I’ve picked up a few threads and you all seem super helpful which is great.
I am obviously slight nervous as a 42 year old man who is generally healthy having now been diagnosed with Hyperthyroidism and prescribed 25mg (initially) of Levothyroxine.
This has occurred by a blood test coming back as 17 TSH levels. Follow up test had dropped to 13.2
I have read lots of website information as you would expect which advises such things as B12 supplements, Collagen supplements
Avoid coffee, and some other bits and bobs specifically Gluten. This is a real drag as I love coffee and anything bread / pasta etc.
Anyway - keen to see what you can advice for a newbie? I suspect it will be trial and error but like anything I would like some valued education from those in the know.
Thank you all
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ChrisW2609
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Well, first of all, don’t worry about giving up gluten just yet. You’re right at the beginning of the journey—just work on taking thyroid hormone replacement for starters.
You have hypothyroidism rather than hyperthyroidism (I know, fancy giving the two extremes of thyroid disorders such similar sounding names) as your thyroid is under active, not over active.
Do you know why your doctor only started you on 25mcg levothyroxine? That’s only half the normal starter dose. Do you have a history of heart problems or have you experienced difficulties taking medication previously?
If not, I’d ask your doctor to up your dose pronto to 50mcg.
It would be helpful if you could let us know if you had any other thyroid blood tests, eg FT3/ FT4 and antibody tests. It’s also good to show the ranges, as these can vary between laboratories.
Key vitamins are important, so ask your GP to check ferritin, folate, Vit B12 and Vit D. It is not recommended to supplement until you’ve had these tested. Prior to eliminating gluten, it’s also advised to ask for a coeliac test. Regarding coffee, just avoid taking it close to taking Levothyroxine (leave at least an hour before/ after taking it).
If you have been prescribed Levothyroxine and have an over range TSH, you have HYPO thyroidism, an under active thyroid. 25mcg is an extremely low dose, usually only given as a starter dose to the elderly or those with underlying conditions, so it is highly likely you will need an increase soon.
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Can’t say I’ve ever seen anyone advised to take collagen supplements—where did you find that?
In all seriousness, don’t fall down the rabbit hole of “buy this, test this, supplement with this” too quickly. There’s a chance you’ve only recently developed hypothyroidism and you may not have too many issues getting to a dose of levothyroxine that keeps you feeling well.
I supplement collagen so it may have been me to suggest previously Jazzw 😬.
T3 is directly implicated in collagen production and there’s quite a few science backed benefits in supplementing if T3 has been low for some years.
Although collagen doesn’t directly address hypo symptoms it does help with the negative effects caused by hypo such as weak bones from too little T3, helping to both build bones and prevent bone loss; damaged cells from Hashi antibodies inflammation that can at worst lead to heart issues, at best dry skin & extra wrinkles, improve muscle & joint pain, etc, etc ..
The archilles tendon is one that can be weakened or disabled in hypothyroidism. This paper is called 'Oral Supplementation of Specific Collagen Peptides Combined with Calf-Strengthening Exercises Enhances Function and Reduces Pain in Achilles Tendinopathy Patients' and shows improvement in tendon use & associated pain.
I take Bare Biology which is a clean marine collagen. It is expensive but last for ages and means I don't have to eat so much meat (which I don't really like). Be careful with cheaper versions as many include unwanted extras.
Avoid coffee, and some other bits and bobs specifically Gluten.
I really wouldn't take too much notice of people who tell you to start giving up things. Some people just like to make the situation more dramatic than it really is.
You don't need to give up coffee, just don't take it with your thyroid hormone. Leave a gap of at least one hour between the two.
Did you have antibodies tested? This is an essential step in diagnosis that a lot of doctors skip. High antibodies mean that you have Autoimmune Thyroiditis - aka Hashi's - but as most doctors don't understand what Hashi's is, they can't see the importance of testing for antibodies.
But, the important thing for the patient - among other things - is that if you have Hashi's, you could also have Coeliac Disease - another autoimmune condition. If you have Coeliac Disease you do need to give up gluten, but a lot of Hashi's people, whilst not Coeliac, are sensitive to gluten, and a lot of their symptoms get better when they give it up. But, that doesn't mean that everyone that is hypo needs to give up gluten. The don't. But all means try it, see if it helps, but if it doesn't make you feel better, then go back to eating it. Gluten-free never did anything for me, and I have Hashi's.
What other bits and bobs were talked about? Let me guess... Brussels Sprouts? lol That's the one these messengers of doom usually hone in on. But, it's really not necessary to give them up, nor the rest of the brassicas.
The only thing you really do need to give up, though - and in my humble opinion no-one should eat the ghastly stuff, anyway - is soy. All forms of unfermented soy: soy protein, soy flour, soy oil, etc. Because that can stop your cells absorbing thyroid hormone. And, every single cell in your body needs thyroid hormone to function correctly. So, best to give that up. But, otherwise, just eat a normal healthy diet. Brussels sprouts and all!
Another thing about giving up smoking and hypothyroidism is that taking up smoking again doesn't eliminate the thyroid problem. As you can imagine, lots of people have tried. But I have never read of anyone being successful and getting back to how they felt before they stopped smoking.
In the majority of patients 50-100 μg thyroxine can be used as the starting dose. Alterations in dose are achieved by using 25-50 μg increments and adequacy of the new dose can be confirmed by repeat measurement of TSH after 2-3 months.
The majority of patients will be clinically euthyroid with a ‘normal’ TSH and having thyroxine replacement in the range 75-150 μg/day (1.6ug/Kg on average).
The recommended approach is to titrate thyroxine therapy against the TSH concentration whilst assessing clinical well-being. The target is a serum TSH within the reference range.
……The primary target of thyroxine replacement therapy is to make the patient feel well and to achieve a serum TSH that is within the reference range. The corresponding FT4 will be within or slightly above its reference range.
The minimum period to achieve stable concentrations after a change in dose of thyroxine is two months and thyroid function tests should not normally be requested before this period has elapsed.
Hi all and thanks for your feedback. As I know you’ll appreciate hearing these things are quite a lot to take in and although I am not an anxious character, it’s certainly unnerving.
There has been some developments since my intial post
I pushed the docs to explain it more and they subsequently sent my results to the hospital to review.
Feedback from the department I can never remember was 6 weeks after the intial dosage will gauge and dosage will be amended accordingly
Hashi might be the version but worry not as treatment is the same
I’ve tried to cut out gluten as best I can, so far so good. Defo seen some difference in energy levels since tablets stated
I’ve now had some private blondes done and they have come back with Iron at 3.5 which is worrying compared to normal range starts at 10.
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