NDT (Erfa) and Iodine Supplementation

[Wanderlust2483]

Has anyone use iodine supplementation as well as NDT?

[RedApple Administrator]

Wanderlust2483,Why would you want to use iodine supplementation as well as NDT? Have you been tested and found to be iodine deficient?

[Wanderlust2483 in reply to RedApple]

Yah. I have low iodine

[RedApple Administrator in reply to Wanderlust2483]

Perhaps consider whether you might be able to increase your iodine level by dietary methods rather than direct supplementation.In case you haven't already researched iodine, you might find this page on the Thyroid UK website a useful starting point. thyroiduk.org/11-great-ques...

[Wanderlust2483 in reply to RedApple]

Thank you so much.

I eat quite a varied diet with up to 12 portions of fruit and veg a day.

My T4 levels have come back low despite being on 3 grains of erfa a day. T3 is in optimal range and RT3 is high.

[Jazzw in reply to Wanderlust2483]

I suspect that isn’t all that unusual. I take NDT and my FT4 levels are always low in range (sometimes slightly below range) with high in range FT3 levels.

I tried adding a little levothyroxine to my NDT dose but it made me feel most peculiar so I abandoned that plan of action and eventually switched back to NDT only. I’m not sure my body makes much use at all of the T4 in my NDT—hard to say!—but temporarily lowering my NDT dose didn’t do anything other than lower my FT3 levels as well as my FT4 levels.

How do you feel?

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Which test was used to check iodine levels

Are you vegetarian or vegan

Fish and dairy are good sources of iodine

[Wanderlust2483 in reply to SlowDragon]

I'm vegetarian. I used the urine test from Genova

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Wanderlust2483]

Will tag SeasideSusie

I think that’s the test she recommends

What was result

Eggs and dairy have iodine in

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Wanderlust2483]

Yes, the Genova urine test is the one I link to.

[greygoose]

Why do you say 'as well as'? Do you think iodine and NDT are the same thing? Iodine is not thyroid hormone replacement. It is just one of the ingredients of thyroid hormone. But, if you're taking 3 grains of Erfa, your thyroid will not be making any thyroid hormone, so does not need the iodine.

On top of that, 1 grain of NDT contains around 29 mcg iodine, which is recycled in the body (I molecule of T4 contains four atoms of iodine). So, you will be getting about 90 mcg iodine just from your 3 grains, which you won't even be using. Why would you want to take more?

My T4 levels have come back low despite being on 3 grains of erfa a day. T3 is in optimal range and RT3 is high.

There are many, many causes of high rT3, and only one of them has anything to do with thyroid. And, that is when your FT4 is very high in-range, or over-range. If your FT4 is low, then your high rT3 has nothing to do with thyroid, and could be due to 101 other things. It's pretty much irrelevant, anyway, because it is inert, and only stays in the body for about 2 hours before being converted to T2. Not really worth testing because the test won't tell you why it is high.

[Carys21]

Yes I do, the whole body needs iodine not just the thyroid. Have you read David Brownstein's book on iodine? That explains dosing with NDT quite well.

[susanmhall62]

I've read both Dr. David Brownstein's book "Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can't Live Without It" and Lynne Farrow's book "What You Don't Know About Iodine Can Wreck Your Life."

It is my understanding that the thyroid, breast tissue, and ovaries all require iodine for optimal health.

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to susanmhall62]

I don't think there is any argument that tissues of the body require iodine.

The difficulty is in assessing how much, how it can be assessed, and how it is best delivered.

There is little decent research in people who are on at least replacement dose of thyroid hormone.

[Partner20]

Further to your diagnosis of low iodine, I have read several reports recently that the increase in restricted food intake such as with vegetarianism and veganism is resulting in a corresponding rise in those diagnosed with iodine deficiency, as most of us obtain our iodine naturally through food, including dairy produce.

[archipoeta]

I did a urine test and found I had low iodine. I'm also a breast cancer recoverer. There is quite a lot of published evidence linking the two. I take 3 kelp tablets a day