I have seen some prior posts about impacts of being on too lower dose e.g. below 50mcg, something to with Levo not being a "top up" and lower than 50mcg not being enough for body to take up reliance on.
Anymore remember this and can point me to any content?
ta
Capn. The thyroid works as part of a feedback loop. Simply, your thyroid is stimulated to produce thyroid hormones by tsh, thyroid stimulating hormone. Your circulating levels of thyroid hormones ft4 and ft3 are feedback into the system to establish the level of tsh sent out by the pituitary gland.Taking a low dose of oral thyroid hormone causes thyroid hormone levels to rise causing a drop in tsh so the thyroid is stimulated less and subsequently produces less hormones of its own.
Often on a low dose the decrease in natural hormone production by the thyroid is greater than the amount of oral hormone ingested so you end up with a drop in circulating hormone level overall making matters worse
In other words a small oral dose often causes a drop in natural thyroid production greater than the oral dose so things get worse .
Hello,
Is this the kind of thing you’re after?
nhs.uk/conditions/underacti....
Levothyroxine replaces the thyroxine hormone, which your thyroid does not make enough of.
And this, about starter dose & titration:
cks.nice.org.uk/topics/hypo...
The British National Formulary (BNF) recommends:
For adults aged 18–49 years — initially 50–100 micrograms once daily; adjusted in steps of 25–50 micrograms every 3–4 weeks, adjusted according to response; maintenance 100–200 micrograms once daily.
Looking at your previous posts
You have Hashimoto’s
It’s important, especially with Hashimoto’s to maintain GOOD Ft4 and Ft3
TSH is often below 1 or below range when adequately treated
guidelines on dose levothyroxine by weight
Even if we frequently start on only 50mcg, most people need to increase levothyroxine dose slowly upwards in 25mcg steps (retesting 6-8 weeks after each increase) until eventually on, or near full replacement dose
NICE guidelines on full replacement dose
nice.org.uk/guidance/ng145/...
1.3.6
Consider starting levothyroxine at a dosage of 1.6 micrograms per kilogram of body weight per day (rounded to the nearest 25 micrograms) for adults under 65 with primary hypothyroidism and no history of cardiovascular disease.
Also here
cks.nice.org.uk/topics/hypo...
pathlabs.rlbuht.nhs.uk/tft_...
Guiding Treatment with Thyroxine:
In the majority of patients 50-100 μg thyroxine can be used as the starting dose. Alterations in dose are achieved by using 25-50 μg increments and adequacy of the new dose can be confirmed by repeat measurement of TSH after 2-3 months.
The majority of patients will be clinically euthyroid with a ‘normal’ TSH and having thyroxine replacement in the range 75-150 μg/day (1.6ug/Kg on average).
The recommended approach is to titrate thyroxine therapy against the TSH concentration whilst assessing clinical well-being. The target is a serum TSH within the reference range.
……The primary target of thyroxine replacement therapy is to make the patient feel well and to achieve a serum TSH that is within the reference range. The corresponding FT4 will be within or slightly above its reference range.
The minimum period to achieve stable concentrations after a change in dose of thyroxine is two months and thyroid function tests should not normally be requested before this period has elapsed.
How much levothyroxine are you currently taking
When were your vitamin levels last tested
What vitamin supplements are you taking
Recommended that all thyroid blood tests early morning, ideally just before 9am, only drink water between waking and test and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test
This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)
Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or all relevant vitamins
Testing options and includes money off codes for private testing
Medichecks Thyroid plus antibodies and vitamins
medichecks.com/products/adv...
Blue Horizon Thyroid Premium Gold includes antibodies, cortisol and vitamins
bluehorizonbloodtests.co.uk...
Only do private testing early Monday or Tuesday morning.
Link about thyroid blood tests
thyroiduk.org/testing/thyro...
Link about Hashimoto’s
thyroiduk.org/hypothyroid-b...
Symptoms of hypothyroidism
thyroiduk.org/signs-and-sym...
Tips on how to do DIY finger prick test
See detailed reply by SeasideSusie
healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
Medichecks and BH also offer private blood draw at clinic near you, or private nurse to your own home…..for an extra fee
Now that I know better (and after my Dr. told me the thyroid meds take away its ability to function on its own) I strongly suggest to do your research on gaining your thyroid function back. Otherwise you will end up with a whole lot of other health issues later. You need an active lifestyle in the outdoors and proper food and exercise. You can do this...heal thyself.
I have to presume you mean well, but your instructions are somewhat presumptious. All I wanted is the clinical evidence to back up a anecdote I have seen repeated on this forum.
Remember me asking you if I'd be crazy to start taking 50mcg of levo?
Bloods would 50mcg Levo help
Why are my results doing this on 50mcg Levo?
How am I supposed to function on 50mcg levo (base dose) daily without a thyroid?
On thyroxine 50mcg feeling stressed
