Does anyone have any tips to help low stomach acid please?
I am trying to up my vitamins and minerals with food to help conversion rates as I am a poor converter. High t4 and high tsh 😞 and t3 quite low.
I have started with stomach acid the last week or 2 due to tsh going up to 4.9 for some reason when it was 2.1 only a week or 2 before and that was getting better after a blood test only a few weeks before when it was 2.7. Not really sure why but I know that my tsh going over is causing the acid as it happened once before last winter.
I am constipated again due to the low acid no doubt when my bowels have been working really well for a few months until the last couple of weeks.
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Goinginsane1
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I just had a look at your previous posts. There are a few 🤗♥️. Can you help us by summarising your journey, that you have shared over your posts and just condense into your bio? Have a look at mine click on my face it takes you to my profile. I wrote it as a case study for those following on and also for a reference to any questions I might need help with in the future.
One thing I did sense was you are piling all sorts into your body to try and help get to the sweet spot, but actually this might be part of the problem. I was incredibly anxious at the start, but if you proceed with caution and slowly changing one thing at a time the route is ultimately quicker than having so many balls in the air that you don’t know what is doing what.
Sometimes less really is more.
As Jaydee1507 has said getting the vitamins and minerals in optimal amounts will help body utilise Levothyroxine.
I had low stomach acid at the start of my journey - I took advice on upping vitamins and minerals and made sure to get good ones. I don’t take codliver oil capsules they made my tummy very unsettled. I take magnesium citrate as it helps with constipation and settles me at night. I take b-complex morning (b’s can be stimulating) at breakfast and thyroid meds when I get up for a wee in the night - I know I’m not the only one.😂👍
There are different forms of magnesium supplements and they have different properties- I’ll try and dig out a link for you and pop it on another reply. It is a lumpy old road getting to a therapeutic dose of thyroid hormone replacement and one thing you need to do is read a litte bit at a time and others lived experience to get a real understanding. If you think you don’t know more than your doctor they have the upper hand and believe me they know frighteningly little, but they think they know a lot because they just follow the guidelines and have faith in them. You can see my posts and replies to others posts on my profile too. I champion self advocacy- you don’t have to be confrontational- just one or two steps ahead. Mostly I’ve been able to outmanoeuvre 😉👍
When I couldn’t sleep lying down because of heartburn I kept a food diary and if anything disagreed with me I would make a note. One word answers not dear diary. I found high carb - high fat - high sugar no good. Even a gluten free apple crumble will leave me suffering for a day, but I can eat a chicken jalfrezi with pilau rice no problem. 😋
I’m gluten free- strictly!
As someone told me when I started this journey, you have to be totally gluten-free, you can’t be a little bit, it’s like you can’t be a little bit pregnant!
Even now, if I get stressed it does bite me on the bum occasionally, but I have come to understand and just make a conscious effort to remove myself, even if only for an hour and acknowledge the source and think about how I am going to look after myself. Some of that involves not worrying for other people when they are about to make a mistake and are not receptive to advice. I used to get so stressed worrying about them - now I make a cup of tea and come in here and hang out with my thyroid buddies.
Sorry OP for no direct stomach acid tips. But to add on to Charlie-Farley's comment, I have learned to read supplement labels. I have one of the weirder food intolerances (rice 😭) and sure enough it is a very common excipient, as is lactose. So particularly for people taking lots of supplements, I would say know your intolerances and check the excipients.
the only supplements I take are probiotics and omega 3 (and now the prescribed iron)
I have been taking them for a good few months with no issues though. It’s only since I started eating more that the acid has become an issue and my TSH has gone over. But my t4 is high too so if I increase the meds that goes even higher and causing me over active symptoms. I feel stuck between a rock and a hard place.
I was feeling really good a matter of 3 weeks ago and then the acid started and something suddenly changed 😞
I tried increasing my dose slightly for one day and my anxiety was 10 times worse. My t4 levels are high too so I feel that when I increase the dose the t4 probably goes up and over at the same time causing over active symptoms at the same time. I feel like I’m stuck between a rock and hard place 😞
I am only taking just slightly less than 75mg and have been doing okay on that for months. I started eating more the last few weeks as I have been losing weight and not eating enough for a long time and battling severe anxiety. This is when the acid has started and the has gone over range. I was eating raw pumpkin and sunflower seeds with every meal and wonder if the phytate acid in them has affected the absorption of vitamins/minerals. My iron level has started dropping so I’ve started taking the iron supplement again. And stoped eating the seeds. I have been and am eating really healthy food but maybe something I have started eating doesn’t agree with me. Maybe I should do some food intolerance tests 💁
I have got the drs on Wednesday but I don’t think they really understand or know how to help.
Hi, I e suffered for years thinking acid reflux only to realise after a food intolerance test I was low on pepsin. I now take Betaine with HCL one tablet with a protein meal although may be different for you but find it helps plus a probiotic, I also use probiotic toothpaste as that's where the digestion starts. Make sure you get good quality vitamins I use British Supplements & 5Greens & Inngenus they seemed to be pretty good. Good luck
Hey, I have underactive thyroid an pernicious anemia. A member in the PA group advised me to take fresh lime juice before eating. I have been having half a lime diluted in warm water fifteen mins before meals. So far so good as I am seeing an improvement. However what is advised is to thoroughly rinse your mouth afterwards as the lime can erode tooth enamel and not to brush immediately following .Good luck
I do the following - a small pudding spoon of cider vinegar, a teaspoon of honey and a tablespoon of warm water - mix, it takes a while - and then down in one. The honey helps stop the burning as it goes down.
Pretty much instant relief. If you think something you are going to eat may trigger the acid, take this half an hour before eating.
I suppose it ups the stomach acid, but I dont care, it works for me.
I've been talking Betaine HCl 600 mg with food morning and evening for years. Sometimes only once a day. Easy fix. Frustrating to deal with low stomach acid because it has the same symptoms as gastric reflux and can be treated wrong.
Ah okay. I might give that a go. I cope just about in the morning and during the day but as the afternoon and evening goes on the acid (or lack of) seems to get worse. It’s not horrendous and managing just about by watching what I’m eating and no gaviscon right now. It is causing me more anxiety mind 😞
Please give it a try. It is inexpensive and has been the answer for me. Also, easy to take with you if you are out for a meal. I only take it with food, breakfast and dinner.
I've been taking Betaine for 6 years now, so its not a fix, but a way to maintain a stomach acid level.
I also have a lot of drug "allergies" which cause upset stomach. Now I'm wondering if that has to do with low stomach acid too. These were before I started Betaine, so next time I'm given a new drug I'm going to take it with Betaine to see if I can tolerate it.
As mentioned, lime juice or raw apply cyder vinegar mixed in a little water before meals, as recommended on the PAS forum. Your ferritin looks a bit low though, I suggest a full iron panel test for an overall picture.
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