Hello, I have posted a few times previously and the advice given has always been so helpful, I'm hoping for the same again please! So, I'm trying to sort out my vitamin levels. I have taken supplements but then when I've run out I haven't been very good at buying again and then I go for weeks/ months without taking. So, I want to get back on track. These are the last vitamin results I can find:
Vit D - 37.8
Ferritin - 52.2
Folate - 21.4
B12 - 463
I don't have ranges except for the B12 which is 211-911.
I have the Better You D3000+K2 spray - 3 sprays daily at lunch (don't eat breakfast and thought I should be taking with food - is this right?)
I have the Thorne Basic B Complex which suggests 1 capsule 1-3 times daily. Any advice please on how much I should take of this?
I have Magnesium Plus (Newson Health) but this also contains B vits and Vit C and I wasn't sure if I could take with the Thorne Basic B. I've been recommended Better Vits Magnesium but this comes with Zinc and D3 and I've read not to take Zinc with Magnesium and can I take D3 with this and use the spray??
Is it best to take B vits and Magnesium at lunch with the Vit D spray?
Finally, I have a Holland and Barrett Selenium plus Zinc which I have been taking in the evening. I take my Thyroxine on waking.
I would really appreciate some help navigating my way through this and getting it right! I hope it's not too confusing. Thanks so much.
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ElephantShoes
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I have the Better You D3000+K2 spray - 3 sprays daily at lunch (don't eat breakfast and thought I should be taking with food - is this right?)
If it's a spray, it doesn't matter if you take it with food or not, because it doesn't go into the stomach. Just take it when convenient.
I have the Thorne Basic B Complex which suggests 1 capsule 1-3 times daily. Any advice please on how much I should take of this?
With your level of B12 - folate is good - I should think twice a day should be enough. But make sure it's at least two hours away from thyroid hormone.
I have Magnesium Plus (Newson Health) but this also contains B vits and Vit C and I wasn't sure if I could take with the Thorne Basic B.
Always amazes me the mixtures they come up with in these supplements. I cannot see the point of that one (once saw a supplement that contained just iron and calcium! Talk about throwing money down the drain! The two would cancel each other out! 🤣) But this magnesium plus... not much point in taking vit C with B vits because the C will affect how the body uses B12. And, the other Bs aren't much good without the B12. I suppose you could take it for the magnesium content, but I really wouldn't buy that one again, if I were you. And, takiing it with the Thorne Basic B might give you an over-dose of B6, which isn't recommended. So, no, frankly, I'd just put it in the bin.
But, in any case, magnesium is best taken at night because it can make you sleepy.
I've been recommended Better Vits Magnesium but this comes with Zinc and D3 and I've read not to take Zinc with Magnesium and can I take D3 with this and use the spray??
Sigh. Really not a good idea to buy these multis, even if they're only mini-multis. Magnesium blocks the absorption of zinc. And you don't what to take tablet D3 whilst using spray D3, you could over-dose. So, I wouldn't recomment this supplement to anyone. Just buy magnesium on its own.
Finally, I have a Holland and Barrett Selenium plus Zinc which I have been taking in the evening. I take my Thyroxine on waking.
Well, you'd have to take that at a different time because you can't take magnesium and zinc at the same time. Take that at lunchtime with the B complex. As long as it's four hours away from your levo.
Well thank you yet again greygoose. I didn't know zinc will block magnesium uptake when taken at the same time...... could well be one of the issues with my poor conversion from T4 to T3, as I've been taking them together at night for many long years....oh woe! that will stop tonight. How far apart should they be taken please?
Hi greygoose is this info documented anywhere? I’ve not been able to find but am really keen to know the basic ‘rules’ around taking supplements - what can /can’t be taken around meds, timings etc. Given that it seems most of us take thyroid meds once or twice a day it’s hard to know what can be taken with what!
I take T3 first thing and T4 under the tongue just before bed. Inbetween I take Magnesium spray oil (bedtime), Triple Magnesium (x2), B12 with folate/intrinsic factor, thorne b complex & vit c 2x per day & D3/k2 drops…. There doesn’t seem to be enough hours!
Taking levo under the tongue really isn't recommended. All thyroid hormone tablets are designed to be swallowed. The molecules are too large to pass through the mucus membrane/blood barrier, so the table would just disolve and hang around in your mouth. You're not getting any advantage from taking it under the tongue but, on the contrary, you might absorb less.
Spray on the skiin can be taken at any time because they do not enter the digestive tract. . But magnesium pills should be taken at least four hours away from thyroid hormone.
B12/B complex and vit C should be taken at least two hours away from each other (and from thyroid hormone) because the vit C affects how your body uses B12.
D3 and K2 four hours away from thyroid hormone, and preferable with a source of fat - unless they are in oil-filled capsules. Drops I don't know about, but if they go into the stomach they should be four hours away from thyroid hormone.
Gosh I didn’t know that T4 under the tongue is not recommended - I thought it would be better ☹️
According to these timings then T3 first thing, B12 2 hours later, B complex 2 hours after that along withMagnesiu m tab, D3/K2 (as suspended in oily liquid). Vit C at Tea time and T4 (swallowed) before bed with Magnesium oil rubbed into skin
It’s all so complicated!
Thanks once again greygoose for sharing your wisdom - it’s really appreciated.
Look at increasing iron rich foods in your diet to improve low ferritin
Eating iron rich foods like liver or liver pate once a week plus other red meat, pumpkin seeds and dark chocolate, plus daily orange juice or other vitamin C rich drink can help improve iron absorption
This is interesting because I have noticed that many patients with Hashimoto’s disease and hypothyroidism, start to feel worse when their ferritin drops below 80 and usually there is hair loss when it drops below 50.
Personally with your relatively good folate and B12 levels I would think you only take one Thorne B complex per day
IMPORTANT......If you are taking vitamin B complex, or any supplements containing biotin, remember to stop these 7 days before ALL BLOOD TESTS , as biotin can falsely affect test results
In week before blood test, when you stop vitamin B complex, you might want to consider taking a separate methyl folate supplement (eg Jarrow folate)
Thorne do magnesium capsules - mix of magnesium citrate and malate. Large capsules to swallow. Can tip powder out into small cup of water - take early or late evening (minimum 4 hours away from levothyroxine)
SlowDragon sorry to bother you again. Can you point me in the right direction for where I can order The Thorne Magnesium please? I ordered the Thorne Basic B on Amazon but I can't find the Magnesium on there. Thank you.
Thank you SlowDragon for the link. As a new customer there is a discount code so I was able to get 2 bottles for £15.80 each + free delivery. Thanks for all your help.
if you’re buying vitamins and minerals on Amazon you can set up a repeat subscription which will prevent you running out of stock. You get an email inviting you to edit the order and the frequency of delivery before each purchase goes through. Not every supplement seems to be available on the subscription, but if you have several items you get a discount.
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vitamin results and advice on tweaking or changing supplements 
Vitamin absorption
What to take, when
Advice once again please!
