Why Aren't My thyroid Meds Working?

Your Thyroid & Common Prescribed Meds

Once i realized my thyroid needed attention i decided to start researching information about what i could do to help my thyroid without going back on Synthroid and or Levothyroxine.  In my research i found out many interesting things about these synthetic hormones.  Here are just a few things i found out:

1.  It seems that many, many people are on these synthetic hormones and still having issues with their thyroid.  It also seems that these T4 hormones aren't addressing all the needs of the thyroid.

2.  These synthetic drugs also have fillers.  One of the fillers is acacia and the other lactose. If a person has sensitivities or allergies to these they will feel worse on these meds.

3. If you have issues with histamine, Levothyroxine blocks the production of the DAO enzyme in the intestines which will cause more digestive upset.

So these are just a few things that i discovered about these meds.  I believe that they are the reasons why many issues i already had may have become even more pronounced or maybe even could have developed more issues, i'm still learning a lot as i go.  What i have learned though has been very enlightening and i have experienced relief from many of my issues.

Here's what I will do.  I will begin by addressing these three issues i found one by one.  You can look at them individually and do more research on your own and come to a conclusion based on your own physical symptoms.  I advise you though, never to stop or start taking any medication without consulting your doctor or naturopath.  All of the information on my site is for educational purposes only and to give an overview of my personal experience and what has helped me in my own particular case.

Let's look at #1.   Synthroid and Levothyroxine are T4 hormones and people are not finding relief while on them.  
I find this very interesting.  Why wouldn't these T4 hormones be enough to fix the problem? Well many people can't convert T4 to T3. First we need to learn exactly how the thyroid works.  I'm going to try and break it down as simple as possible so as not to cause too much unnecessary confusion.
Here is a simple breakdown:
-The Hypothalamus stimulates the Pituitary gland to produce Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH).

-TSH stimulates the thyroid to produce T4 (thyroxine). (T4 is the raw material used to make the active thyroid hormone T3.  T4 is what  Synthroid and Levothyroxine is as well.) The thyroid is responsible for producing T4,T3,T1 and T2 and cells are responsible for converting T4 into it's active form of T3.

-T4 is also converted to RT3 (reverse T3) which is physiologically inactive.

-80% of T3 is produced outside the thyroid in the Tissues of the Body

-T4 is converted to T3 by an enzyme called Deiodinase. (this enzyme can become inhibited by stress, environment, acute/chronic illness,cortisol and other things.)

-When the body is under stress it converts less T4 to T3 and more T4 to RT3 so as to conserve energy and with less T3 the cells of the body slows down.

Now the way the thyroid works is that it is regulated to ensure that the right amount of T3 is delivered to the cells but if there is any type of deficiency anywhere along the line then the result is the same, not enough T3 to the cells.  If there isn't enough T3 to the cells then the metabolism will not be fast enough and the temperature will drop and low-thyroid-like symptoms will appear.

So when you go to your doctor to complain about fatigue, hair loss in the front of your head and you tell him your hands and feet are cold and you have no energy to finish daily tasks, he says, let's check your thyroid. He then orders a TSH  blood test.  You receive the results after much anticipation and what does he tell you?  Your within the "normal" range.  What?!

I have talked to so many people who are constantly told they are within so called normal range.  Normal range for whom, i ask?  We are all individuals, what may be normal for you may not be for me.  This isn't as compelling as what i discovered next in my research though.

When they are testing your TSH they are testing the level of hormone in your blood not what's happening in your tissues and cells.  You see, blood tests work well to see if your glands are properly putting hormones into your blood but they aren't showing what's happening once they leave your blood and go into the tissues of the body.  And as we learned about the thyroid 80% of the active thyroid hormone is produced in the tissues after it's left the blood stream.  Hence, the TSH blood test result: "normal" range.  You then go home more depressed and frustrated then when you walked in the docs office.

Ok, so what factors can inhibit the proper production of thyroid hormones?
*Stress
*infection, trauma, radiation, medications
*flouride which is an antagonist to iodine.    Flouride, especially in the U.S. is added to water which can cause issues in this area.  (we will go on to learn more on the importance of iodine in another post.)
*Toxins such as pesticides, mercury, cadmium, lead
*auto immune disease: Celiac Disease

Above we learned that the body under stress converts more T4 to RT3.  We don't want that.
These are the factors that can increase the possibility of this happening:
*stress
*trauma
*inflammation
*toxins
*infections
*liver/kidney dysfunction
*some medications

As you read this you can evaluate for yourself if any of these factors could be affecting your thyroid.

So what factors will hep with the proper production of thyroid hormones?
Factors for proper thyroid hormone production:
Surprise, Surprise: Nutrients!
*Iron
*Iodine
*Tyrosine
*Zinc
*Selenium
*Vitamin E, B2,B3,B6,C,D,

Factors that increase the conversion of T4 to T3:
*Selenium
*Zinc

Other things that help with the cells being able to do what they need with the thyroid hormones are:
*Vitamin A
*Exercise
*Zinc

Now that you see all the things that are involved with thyroid hormone production it makes sense as to why the synthetic hormones Synthroid and Levothyroxine which are T4 hormones don't seem to work for everyone.  Even if you are on them and seem to be doing well there may be areas you could feel improvement in but just take for granted it's just life.  You may still feel a little tired in certain areas of life but just write it off to being a busy mom, having a busy workload or just being a busy person all together.  You could probably feel even more improvement by taking something other than just T4.  This is where looking into Natural Thyroid Hormone may be beneficial for you.  Many have opted to take this route and are finding they are feeling so much better on it than on the synthetic drugs, myself included.  I will talk more about Natural Thyroid Hormone in another post.

On to #2
Fillers in the synthetic hormones Synthroid and Levothyroxine.
Many people seem to have issues on these drugs after beginning them.  Some people don't notice them right away others do.  Many who have allergies and intolerances seem to have more issues with them then others. Why?  Some people have allergies to the dyes in them.  In this case their doctors decide to try them on another med without dye.  Other people have issues with the acacia and lactose in the fillers.  What is acacia?  Acacia is a family of shrubs and trees.  They put acacia in medication to give it form and shape but many who already suffer from pollen allergies and hay fever, especially to grass and tree pollens, find they are also allergic to acacia even when it's an ingredient in medications.  So people may find that when they take meds such as Synthroid and Levothyroxine they have symptoms like watery itchy eyes, congestion, mood changes and runny nose.

As for the lactose, which is the major sugar found in milk and the ingredient in some foods and medications, if they are lactose intolerant (as many with Celiac Disease are)  they will find that taking these meds trigger symptoms such as nausea, cramping, bloating, diarrhea.  This usually happens around 30 minutes to 2 hours after taking the pill.   Lactose intolerance is an inability to digest lactose.


Last but definitely not least #3
Synthetic hormones Synthroid and Levothyroxine can block DAO enzyme.
These medications not only raise histamine levels but they can inhibit the production of DAO enzyme (diamine oxidase enzyme) and monoamine oxidase enzyme.  Both of these enzymes are responsible for metabolizing histamine and tyramine.  So seeing that these enzymes help to break down the histamine in foods if we don't have enough of these enzymes being produced in our intestines (or if their production is being inhibited by medication) then we will have histamine reactions to food such as headaches, runny nose, cough, rash etc.

I bet you never realized what havoc medications can have on your body and just how much went into your thyroid.  I know that i myself never did.  After suffering for so long and dealing with so many weird issues i had to start figuring out what exactly was happening.  Being that doctors didn't seem to be helping me i had to be my own advocate.  Unfortunately this isn't always easy especially when you just don't have the energy or the time.  It can seem daunting to take on the task of being your own doctor.  I don't recommend avoiding doctors completely, after all they are the ones who attended med school.  I do recommend however becoming as knowledgeable as possible with your body and its functions and learning everything you can on any medication that your doctor wants to put you on.  There are so many side effects that come along with different medications and unfortunately sometimes we can end up feeling worse on some meds than before we started.

After i recognized all that went into thyroid function and the possible complications i was receiving from being on synthetic hormones i decided to take action and try Natural Thyroid Hormone.  I realized all the nutrients and vitamins that helped the thyroid to function so i began taking certain vitamins and looking for a Natural Thyroid Hormone that i could get without a prescription because my doctor only believed in the power of the synthetic hormones.

In my next post i will discuss what protocol i decided to start.  Don't forget to subscribe to get your updated posts!

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