First Thyroid Test in 13 Years - Could someone give me a second opinion as to whether these are good results please?

[RonniethePup]

Hi,

I am new to this forum and have found it very helpful - thanks! This is my first post.

Would someone mind kindly casting their eye over my test results please? I had a right-side thyroidectomy in 2005 followed by annual thyroid blood tests at the hospital for five years. I was told by the consultant that the tests were fine but I was not aware of the detail (I was not sufficiently clued up back then to ask).

After reading recommendations on this site I decided to opt for a private test with Medichecks, partly because of busyness with work and also due to the limited testing carried out on the NHS. I just wanted to check my thyroid was working well after all this time.

My results were:

Thyroid Hormones:

TSH 2.69 mIU/L (Range: 0.27 - 4.2)

Free T3 5.3 pmol/L (Range: 3.1 - 6.8)

Free Thyroxine 15.5 pmol/L (Range: 12 - 22)

Autoimmunity:

Thyroglobulin Antibodies 16.1 kIU/L (Range: 0 - 115)

Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies 10.9 kIU/L (Range: 0 - 34)

The Medichecks Doctor confirmed the results were normal.

(Background - M (52). One of my sisters had a similar op but is not on any medication, my other sister and mother are both on medication as they are hypothyroid. I am on a good vitamin regime thanks to this forum and stopped any biotin intake over two days prior to taking the test sample).

Thanks in advance for any replies!

[Jaydee1507 Administrator]

Are you on any levo? I am assuming not.

Free T4 (fT4) 15.5 pmol/L (12 - 22) 35.0%

Free T3 (fT3) 5.3 pmol/L (3.1 - 6.8) 59.5%

Your FT3 is in the upper part of the range so that's good. FT4 could be slightly higher. TSH just above 2. Healthy thryoids usually have a TSH of 1-2.

How do you feel?

[RonniethePup in reply to Jaydee1507]

Thanks Jaydee1507 - I feel mostly fine thanks. I recently noticed lack of eyebrows at the far end which I know can be a symptom of hypo. Having said that since I recently adjusted my vitamin regime (thanks recommendations in posts on this forum & among other things to include more biotin) I have noticed they are growing back which is good! I have also been under a period of long term stress which is now ending. Thanks again for your kind reply.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

was Medichecks test done early morning, ideally 9am latest

You also need to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12

Are you currently taking any vitamin supplements

Having low thyroid levels results in low vitamin levels

Low vitamins affect how well thyroid works

[RonniethePup in reply to SlowDragon]

Hi SlowDragon, thanks for your helpful comments. I did reply in full (see thread) but realised afterwards that I had not pressed the ‘reply’ button to your specific comment (apologies)! Thanks again.

[RonniethePup]

Thanks SlowDragon, the test was done at 9am and mostly after fasting save for one cup of decaf tea (also no biotin for at least two days prior). Thanks to this forum I have adjusted my vits to remove a supplement containing iodine and now take a B complex (Thorne basic ) + D3 +K2 +calcium + Fish oil (A & E) + E + probiotic + magnesium + zinc + iron + ashwagandha. The iron & zinc are recent additions. I'll look into the options for testing D, folate, ferritin and B12. Thanks again for your helpful and prompt reply.

[humanbean in reply to RonniethePup]

Did you test your calcium levels before starting to take a calcium supplement?

Supplementing if your calcium level is low is fine, but if your level is already adequate then taking more might just end up with the calcium lining your arteries which is obviously not desirable.

Ashwagandha is also not ideal. Some people claim it raises cortisol, some people claim it lowers cortisol. If you don't know your cortisol level before you start you might not know what it is doing to you. Ashwaghanda is known as an adaptogen.

Read others experiences with adaptogens here :

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

I would suggest giving up the adhwaghanda for a couple of months, and deciding whether the results of doing so on any symptoms are good or bad.

Cortisol can be measured if you want to give it a try, either in blood or in saliva, although the two different kinds of tests are not testing the same thing and won't produce the same results e.g. blood cortisol could be absolutely fine but saliva could show a low result.

GPs will test blood cortisol sometimes, but at best it will only be with a 9am blood test. At worst they'll test at a random time of day e.g. mid-afteroon, and the result will just be a random number because it won't tell you very much.

Some patients test their cortisol level in saliva. Just to give you an example ...

The kind of results you get will be something like this :

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

[RonniethePup in reply to humanbean]

Hi Humanbean, thanks for all of your helpful comments. As it happens I did not test my calcium levels (or other vitamins) before taking calcium. The main reason for taking it was that it was part of a combined D3 & calcium. I was working on the basis that the vitamin K2 would help draw the calcium from my blood into my bones. However as a result of your kind comments I will further reflect on whether I should stop taking this and also the ashwagandha too. Thanks again.

[RonniethePup]

And vit C or course!