New blood test results, low vitamins, advice please

[Crankyoldbag]

i test every 6 months. I started taking Armour 1/4 grain in May because my consultant (listed in Thyroid UK directory) thought my FT3 was low in range. I had to change to Thyreogland (from a pharmacy in Munich) because i can’t get Armour delivered to France post-Brexit. I take Thyreogland twice a day 7am and 3am, each dose is 10ug levothyroxine and 2.5ug liothyronine.

test results:

FT3 - 4,55 pmol (previous 3,67) range (2,43-6,01)

FT4 - 12,23 pmol (previous 14,16) range (9,01-19,04)

TSH 1,08 UI/ml (previous 1,36) range (0,35-4,94)

both thyroid antibodies below range

Ferritin 72 ng/ml (previous 94) range (5 - 204)

Vit B12 - 384 pmol (previous 575) range (138-652)

Vit B9 - 14,8 ng/ml (previous 7.1) range (3.1- 20.5)

Vit D2 and D3 - 40 ng/ml (previous 63) range (30-60 ng/ml)

Cholesterol 5,39 mmol (previous 4,64) range ( below 5,20)

My main issues atm are lack of focus and concentration, dreadful brainfog most of the day, and my balance isn’t great. Also put on a few kgs.

My digestion hasn’t been good for years, i think this is why i don’t absorb vitamins from food very well so try and take liquid vitamins where possible. I don’t understand why my vit D is so low after being outside alot of the summer.

What do readers think of the German liquid vitamin and iron product Floravital? Its brown and kept in a glass bottle in the fridge. I was thinking of doing a few weeks of this to top up Vit C, B vits and iron.

I’ve taken these results from a French lab sheet so they might not correspond directly to UK ones.

Thanks very much for your input.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

That’s a very small dose

Replacement thyroid hormones don’t “top up” your own thyroid, they replace it

Was last dose taken 8-12 hours before test

Why did you not start on just levothyroxine?

What vitamin supplements are you taking

B12 is low.

[Crankyoldbag in reply to SlowDragon]

It was my consultant that decided the dose. Perhaps he was being cautious and will increase it after he has seen latest results which hopefully be this week. I took last dose at 3pm and did blood test 7am next day so yes over 12 hours.

I was taking Gloryfeel B12 drops (from amazon) consistently in the spring but then slacked off in the summer as was v busy.

I just got Pure Encapsulations B Complex and had been taking Thorne B Complex intermittently this summer. However i don’t absorb tablets that well.

In your view how many Gloryfeel B12 drops can I take per day without overdosing?

I need to get back to full alert functioning because my business is going nuts and i can’t keep up.

[greygoose]

What do readers think of the German liquid vitamin and iron product Floravital?

The iron will block the absorption of the vitamins, so not much point. Iron should be taken at least two hours away from everything else - four hours from thyroid hormones - except vit C. And vit C is needed to help with absorption and avoid constipation.

It would be far better to get a sublingual methylcobalamin (B12) 1000 mcg and take that for a week. Then get a B complex with methylcobalamin and methylfolate, and take that along with the sublingual B12 until the pot of B12 is all gone, and then continue with the B complex for eternity!

Your cholesterol is high because your FT3 is too low. Raise the FT3 and the cholesterol level will drop.

[Crankyoldbag in reply to greygoose]

Oh dear that was a waste of money then! Which iron do you recommend taking and when ? I prefer to take in liquid form if possible.

Thank for your advice re B12 thats exactly what i will do.

My FT3 and cholesterol were both lower in the spring so not sure what’s happening there. I assumed the NDT (Thyreogland) must be doing its job because the FT3 has risen since March results.

Just want to clarify i am taking the equiv of 1/4 grain twice a day. I find I don’t feel as good on Thyreogland as i did on Armour.

[greygoose in reply to Crankyoldbag]

I'm afraid I don't have any recommendations for iron. Although I used to get along very well with Tardyferon, which is a French brand, and can be bought OTC in French pharmacies. But it is a sugar-coated pill - easy to swallow - not a liquid. But do make sure you take vit C with it. Take it at least four hours away from thyroid hormone.

My FT3 and cholesterol were both lower in the spring so not sure what’s happening there.

I would say it's just that it's taken time for the cholesterol to build up in the blood. It doesn't react instantly to T3 levels.

I assumed the NDT (Thyreogland) must be doing its job because the FT3 has risen since March results.

Well, it couldn't do otherwise. If you take enough of it, and if you absorb without any problem, then the levels in the blood will rise. After that, it's a question of what your body does with it, and how well it does it. Levo is a hormone, not a drug, so it doesn't behave like a drug.

One grain is only a small dose. I would think you need an increase in dose.