Advice re Test Results

[Debbie2012]

Hello

I’d appreciate any advice regarding my recent blood results via Monitor My Health.

VitD 65 nmol/l (64 to 110)

TSH 0.01 (0.27 to (4.2)

FT4 16.3 (12 to 22)

FT3 6.2 (3.1 to 6.8)

Cholesterol 6.3

HDL 1.14, non HDL 5.15, triglycerides 2.41

HbA1c 31

I take 100 mcg levo at night and 20 liothyronine in the morning and 5 at night.

I feel generally well, aside from pounding chest sometimes, and an awareness of my heart if you know what I mean. My endo says it’s fine, pulse about 80bpm. I had a fasting blood sugar of 6.4 last year, so went on a very low carb diet and it seems fine now. Ive lost a little weight but nowhere near what I need to. Normally the weight would have fallen off, so disheartening. I just want to make sure I’m on the right track with my meds.

Thanks so much and happy Easter x

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Debbie2012

Your thyroid results seem typical for someone taking Levo plus T3 and appear to be good. However, this would depend on the following:

Did you alter the time of taking your Levo before the test and take your last dose24 hours before the test?

Did you split your T3 into 2 or 3 doses the day before the test and take the last dose 8-12 hours before doing the test?

There are no ranges for the cholesterol or the HbA1c but at 31 that is nice and low.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Debbie2012

I forgot to mention the Vit D results.

65nmol/L is on the low side. The Vit D Society and Grassroots Health recommend a level of 100-150nmol/L.

To reach the recommended level from your current level, you could supplement with 3,500-4,000iu D3 daily.

Retest after 3 months.

Once you've reached the recommended level then you'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. You can do this with a private fingerprick blood spot test with an NHS lab which offers this test to the general public:

vitamindtest.org.uk/

Doctors don't know, because they're not taught much about nutrients, but there are important cofactors needed when taking D3.

D3 aids absorption of calcium from food and Vit 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 D3 as tablets/capsules/softgels, no necessity if using an oral spray.

I like Doctor's Best D3 softgels, they contain no excipients, just D3 and extra virgin olive oil to aid absorption. For Vit k2- MK7 I like Vitabay or Vegavero.

I see from your post in August 2019 that your level was 43.8 at that time and that you were taking 2,000iu D3 daily. It was an inadequate dose for that level (5,000iu daily would be the suggested dose). It should never take this long to raise a low D3 level. I raised mine from severe deficiency of 15nmol/L to 202 in 2.5 months and now maintain at approx 150nmol/L.

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 magnesium as tablets/capsules, no necessity if using topical forms of magnesium.

naturalnews.com/046401_magn...

drjockers.com/best-magnesiu...

afibbers.org/magnesium.html

[Debbie2012 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thanks. I took my last t4 24 hours before and t3 12 hours before. I had stopped taking my vit d supplements a week before.

I have recently started taking magnesium with vitamin k again, and will definitely up my dose of vit d. Thanks for all the info.

Do you think I should stick with my current med doses? The main thing that is puzzling me now is my weight. I should be 2 stones lighter. I don’t eat any cakes, biscuits, pastry, bread, pasta, I have a little dark chocolate after dinner...a reduction of about 90% of my previous carb intake. My diet is really healthy, but I just seem stuck! It’s so frustrating.

I’m relieved the new diet has helped with my blood sugar. My cholesterol is higher than normal, although again, I eat very little ‘bad’ fats.

I honestly don’t know where I’d be without this site. Thanks again Seaside Susie.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Debbie2012]

Debbie2012

You don't have to stop taking Vit D when testing that. You continue with it and on the day of the test just take it afterwards.

Your FT4 is 43% through range and your FT3 is 83.78% through range. This may very well suit a lot of people on combination hormone replacement. However, some of us need FT4 and FT3 balanced, I need them both around 60-70% through range. It's something we have to experiment with to find our ideal dose to give optimal results so a lot of fine tweaking might be necessary.

One might expect you not to have a problem with losing weight with your FT3 at that level as low T3 does tend to make weight loss difficult.

If you decide to increase your Levo this might also increase your FT3 as well as FT4 so you may find you need slightly less T3.

[Debbie2012 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Do you think it would be worth trying to reduce the t3 and increase t4? And if so, what should I adjust the doses to? It would be so good to be a healthy weight again. When I started this diet a few months ago, I lost weight, but it seems that after a month my body just shuts down and refuses to lose another inch. Or should I try upping my exercise first? Will an increase in vit d help with weight?

I’m lucky to have come this far with all the help and advice on this site. It’s almost like the palps and weight are the final hurdle.

Thanks very much Susie

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Debbie2012]

Debbie2012

Do you think it would be worth trying to reduce the t3 and increase t4?

We each have to find our own balance when on combination hormone replacement. Experiment, see what works best for you. Only change one thing at a time then wait 6-8 weeks and retest to see what that change has done to your hormone levels and how you feel. When increasing or decreasing T3 this should be in 5mcg increments. When increasing or decreasing Levo this can be whatever you like but no more than 25mcg.

Or should I try upping my exercise first?

Hard exercise depletes T3. You might want to get to a better place before increasing exercise.

Will an increase in vit d help with weight?

In my experience, no it doesn't and I've never heard that it can.

[Debbie2012 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thanks v much, will give it some thought. Running out of my Spanish stash of extra t4! Stay safe x