Disclaimer: I am not a physician and do not diagnose disease. The statements made here are for educational purposes only. Please see your health care professional before making changes in your diet or medications. Any of the information you may choose to use is your responsibility. Thyroid disease can be life-threatening and is not to be taken lightly. Treatment of some kind is critical and necessary.
Please note: Low levels of protein, omega-3, potassium, zinc, copper, lithium and magnesium affect your thyroid gland function. It is possible to test positive for hypo, hyper or auto-immune thyroid disease and yet correct the abnormal tests with excellent nutrition. Unless your thyroid disease symptoms are severe or life threatening you may want to try improving your nutrition before you commit to life long use of thyroid hormone. If you already take thyroid medication a good nutritional program will help you be as healthy as possible. Do not stop medication without advising your physician. Autoimmune thyroid disease almost always requires medication ongoing.
You have been diagnosed as having some form of thyroid disease. You may be hypothyroid, hyperthyroid, have Graves Disease or Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. This information has not been prepared to take the place of being monitored by your physician. It is to help you help your physician determine your correct dose of thyroid medication and help you both maintain the correct dose.
A CAUTIONARY NOTE: It is important to make sure your symptoms and blood work are not a result of adrenal insufficiency. Depressed thyroid and depressed adrenal symptoms are very similar. Cortisol, a primary adrenal hormone that is elevated under stress and depressed when the adrenal gland is exhausted, alters TSH and thereby T4 and T3. Alterations in adrenal function alter thyroid function but treating the thyroid will not make the underlying adrenal condition, if it exists, better and may make the situation much worse. A simple, and relatively inexpensive, 24 hour salivary cortisol and DHEA test can rule out (or in) adrenal involvement. Also consider this test if you are currently being treated for thyroid and the results are not what you expected. If you have thyroid disease and are treated with a good combination of T3 and T4 your symptoms should resolve rapidly. Your symptoms will remain, alter, or become worse if adrenal dysfunction is present. The cortisol/DHEA test is available from your physician. It is important that the health care professional you are working with understand this testing, how to interpret it, and how to treat the results, or the testing will be of no value to you.
A secondary cautionary note to mention is that there is now recognized in the literature a 'thyroid resistance syndrome' similar in character to 'insulin resistance'. This manifests as symptoms of low thyroid function but normal thyroid blood work. An imbalance of omega-3/omega-6 fatty acids can contribute to this condition. Lowering omega-6 fats and dramatically increasing omega-3 (fish oil NOT flax) has improved or normalized thyroid function in some persons. A small dose (not less than 200 mcg nor greater than 400 mcg) of yeast based selenium (methylselenocysteine) may also improve this condition.
Iodine is critically important for healthy thyroid function and heart function. Iodine excess increases the possibility of autoimmune thyroid disease. Selenium effectively treats iodine excess. Selenium and iron both play an important role in normal thyroid function. Mercury toxicity also alters thyroid function and increases the need for selenium.
Confused? Your thyroid needs iodine but it also needs other nutrients to function normally. Trace elements and minerals such as mercury, toxic at any dose, and iron and zinc, essential for health but toxic is excessive amounts, alter thyroid function. You need enough of everything you need but not too much.
You need a balanced diet with balanced minerals and trace elements to support your thyroid. No one mineral or trace mineral or ‘pill’ will do. Low protein and/or inappropriate fatty acids also decrease your body’s ability to produce hormones or increase cellular resistance to hormones. Making sure your diet contains adequate protein and potassium (see other pages) and that your supplements contain enough but not too much of essential elements may restore thyroid function, will support thyroid disease treatment and likely protect the healthy thyroid from disease.
In addition lithium orotate, as mentioned in the supplement list to follow, has been very successful in reversing this syndrome in some persons. The dose used is very low (120 mg of lithium orotate containing 4.8 mg of lithium), not anywhere near the dose used by physicians to treat bi-polar disorders (800-2400 mg of lithium carbonate daily). In 'resistance syndrome' lithium is being used as a trace element, currently recognized as conditionally essential, to restore membrane sensitivity. This information is from the work of Hans Neiper, M.D. More information is available from the Brewer Science Library.
If you decide to try lithium use only the orotate and use only a small dose such as the one suggested below or less. More is not better. There is some evidence that low dose lithium may also restore membrane sensitivity to glucose and insulin in hypoglycemics and diabetics. Lithium Orotate is available from VRP. or 800-877-2447. Use my PIN number, 230288, at checkout.
The maintenance dose, arrived at slowly, is 100-300 mcg. of Synthroid or Levothroid (T4) or 60-180 mg of Armour or Westhroid (whole thyroid). There is a great difference in these doses and blood work is always the best indicator that you have reached your ideal dose. 1 grain means about 100 mcg of Synthroid or 60 mg of Armour. 1.5 grain (150 mcg Synthroid or 90 mg Armour) is a typical maintenance dose. Dose is usually increased in increments of 25-50 mcg (15-30 mg whole thyroid) until your TSH falls within normal range, currently thought to be 2.0 or less..
On the correct dose of thyroid you will have stable blood sugar levels; normal appetite; energy; normal sleep patterns; no frequent urination; a basal temperature of 97.8-98.2; no hair loss; good hair texture-not coarse or fine; good circulation-warm hands and feet and the ability to warm up quickly when you get cold; good skin texture-not dry and thick or thin and oily; good skin color-normal, slightly pink without abnormal flushing-the palms of the hands and soles of the feet should not appear yellow or orange; normal size tongue-pink with no indentations around the edges; no athletes foot; good resistance to infection; normal mucous membranes-not excessive or thickened mucous; improvement or elimination of environmental and food allergies; normal perspiration patterns-not sweating without cause but having the ability to perspire when exercising or when the temperature rises; no night sweats; stable mood-not depression, having curiosity and a desire to do and to have; enjoying exercise and feeling a benefit after working out; good short and long term memory; the ability and desire to experience sexual satisfaction; a good sense of taste and smell; good reflexes-neither too fast nor to slow; no constipation or diarrhea; a normal menstrual cycle of 3-5 days without heavy bleeding and without PMS.
Your dose of thyroid is too high if: you experience undo sweating; heart palpitations; hunger-eating all the time without weight gain; a resting pulse above 80; quick movements; thin/fragile skin; a change in hair texture to very fine; a basal temperature above 98.2; eye or vision changes; headaches with no apparent reason; nervousness; tremor; unusual increase in amount and number of bowel movements per day; diarrhea. Ask your druggist for the written material available concerning your medication. Read all overdose symptoms and contraindications. The normal thyroid converts more thyroxine,T4, into T3 (the active thyroid hormone) during stress, in colder weather and when you are ill or injured. You may be able to adjust your dose, with your doctor's consent, to fit the situation. To be able to do this successfully you need a prescription for an incremental dose in addition to your regular prescription.
Thyroid hormone consists of several fractions. The most important fractions are T3 and T4. Armour contains both, Synthroid contains only T4 and Cytomel contains only T3. Some individuals appear to have a problem converting the inactive T4 found in Synthroid into the active T3 . Zinc and magnesium are required for this conversion, as well as other nutrients. Your physician can check to see if you have a problem by monitoring your free T3 levels.
Please remember your needs change with age, weather, illness and injury. What worked in the past may need adjustment today. Watch your symptoms. They are your body's way of talking to you.
Supplement combos I have found easy and helpful include: Now Foods Liquid Multi-Gels, Country Life Daily Multi-Sorb, Natrol My Favorite Multiple Original tablets or Twinlab Mega 6 Caps, both available from iherb.com, vitacost.com or vitaglo.com There are other multiples available with similar composition. As long as your supplement contains most of the suggested nutrients and you are comfortable with it, find yourself taking the full dose daily, it is fine.
In general, supplements do not contain taurine, carnitine, or some of the trace minerals and you may need to purchase them separately. Jarrow SeleNext is an excellent source of yeast based selenium. Lewis Labs Brewers Yeast also contains selenium and is an excellent source of high quality protein and potassium as well.
If you have been having gallbladder discomfort or other digestive problems, often accompanying thyroid or adrenal dysfunction, Now Foods Lipotropic, 1-2 taken with each meal can help a great deal. Lecithin granules can be used in place of the lipotropic- 1 rounded teaspoon per meal plus 500 mg taurine. Silymarin, standardized extract, about 3 capsules twice a day in addition to the lecithin and taurine may reduce or reverse liver and gallbladder problems.
When T4 or T3 are low the body is less able to convert vitamin D into the active hormone and also cannot convert beta-carotene into retinol, the active form of vitamin A. Frequently there is low production of hydrochloric acid which leads to malabsorption of B-12 and iron. Following diagnosis and treatment with thyroid hormones you can help restore body levels of nutrients by increasing the amounts of these nutrients in food or with supplements for about 2-3 months. My favorite vitamin A supplement is Cod Liver Oil from JR Carlson. The lemon flavored oil is easy to swallow and provides the omega-3 fish oils, with high amounts of DHA as well as high quality vitamin A and D. Use one teaspoon in summer and 1 tablespoon in winter. (But do test your D before starting ANY vitamin D supplement.)
If the thyroid is overactive or if you have been taking too high a dose of thyroid hormone there can be a significant loss of muscle mass and bone mass. All nutrients, protein and minerals and trace minerals should be at the highest levels for 3-6 months after beginning treatment.
Mary Shomon's thyroid
column on http://about.com is a great place
to find information as is
Stop The Thyroid
Madness.
Thyroid disease is a life long problem. Once it has been
determined that you have or a family member has a thyroid
disorder, monitored treatment is imperative. During your lifetime
your thyroid may become hypo (low), hyper (high) or even normal.
You need to be informed so that you have the ability to take care
of your own body. Your physician is your partner in staying
healthy. Use him or her to your best advantage. The only safe use
of medicine, including all hormones, is informed use.
Please remember that thyroid disease has a high familial
tendency. Inform other family members of your condition and if
suspicious symptoms occur in any of your blood relatives suggest
they have a complete thyroid test that includes TSH, T3U, FTI, T4,
free T3 and a special test for anti-microsomal antibodies and
anti-thyroglobulin antibodies. If anti-bodies are present remember that selenium
and other trace elements may reduce or correct this condition. There is a tendency among some
physicians to over-diagnose thyroid disease. Symptoms attributed
to thyroid malfunction, including a popular mis-diagnosis 'low
body temperature', can be caused by other diseases and conditions.
If you are not comfortable with your diagnosis, seek a second
physician opinion.
Reference List
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