Timings of meds.

[ETHEL103]

Can anyone advise me on taking Levo .I take statins at night.Levo and lansoperazol before breakfast.Apixaban 12 hours apart 8.30 am and pm .with the 8.30 Apixaban in the morning I take blood pressure meds.Its just impossible to have 4 hour gaps with this lot of meds ,I'm so confused.I have had this regime for 15 years but have only been on apixaban for 2 years.Hope this is an OK explanation.Really need some help.

[Regenallotment]

Hi Ethel103,

The aim with timings is to improve absorption.

The lansoperazol will reduce absorption by lowering stomach acid

Low stomach acid is itself common in Hypothyroidism.

We need a good level of stomach acid to absorb Levo, so you may be having more hypo symptoms as a result (regardless of when you take them).

I’ve read somewhere that inadequate FT3 is implicated in higher cholesterol levels, so your need for statins could be related to undermedicated thyroid. I wonder what your FT4 to FT3 conversion is like.

How did you end up on statins? Statins are not recommended (by NHS on their website ) for hypothyroid patients. Your GP must have missed that guideline. It’s here nhs.uk/conditions/statins/c... Maybe your GP thought you were adequately medicated but the raised cholesterol would be an indication that you aren’t.

Do you have recent blood tests for thyroid and vitamins? If your absorption is low then you won’t be getting nutrients from food and may have low Vit D, B12, Folate etc

There are all sorts of things to try but I’m not a doctor and wouldn’t want to suggest things that may be wrong for you.

Here is what worked for my stomach acid situation , I had terrible reflux, I’d vomit into my mouth just bending over to fill the cat bowl after dinner and woke up with a sore throat every day for 4 years.

I took betaine with pepsin at meal times for about 3 months. I took apple cider vinegar in orange juice daily for a few months.

I stopped eating dairy and gluten. The dairy was a game changer, all the gurgling stopped. I’m actually off all grains now and I feel so much better.

I don’t eat anything containing sugar, even reduced my fruit intake. Stick to raspberries and blueberries.

I’m reading Supergut by Dr William Davies and beginning to realise how important healing my gut is in getting the best out of my thyroid hormone replacement.

Hope there is something useful there to consider/ read up on. It’s such a journey juggling all this stuff isn’t it.

Wishing you all the best 🌱🦋🌱

[ETHEL103 in reply to Regenallotment]

Thankyou for your reply.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

previous post 7 days ago

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu....

Showing you’re in desperate need of dose increase in levothyroxine having been left on just 25mcg levothyroxine for years …..TSH over 5

On levothyroxine dose is increased upwards in 25mcg steps until TSH is ALWAYS below 2

Most people when adequately treated will have TSH around or below one

Being left hypothyroid and on inadequate dose levothyroxine directly results in high cholesterol and low stomach acid and low vitamin levels

Low stomach acid leads to bloating, acid reflux and IBS type symptoms

PPI like Lansoprazole is to treat HIGH stomach acid

As dose levothyroxine is increased and vitamin levels improved by supplementing, you should be able to SLOWLY reduce then stop Lansoprazole

High percentage of thyroid patients find it extremely beneficial to be strictly gluten free and dairy free to help improve gut function

ESSENTIAL to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 at least annually

You already know you have low folate and B12

Hopefully you are now improving this …..daily B12 supplement

In another week add daily vitamin B complex