I read a few weeks ago of a person who I think was diagnosed with osteoporosis and managed to turn the diagnosis around by taking certain supplements and changing her/his lifestyle/diet. I meant to keep a copy of what was written and now can't find the blog.
Does anybody remember who this might be please?
Thank you
Margo,
Nope, but I managed to turn mine around with the addition of T3 meds.
Because I was diagnosed osteopenic in my forties soon after my Hashi diagnosis (after being left for years & years), they have allowed me DEXA scans every 2-3 years.
And yet withdrew the added T3 meds (twice!) that improved my bone density as evidenced by the DEXA scans. They have never reinstated so I self source NDT.
I don't know the supplement you refer to but I always felt much better after reducing thyroid antibodies as any unwanted inflammation has negative effects on numerous bodily systems and specifically thyroid hormones.
Thank you for your interesting reply. I take NDT x 2 daily. I have T3 prescribed if I want it through the NHS, but find NDT enough. I haven't had a Dexa scan for years, but each time I had a scan my bones were slightly worse, but not too bad. I have declined the offer of a DEXA scan now as I know they are not good to have, and have felt that I was doing all I can to look after not just my bones but all of me. However during that evil lock down, my fiancé and I often had 2 glasses a wine EVERY night to soothe the rough edges of life, and I know alcohol is not beneficial for our bones.
The person on here who managed to turn her osteoporosis around was taking an array of supplements, much of what I was take, but it was also interesting what she was and wasn't eating.
Thanks again, and hope you are keeping well.
I'm also in the osteoporosis group on this website and it seems most ppl take a mix of supplements for their bones: calcium, vitamin D, vitamin K2, boron, and magnesium.
A few helpful bits of info:
After researching how to make my body absorb more calcium and reading that our bodies do a lot of "repairing" at night, I decided to start taking calcium right before I go to bed. A couple of weeks ago when I was researching bone turnover marker tests, I found this article which seems to validate my decision, nps.org.au/australian-presc... It states, "The intake of food influences bone turnover. Dietary calcium appears to inhibit bone resorption. Calcium supplements taken in the evening significantly reduce resorption markers, in the fasting state the next morning."
After joining HealthUnlocked approximately 1 year ago, and reading that many women were also supplementing with magnesium, I decided to add a mangnesium supplement. I started taking 100 mg of magnesium, in May of 2022, and after about a month or two, I increased it to 200 mg.
Recently, I have been trying to figure our exactly how much magnesium I should be taking and I found the following
link.springer.com/article/1...
healthline.com/nutrition/ma...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/339...
I can't cite a source because I only took a screenshot of this information but somewhere on the web I found this, "In a study of postmenopausal women on hormone replacement therapy, those who were given multi-vitamin-mineral supplement containing two times the RDA of magnesium experienced an eleven percent increase in trabecular bone mineral density after one year. This increase in bone mass was sixteen times greater than seen in the control group of women who received no supplemental nutrients. Another study found that nearly seventy-five percent of postmenopausal women who took 250-750 mg of magnesium daily had an increase in bone mass from one to eight percent over two years."
Forgot to ask, which blood test would expose thyroid antibodies, is it possible to get on the NHS?
Margo,
TPOAb & TGAb.
Generally GP surgerys are reluctant to test these but you can only ask. My surgery has tested both of mine in the past.
Otherwise, members use private testing labs with codes to reduce price through ThyroidUK
Please share more info with me. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's hypothyroidism in 2017 and after tweaking my meds a few times, for about 4.5 years have been taking 75 mcg of levothyroxine daily. In 2019, I was diagnosed with osteoporosis. My lumbar spine was -3.9 and my endocrinologist told me that my bones were "horrible" and prescribed alendronate, which I took for 1.5 yrs but it caused digestive tract issues, so I took a 4 month bisphosphonate holiday, and at my endocrinologist's advice in November of 2021, I had a zoledronic acid infusion. My most recent DEXA, which was done this past Monday, now shows that my lumbar spine is -3.6 so it has improved. In addition to the meds, I have been doing a lot of "work" on my own. I have changed my diet, and supplements, and exercise program, and I've been working on improving my sleep habits, and I have even changed my tennis shoes--found a study that showed that wearing minimalist shoes does the same thing as foot/ankle exercises so I bought minimalist shoes to basically kill 2 birds with 1 stone. 
When you wrote "And yet withdrew the added T3 meds (twice!) that improved my bone density as evidenced by the DEXA scans. They have never reinstated so I self source NDT." What do you mean?
I did look up NDT and found Natural Desiccated Thyroid.
Do you take levothyroxine for your hypothyroidism?
And thing you can share that might help me improve my bone density would be greatly appreciated.
FearFracture,
Welcome to our forum,
NDT stands for Natural Desiccated Thyroid which is pigs thyroid gland that used to be prescribed pre- synthetic Levothyroxine. Levo contains T4 which has to be converted to T3 that is the active hormone, and this is where some people experience difficulties, so either add some synthetic T3 or switch to NDT which contains all thyroid hormones which are extracted, the ratios measured & controlled by the US formulary.
In addition and confusingly there is also what are known as 'glandulars' which some companies have unscrupulously named food grade NDT but these are not subject to controlled units and the usual licensing laws of prescribed drugs, hormones, etc. Some members report they have managed a complete and successful switch from prescribed thyroid meds to glandulars, some supplement them alongside their prescribed thyroid meds, and some find glandulars bring on adverse side effects no matter how they are taken.
Thyroid hormone conversion abilities are not only determined by genetics but lifestyle, diet and other health conditions. Members often find by cleaning up their life style and optimising iron/nutrients deficiencies their conversion abilities improve and wellbeing can be gained through Levothyroxine alone.
Medicating NDT or T3 is still frowned upon in conventional medicine and very few manage to obtain it on prescription, although in the UK things are slowly improving as new research evidences a subset with various genetic mutations incompatible with Levothyroxine mono therapy. Therefore, many of us are forced to either obtain private prescriptions or buy from abroad and self medicate. Either way is expensive and self-sourcing full of worry as sources may dry up or UK customs decide to retain your package for a few months in spite of us being lawfully allowed to import amounts for self use. That is why the forum is so huge and successful as we support one another with these difficulties.
Doctors are often reluctant to prescribe enough thyroid hormone meds because their dosing regime is dictated by TSH levels which are often not inline with the amount of thyroid hormone levels due to endocrine signalling errors. Therefore, TSH levels alone become irrelevant when regarding the risk of osteoporosis as it is the levels of thyroid hormones, particularly T3 that dictates levels of bone health.
A simplistic explanation would be bone is continuously broken down and replaced by cells known as osteoclasts and osteoblasts and each cycle of bone turnover should take about 200 days. Excess thyroid hormones will hasten this process and insufficient thyroid hormones will slow this process, and either scenario will leave a net loss of bone mass which if allowed to continue over many years results in fragile and brittle bones.
Apart from thyroid hormones, other factors to consider are estradiol which has a bone preserving effect and becomes low in menopause (particularly with adrenal insufficiency issues), elevated sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), PPI's and stomach acid reducers, hydrocortisone taken by many members for adrenal insufficiencies caused by long term low thyroid hormone, which not only decreases bone formation but increases bone resorption - double whammy!
You sound as if you know the encouragers of of good bone health; ie weight bearing exercise, a healthy diet that optimises calcium, magnesium, Vit D. Vit D is commonly known to assist in calcium uptake but being a hormone it also reduces any inflammatory response (osteoporosis is considered an inflammatory condition) and VDR's (Vit D receptors) are expressed in osteoblasts.
T3 is exceptionally powerful and most only require a little addition which actually creates a larger amount/effect after the thyroid enzymatic actions, and therefore it is not recommended just to take some. If your iron and nutrients are optimal it would be prudent to complete a comprehensive thyroid panel (that includes FT3) to assess where levels lie.
I assume you are in America as have previously posted in the American Osteoporosis HU forum? In the UK these comprehensive tests are not always available through our GP's so members conduct private testing that is offered with discount through ThyroidUK who run this forum, and then post results including ranges (numbers in brackets) for others to comment.
I have numerous links although all quite old now, and this is a huge subject with many newer associated credible articles and research papers possibly evidencing further discovery, so I suggest you start googling but do ask for links on any specific topics such as the genetics or oestrogen connections if required. For starters the Osteoporosis Foundation provide great information and a calcium calculator
osteoporosis.foundation/edu...
FYI I gain all my calcium from diet, supplement magnesium glycinate powder daily (when I remember 😁) and Vit D from October to April. I function best with both thyroid hormones no higher than middle of range.
How did you reduce your thyroid antibodies?
Thank you Radd, will give it a go.
Trouble is now I am not under the GP practice, I have to see an utterly useless Endo' at the hospital. All because of the T3 that they can't prescribe in my surgery. Almost impossible to get a hold of him, but certainly will look into it.
Lucky I don't consider myself lucky. Had the doctors/consultants picked up on my thyroid problems when I was a child I would never have had 50 years of misery, always poorly and unable to cope, and eventually get thyroid cancer. As it was the negligence of the medics they should give me the best medication. What was lucky is finding and visiting Dr Barry Durrant Peatfield and discovering this site, where the people on here have been so helpful with their knowledge such as yourself.
Calcium supplements - health warning
Supplements
Levothyroxine/ Liothyronine + Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis now!
Creatine Supplements
