Low salt levels

[GREENcard13]

Is there a private thyroid blood test recognised by the NHS because my GP will only test for TSH. I had quite a heated discussion with him but he still said it wasn't necessary!! I went to see the GP because of itching on my arms and torso . I think this is quite common with thyroid problems ?Also has anyone with hypothyroidism on here had low salt levels . The GP rang me on holiday after a blood test and said if you experience headaches , muscle aches or sickness and diarrhoea go straight to hospital which was rather worrying as we were on a coach tour of Scotland. I've cut down on the amount of water I drink and increased my salt intake but I added salt to my food anyway and eat a lot of salted nuts normally. I've since had another blood test and my salt levels has risen from 128 to 136 in a week . It's now in the normal range but surely too much salt is not good ?

[dizzy864]

Hi, I can't comment on low salt - that symptom missed me!From personal experience, the NHS won't recognise any tests done privately. It means basically, if the NHS won't test something then we are stuffed! I have read on this site that some members have had some success with GPs and private tests but personally I have never been able to get a GP to look at private test results let alone act on them.

Good luck

[SmallBlueThing]

I've used Monitor My Health a few times and have stated to my GP (or their stand-in) that it's an NHS lab in Exeter, if I choose to divulge the results, which has been each time, as I arrange a test when I feel one's necessary.

Yes, you should see your GP about the itching. I'm unsure why, as my results are usually fine, but I regularly have liver function tests. You should ask for one.

I think it best to drink slightly more than one's thirst requires. Those recommending enormous quantities are probably living in the sunshine of California and roller-skating everywhere, so good luck to them.

Have you got a blood pressure monitor? You want enough salt to keep your blood pressure from being low, to help avoid suffering a fall. No salted nuts for me as, although my sodium level is OK, I do have hypertension.

[GREENcard13 in reply to SmallBlueThing]

Other than salt levels my bloods , BP etc are perfect I should be an example of perfect health . I have a referral letter off gp to see private immunologist about itching ( I have Benenden health insurance for consultations and small ops ) ive seen dermatologists in the past and found them useless.I think I had plenty of salt intake when my levels were low and on googling it hypothyroidism was referenced.

[greygoose]

The question with salt is: how much is too much? Low salt diets are not a good idea for sure. But try and get a sensible answer from a medic on how much you should be ingesting and it's like banging your head against the wall!

Google it and you'll find article after article saying that high salt diets cause high blood pressure which causes heart attacks. But all that was debunked a long time ago. Which leaves us where, exactly? In limbo, probably. lol But having been put on a low/no salt diet in hospital once, for a heart problem I didn't have, and suffered the consequences - constipation and all that - no way am I going to give up my crisps and the salt on my chips!

Maybe this post would interest you:

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

[GREENcard13 in reply to greygoose]

Thanks

[Rita-D]

what brand of thyroid medication are you taking. I had itching on Wockhardt brand. It completely went away when I switched brands. Bought some anti histamine tablets from Aldi for hay fever, itching came back. Checked the box - Wockhardt. There’s something in the excipients (fillers) that I react to. I have to always check brands of medication, Teva brand gives me IBS symptoms.

[GREENcard13 in reply to Rita-D]

I am on Wockhardt but out of choice as I've had itching with all the other brands and even worse with Teva I had really bad anxiety and stroke symptoms too !! No antihistamines help either. I've just bought some Quercetin which I've taken in the past with success so fingers crossed this will help but thanks for your reply

[Rita-D]

Oh gosh, I just thought I’d let you know to check the brand as I have problems with some. Hope you manage to get some help. Good luck!

[humanbean]

There was someone on the forum who deliberately chose to avoid salt - although I never understood why she'd chosen to do this. It caused her lots of problems until she started putting salt into her food and cooking again. Here's the link to her thread :

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

You might find this of interest too, if you worry about your blood pressure and have reduced or removed salt for that reason.

stopthethyroidmadness.com/b...

You might find this helpful too :

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elect...

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[Sandradee1 in reply to humanbean]

I’m a great believer in the body needs salt so never cut back on it apart from cooking with it as my husband has high blood pressure . I eat loads of salted nuts ,always add it to my food the only thing I can think of I don’t eat crappy food . I’m now adding a cup of bovril a day and cut down on my water intake which I didn’t think was excessive about a litre a day .Thanks for replying . Love your name btw

[Sandradee1 in reply to Sandradee1]

Oops it seems I have registered on here with two names !!

[GREENcard13 in reply to humanbean]

humanbean please look at my reply with another alias Sandradee1 😅I think I must have originally used this one on a previous iPhone cos I’ve just changed from android moby I’ve now deleted that one