Advice re results??

[Mum69]

Thanks to previous requests when I was unsuccessful in gaining blood from the finger prick testing. Got there in the end after some helpful advice. I now have my results and will take advice from the Medichecks Dr but ultimately I know I need to tackle my GP to get an increase in my Levo but in the meantime wonder if you knowledgeable lot have any more advice or tips about them. I have had more help and advice from yourselves and Medichecks in this short while than from my GP in 28 years of being hypo! Thanks again.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Mum69

Very difficult to read your results, too small and feint on my large PC monitor and blurry if I zoom in. You might want to try again to get a better picture or type your results in.

From what I can see:

CRP is over range, this is an inflammation marker but is non-specific so just suggests there may be inflammation or infection somewhere.

Ferritin looks like it's 147, this might be higher than normal as it is raised when inflammation is present and as CRP is raised also it could be higher due to inflammation

Folate - I can't read this.

B12 - I can't read this.

Vit D looks like 42nmol/L which is low. 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 5,000iu D3 daily.

Retest after 3 months.

Once you've reached the recommended level then a maintenance dose will be needed 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. This can be done 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.

For D3 I like Doctor's Best D3 softgels, they are an oil based very small softgel which contains just two ingredients - D3 and extra virgin olive oil, a good quality, nice clean supplement which is budget friendly. Some people like BetterYou oral spray but this contains a lot of excipients and works out more expensive.

For Vit K2-MK7 I like Vitabay or Vegavero brands which contain the correct form of K2-MK7 - the "All Trans" form rather than the "Cis" form. The All Trans form is the bioactive form, a bit like methylfolate is the bioactive form of folic acid.

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...

TSH - I can't read this properly but it looks like 27????

FT4 - looks like 20.2 which doesn't make sense with a TSH of 27. When did you take your last dose of Levo before the test?

FT3 - looks like 3.3????

Perhaps you can clarify the results I can't make out.

What did the doctor comments say? I wouldn't put much store by them, they will mirror what most NHS doctors say, to be honest you'll get a much better interpretation of results from members.

[Mum69 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Sorry I’ll try again.

X

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Mum69]

Mum69

Is your Folate 32 or 3.2? If it's 3.2 that's way too low and only just 0.2 above when folate deficiency would be diagnosed. If it is 3.2 then it needs improving, folate is recommended to be at least half way through range so with their range of 2.9-14.5 that would be about 9+ but don't do anything about this at the moment, see comments about B12 below.

B12: 65

This is low. Active B12 below 70 suggests testing for B12 deficiency according to Viapath at St Thomas' Hospital:

viapath.co.uk/our-tests/act...

Reference range:>70. *Between 25-70 referred for MMA

There is a link at the bottom of the page to print off the pdf to show your GP.

Do you have any signs of B12 deficiency – check here:

b12deficiency.info/signs-an...

b12d.org/submit/document?id=46

If you do then list them to discuss with your GP and ask for testing for B12 deficiency and Pernicious Anaemia. Do not take any B12 supplements or folic acid/folate/B Complex supplements before further testing of B12 as this will mask signs of B12 deficiency and skew results.

There is something very wrong to have a TSH of 27 with an FT4 of 20.2 and I think something has interfered with your test.

The things that could have done this are:

* Maybe you took Biotin or B Complex in the few days before the test, this gives false results because Medichecks lab uses Biotin in the testing procedure.

* Your TSH could be affected by drinking coffee or other caffeine containing drink.

* Your FT4 is high because you took your Levo before the test.

As you've told SlowDragon that you took your Levo and had breakfast before the test I think you can safely say that your thyroid test results are skewed, you wont gain anything meaningful from them. You need to repeat them. Cheapest TSH, FT4 and FT3 is with MonitorMyHealth and there is a discount code on ThyroidUK's private testing page which brings the cost down to £26.10

[Mum69 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thank you so much I find all this info invaluable and so reassuring given you get nowhere with the GP. I’ll take it all on board. Thank you.

[Mum69 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Medichecks said to supplement B12, Vit D and extra folate and to get a methylmalonic acid test done.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Mum69]

Get GP to do the B12 deficiency test (MMA as Medichecks has mentioned) before supplementing for B12 and folate.

I expect their suggestion for dose of D3 is far too low, it usually is.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Did you do blood test as early as possible in morning before eating or drinking anything other than water and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test?

[Mum69 in reply to SlowDragon]

Hi. I had intended to follow the advice but had been struggling getting blood so when the new kit (3rd attempt) arrived that morning I had another go so had had breakfast and my Levo before I did it. I know it’s not ideal

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Mum69]

So the high Ft4 is false high

That explains the odd results

So you do definitely need 25mcg dose increase in levothyroxine and bloods should be retested 6-8 weeks later

Meanwhile need to be improving low vitamin D, folate and B12 by supplementing

Vitamin D at least around 80nmol and around 100nmol maybe better

Folate at least over 10

Active B12 at least over 70 minimum

[Mum69 in reply to SlowDragon]

Thank you that’s confirmed what I thought.

[Mum69]

Hi I took your advice and had my TFTs redone. No Levo 24 hrs before and only water before I did the test. It has come back as follows:

FT3 3.6. Range 3.1-6.8

FT4 20.2. Range 12-22

TSH 18.5. Range 0.27-4.

I’ve made a telephone appointment with my GP next Friday to see where I go from her along with the incidental findings last week of low B12, folate and Vit D. Let’s hope they take notice. Thanks again for all your help.

[ShelWhitt]

Good luck with that. When I tried it my doctor would not acknowledge them and said they would only recognise their own results.

[Mum69 in reply to ShelWhitt]

Was expecting that to happen if I’m honest but had my appt today and he has agreed to Vit D supplements but wants to check bloods again for the rest as he can’t confirm they’re accurate!! At least they are going to do them though. Wouldn’t before. He feels my TSH is good though at 18.5!!!! I agreed to wait till they were repeated. I probably should have said no but it’s so hard. I need to get tough when the results are back.