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It’s true. In the vast majority of thyroid patients, if not all, Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothyroxine, Unithroid, Eltroxin, Levaxin, Norton, Eutrosig, Oroxine and any other “T4-only” medications are NOT doing the job as a sole treatment, according to the worldwide experience of patients and certain observant doctors…unless you think that an elevator that goes up to the 5th-floor-only on a 50 story building is “doing the job. Yes, you might feel better than before you got on, and your symptoms may be “improved”. But most all patients on T4 medications are left with symptoms due to an inferior treatment!
Additionally, the extreme majority of doctors fail to heed the warning even on thyroxine inserts: to test your cortisol levels. Low cortisol, aka adrenal insufficiency, is a common occurrence with hypothyroid patients, especially considering the long years you are left undiagnosed due to a faulty TSH, or being put on T4 meds which result in lingering hypothyroidism and stress on the adrenals.
And what do uninformed doctors do for the symptoms you continue to have on T4-only meds? They put you on anti-depressants, statins, pain meds, and all sorts of bandaid medications to cover the effects of a poor thyroid treatment—chronic low grade depression, high cholesterol, “Chronic Fatigue Syndrome”, “Fibromyalgia”, bi-polar, anxiety, hair loss…to name just a few. When you mention your poor energy levels, they tell you to exercise more. When you mention your weight problems, they tell you to eat less.
And the worst thing they’ll say when you continue to have symptoms of a thyroid disorder? “It’s not your thyroid. Your TSH is normal, and you’re optimally treated.” That, friends, is not so…and has lead most all thyroid patients into continuing agony and self-doubt.
Why did T4-only medications come about in the first place? We can surmise it was a money-in-the-pocket decision by the pharmaceuticals. By the early 1960’s, T4-only meds had been fully developed and were touted as a new and modern treatment for hypothyroid patients, with other pharmaceuticals developing their own brands. And everyone fell for it. For over 45 years, hypothyroid patients have been put on these drugs. And it’s been a disaster. (for more detailed information on the history of T4 use during the last century, see the STTM book)
What is “T4”? T4, also called thyroxine, is the thyroid storage hormone. Its main function is to convert to the active thyroid hormone–T3, which gives you good overall health, energy and stamina. T3 affects every single cell in your body!!
The theory was that T4 would convert to the T3 needed for the body. But in nearly ALL patients on T4 meds, the T4 does NOT convert into an adequate amount of T3, leaving you with symptoms that neither you OR your uninformed doctor realize are related to inadequate treatment—poor stamina compared to others, chronic low grade depression, thinning hair or outer eyebrows, feeling cold when others are warm, cholesterol problems, aches and pains, hard or small stools, easy weight gain, memory problems, foggy thinking, a diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia, difficulty conceiving………the list is long and pathetic. In other words, healthy thyroids are NOT meant to rely soley on T4-to-T3 conversion!
Additionally, being on a T4 only medication means you are missing out on getting direct T3, T2, T1 and calcitonin. If they weren’t important, why would the human body make them??? Did you know it’s calcitonin that keeps calcium from leeching out of your bones?
But there’s even more to the problem: it’s called the TSH lab. Around 1973, the TSH lab test was developed. Based on a sampling of several volunteers, a so-called “normal” range was established—.5 to 5.0 (recently lowered to 3.0). But volunteers with a history of family hypothyroid were NOT excluded, leaving us with a range that leans towards being hypothyroid! In fact, the TSH RARELY corresponds to how a patient feels. There is a large majority of patients who have a “normal” TSH, even in the “one” area of the range, and have a myriad of hypo symptoms. There is a complete chapter on the TSH with more information in the Stop the Thyroid Madness book.
So what’s the solution? Patients are returning to a medication that was successfully used from the late 1800’s onward: natural desiccated thyroid hormones, more commonly known as Naturethroid, Armour, etc. They are made from pig glands, meets the stringent guidelines of the US Pharmacopoeia, and gives patients EXACTLY what their own thyroids give them–T4, T3, T2, T1 and calcitonin.
Additionally, patients who are working with certain wise doctors are not dosing by the TSH. Instead, they raise their desiccated thyroid according to three criteria (and not in any particular order): 1) the elimination of symptoms 2) getting a mid-afternoon temp of 98.6 using a mercury thermometer, while maintaining a normal, healthy heartrate, and 3) getting their free T3 towards the top of the range (in the presence of healthy adrenal function).
On a T4-only medication, we have noted that the majority of patients have a less-than-optimal free T3, a mid-afternoon temp lower than 98.6, and/or the continuation of some hypo symptoms for the rest of your life, no matter how high your doctor raises it.
Is it worth it?
*To read more detail on T4, get the book.
*To listen to an audio version of some of this page, go here.
*To proceed from this page and learn more about natural desiccated thyroid, go here.
*To benefit from what patients and wise doctors have learned in their use of desiccated thyroid, go here.
*To see the different brands of desiccated thyroid, go here.
*To see labwork you need and places to get it on your own to share with your doctor, go here.
*To work with a good doctor, go here.
*AND FINALLY, if you didn’t click on the bold red words above to see the LONG AND PATHETIC SYMPTOMS of those on T4-only meds i.e. the ones you have when your uninformed doctor is calling you “normal”, go here. I’ll bet you’ll find a LOT of YOURS!!
