i wondering if anyone can help me make sense of my recent thyroid results. I have been occasionally tested for Thyroid issues over about 20 years due to the appearance of my neck?!
However it has always been ‘borderline’ according to the GP. I’ve accepted this. However I have been starting to get symptoms which when looking into, could be thyroid related. These include hair loss, tiredness, lack of drive, loss of libido, struggle to maintain weight.
I’ve had my results back and Thriva says they are within normal range and I could do with taking a magnesium supplement.
I just wondered where to go from here. The test was taken at about 9.45, only water drunk that morning with a finger prick test.
Active B12: 54.8 pmol/L (range 37.5 - 188) normal
Ferritin: 69.1 ug/L (range 30.0 - 150.0) optimal
FT3: 4.3 (range 3.1 - 6.8) optimal
FT4: 18.1 pmol/L (range 12.0 - 22.0) normal
TSH: 3.21 mIU/L (range 0.27 - 4.2) normal
TgAB: 12.7 kIU/L (range 0.0 - 115.0) normal
TPOAb: 9.5 kIU/L (range 0.0 - 34.0) normal
T4: 98.0 nmol/L (range 59.0 - 154.0) normal
Vitamin D: 68.4 nmol/L (range 50.0 - 250.0) normal
Do these figures look ok all together. I’ve tried reading other posts to gain an idea but have no clue what I’m looking at.
many thanks for any help
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Whose opinion is that? The Medichecks doctor? I wouldn't have thought either of them were optimal. I would want my Ferritin around 100, and if I weren't on any thyroid hormone replacement, I would want my FT3 to be around mid-range - and if I was on THR, I'd want it a lot higher than that!
Optimal is how you feel, not numbers of a lab report. Obviously, if you have symptoms, something is sub-optimal, and those are the two that jump out.
Active B12: 54.8 pmol/L (range 37.5 - 188) normal
Vitamin D: 68.4 nmol/L (range 50.0 - 250.0) normal
These are marked 'normal' because they are within the so-called 'normal' range. But, that does not make them 'normal' for you. I would say they are both much too low.
TSH: 3.21 mIU/L (range 0.27 - 4.2) normal
And that TSH is far from normal! A 'normal' (euthyroid) TSH is around 1, never over 2 and you are hypo when it reaches 3. However, the NHS, in all its wisdom, likes the TSH to go over 10 before it will diagnose!
It's rare to find a doctor that knows much about thyroid. And the doctors that comment on these private blood test results are no exception. Really not much point in asking for their opinion because they will just toe the NHS line and say the same as your GP. Far better to post on here and get your info from the horses mouth! So to speak.
The normal and optimal was what the Thriva GP commented on each result. I’m so glad you said that they toe the NHS line, I was under the impression that as they were doing an advanced thyroid test, they would be more specialist in looking at the results!
Felt flat when I got the results with the comments on as I just don’t feel right. I presume if I got tested again on the NHS I would come up as borderline again and not be treated.
Not sure where to go from here now. Will doctors treat if you have symptoms with results like this?
I would think they would be more likely to be failed GPs that can't get a job anywhere else! But, I could be prejudiced. They certainly don't appear to know the first thing about thyroid.
I'm afraid doctors these days know nothing about symptoms. They go by blood test results. And, if they are in-range, doctors assume that there can't be anything wrong with you. Just goes to show how much they know! And they mainly go by the TSH, because they don't know anything about the actual thyroid hormones. So, you would have to have at least an over-range TSH on two consecutive blood tests. But symptoms rarely come into it.
All you can do now is just keep testing, periodically, to see if results get worse.
Greygoose I'm afraid is on the button.. The NHS don't intervene until your TSH has gone over 10 or if your thyroid hormones are under range. In other words they wait till people are really poorly before intervening.Did your GP check your thyroid antibodies. That's worth checking. It still won't lead to treatment even if positive sadly but it might lead to 3 or 6 monthly checks to review you.
Are the antibodies the TgAb and TPOAb? They were checked as part of the private test. TgAb was 12.7 kIU/L and TPOAb was 9.5 kIU/L. Again all in ‘normal’ range apparently but I’m not really sure what these levels mean
Thank you so much greygoose and waveylines for replying. I really appreciate it and this was what I thought would be the case.
I haven’t been to many actual gp yet. I wanted to do a private test first to take with me alongside the symptoms as have felt somewhat fobbed off in the past.
I will do further tests at intervals. I’m wondering if in the meantime, I should look at some supplements to help me a little bit. Thanks grey goose for pointing out some of the results that look low. I normally take a women’s multivitamin but stopped for this test. Looking at other posts, there seem to be better options for vitamin d, iron, b12 than standard supermarket ones. Is there any guidance on these anywhere?
Seems to be a world of different vitamin supplements out there at different dosages and haven’t a clue where to start.
I would suggest you start with a sublingual methylcobalamin (B12) 1000 mcg. Take that for a week or so, then add in a complex that contains methylcobalamin and methylfolate. Thornes and Igennus do good ones. When your sublingual methylcobalamain runs out, just continue with teh B complex as a maintenance dose.
Iron and vit D are more complicated, and I suggest that you repost a question asking just about them and their cofactors, giving your test results and ranges. Then, those that know more about it than me can comment.
Multi-vits are never recommended on here for many reasons - main one being they're a waste of money! So I would just ditch the one you have, if I were you.
I think that's a good idea. Upping your levels as Greygoose indicated for b12, vit D. I'm not up to date on B12 SUPPLEMENTS As I self inject. Jarrows used to be good. Also Better than B12 spray as is their Vit D3 with K2. Both these two vits if not at a sufficient level cause fatigue amongst other symptoms like aching bones. Essential you need to buy reputable brands because vits minerals are graded A-D, D meaning ure unlikely to absorb anything, hence the diversity in pricing.
Seaside Susie is very good on how much to take. And can probably advise on brands.
Look up Vit D Council website for advice on vit D3 dosing. VIt D3 you can over do so needs to be checked at 6 monthly levels until stable than annually. Always but Vit D3 with K2 as this will ensure calcium then absorbed goes to your bones not organs.
Lots of very wise advice here already... just wanted to add a +1 for Jarrow sub-lingual B12 (good call waveylines!).
I'm currently using BetterYou Vit D + K2 oral spray - which is widely recommended by the knowledgeable folk on here. I also went with the BetterYou Vit B-complex oral spray... but it has folic acid as its source of folate (B9), which is not recommended (I didn't notice when I bought it! 🤦♀️) so I'm going to use it up and find a replacement that has a different source of folate in the future.
You could trt Thorne's Basic B which has folate and carry on with your sublingual Jarrows B12 Eric. Thorne's Basic B has a basic daily level of the bs in it but a good quantity of folate.... Can be used long termly. It is more expensive though...
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