair at times.
I have received my results today SeasideSusie. Could you take a look at them too? Or shall I post them tomorrow?
Xx
Yes, that's fine, but put them in a new post so things don't get confused on this one 
Nicola has booked an appointment for next Wednesday to see the GP. We are meeting on Monday to put together a plan for the appointment. I really do hope we can get some help for her. Need to get into a positive frame of mind.........difficult after years of feeling fobbed off!
Thank you for all your help and we will let you know how we get on.
Gut issues suggest Hashimoto's
One in five Hashimoto's patients never have raised antibodies
healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
Ask GP to do ultrasound scan of thyroid or if they won't request referral to endocrinologist
As SeasideSusie says....her ferritin,folate and vitamin D are all very low
Plus she has B12 injections
This suggests malabsorption and very poor gut function.
Coeliac blood test is first step
Full iron panel to see if iron is also as low as ferritin
Referral to haematologist for iron infusion if iron is as low as ferritin
Folate is BELOW range
While still eating high gluten diet ask GP for coeliac blood test first or buy test online for under £20, just to rule it out first
Assuming test is negative you can immediately go on strictly gluten free diet
(If test is positive you will need to remain on high gluten diet until endoscopy, maximum 6 weeks wait officially)
Trying gluten free diet for 3-6 months. If no noticeable improvement then reintroduce gluten and see if symptoms get worse
chriskresser.com/the-gluten...
amymyersmd.com/2018/04/3-re...
thyroidpharmacist.com/artic...
scdlifestyle.com/2014/08/th...
drknews.com/changing-your-d...
restartmed.com/hashimotos-g...
healthcentral.com/article/t...
Other gut issues due to being hypothyroid
healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
But don't be surprised that GP or endo never mention gut, gluten or low vitamins. Hashimoto's is very poorly understood
Other causes of gut issues can be gut infections like H pylori
hypothyroidmom.com/hashimot...
Candida is common with Hashimoto's too
thyroidpharmacist.com/artic...
Nicola has booked an appointment for next Wednesday to see the GP. We are meeting on Monday to put together a plan for the appointment. I really do hope we can get some help for her. Need to get into a positive frame of mind.........difficult after years of feeling fobbed off!
Thank you for all your help and we will let you know how we get on.
Ask GP for coeliac blood test BEFORE going strictly gluten free diet for minimum 3 months to see if it helps
Testing for H pylori might be good idea too
Phew! I can’t say thank you enough. There’s an awful lot to take in. I just wish there was someone who knew what they were talking about to go with us to see her GP but we are going to have to get on with it......I can’t see her struggle for years without getting help.
Your help is absolutely invaluable I wouldn’t have had a clue where to start without you and all the other good people on this forum. I’m seeing my daughter tomorrow and we are going to put a plan together.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts xxxx
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