Natural Health News: thyroid tests

Showing posts with label thyroid tests. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 04, 2011

The TSH Test Can't Tell You About Thyroid Health

As you can see Natural Health News has been covering issues that affect thyroid health for quite a long time. We've also published issue of our newsletter, herbalYODA Says!, on this topic, and presented one of our radio programs on this too.

Back in 2001 we made a comment on the infamous Yates case, related in my opinion, to thyroid problems.

Postpartum Depression and Nutrition
May 08, 2010
The new study just being reported focuses on the use of some specific amino acids that effect thyroid function. Skipping proper thyroid function testing so rampant in today's medical modeling its no wonder this old and well known fact ...

Even the TV show featuring the Duggars and their very large family shows a clear example of an overlooked thyroid problem. Gall bladder problems are a key symptom of thyroid health concerns, and it is best to not cut it out.

Recently I met with a client whose MD ignored her low thyroid TSH result and pressured this person to take Pravastatin. Elevated cholesterol levels are another common symptom of thyroid health problems.

And now Hillary Clinton is pleased to tell you thyroid diminishing cell phones are to be used to help you have a healthier baby

Today's BBC News brings this critical issue to light. Call for thyroid screening in pregnancy

All pregnant women should be screened for hidden signs of thyroid disease, according to Czech researchers.
A blood test can pick up about a third of mothers-to-be who have no symptoms but will go on to develop full-blown disease after giving birth, they say.
Early detection could have major implications for the health of mothers and babies, they told the European Congress of Endocrinology.

Increasing rates of Down Syndrome show a thyroid connection. But then so does fluoride in everything.

If you just test for TSH you cannot determine how much active T3 is circulating

If you test TSH and T4 you do not know if the T4 is converting to T3, the most active thyroid hormone. Liver function is linked to the feedback mechanism,adrenal function too. Your heart is also linked to this important issue, so much more.
How Your Thyroid Works "A delicate Feedback Mechanism"

The function of the thyroid gland is to take iodine, found in many foods, and convert it into thyroid hormones: thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3). Thyroid cells are the only cells in the body which can absorb iodine. These cells combine iodine and the amino acid tyrosine to make T3 and T4. T3 and T4 are then released into the blood stream and are transported throughout the body where they control metabolism (conversion of oxygen and calories to energy). Every cell in the body depends upon thyroid hormones for regulation of their metabolism. The normal thyroid gland produces about 80% T4 and about 20% T3, however, T3 possesses about four times the hormone "strength" as T4.
The thyroid gland is under the control of the pituitary gland, a small gland the size of a peanut at the base of the brain (shown here in orange). When the level of thyroid hormones (T3 & T4) drops too low, the pituitary gland produces Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) which stimulates the thyroid gland to produce more hormones. Under the influence of TSH, the thyroid will manufacture and secrete T3 and T4 thereby raising their blood levels. The pituitary senses this and responds by decreasing its TSH production. One can imagine the thyroid gland as a furnace and the pituitary gland as the thermostat. Thyroid hormones are like heat. When the heat gets back to the thermostat, it turns the thermostat off. As the room cools (the thyroid hormone levels drop), the thermostat turns back on (TSH increases) and the furnace produces more heat (thyroid hormones).
The pituitary gland itself is regulated by another gland, known as the hypothalamus (shown in our picture in light blue). The hypothalamus is part of the brain and produces TSH Releasing Hormone (TRH) which tells the pituitary gland to stimulate the thyroid gland (release TSH). One might imagine the hypothalamus as the person who regulates the thermostat since it tells the pituitary gland at what level the thyroid should be set.

Don't overlook pharmaceuticals like antibiotics, antidepressants, and osteoporosis drugs that are fluoride based, and now radiation too.

We offer effective thyroid testing and education. More here.

Selections from Natural Health News

Natural Health News: Electromagnetic Radiation Kills Thyroid Cells

Mar 05, 2011

PURPOSE: In the present study we investigated the possible histopathological effects of pulse modulated Radiofrequency (RF) fields on the thyroid gland using light microscopy, electron microscopy and immunohistochemical methods. ...

Natural Health News: Too Much Thyroxine Boosts Fracture Risk

Apr 29, 2011

Also note that if you search the history of Synthroid you will find that there was collusion many decades ago to move Armour Natural Thyroid out of the marketplace and allow Synthroid to move in. This had to do as well with a change in ...

Natural Health News: Thyroid and Heart Connection: Known for Decades

Jul 03, 2010

Larry Frieders, the compounder, THYROID MADNESS DEFINITION: 1.Treating hypothyroid patients solely with T4-only meds (synthroid) 2.Dosing solely by the TSH and the total T4, or using the outdated "Thyroid Panel" ...

Natural Health News: Organochlorine Exposure Alters Thyroid Function

Jul 22, 2008

Especially risky to people with diabetes, an endocrine disorder linked to thyroid and other endoctine imbalances. Few human studies of safety have been published on sucralose. One study of diabetic patients using the sweetener showed a ...

Dental X-rays could increase the risk of thyroid cancer

Jun 04, 2010

The thyroid gland, in the neck, is sensitive to ionising radiation, especially in children, but the potential risk posed by dental radiography is often ignored, researchers said. In a study of 313 cancer patients, scientists from ...

Thyroid care off base in the US too...

Mar 27, 2009

Thyroid concerns are perhaps a greater health concern that realized. This may be related to low selenium levels in food, the thyroid suppressing effect of water fluoridation, the rise in the number and use of fluoride based ...

Sjogren's Fatigue and Cancer Drugs

Nov 10, 2008

Researchers at UCLA tried to show that low vitamin D would make an autoimmune thyroid problem worse. Their experiment was based on the idea that vitamin D has a dampening effect on an excessive and inappropriate immune response in many ...

Use Current Standards for Accurate Diagnosing

Sep 24, 2008

The correct range currently and for the last several years for TSH is 0.3 to 3 or 3.2 mU/L. Even some whose TSH result is in this narrowed range may still be suffering with symptoms realted to abberation in thyroid function. ...

Silent Thyroid Ignored for Years by Most Health Providers

May 26, 2008

The data suggest that silent or "subclinical" thyroid dysfunction "might represent a potentially modifiable -- albeit modest -- risk factor for coronary heart disease and mortality," Dr. Nicholas Rodondi, from the University of Lausanne

So you really believe fluoride promotes health?

May 19, 2008

2008-05-19 15:54:10 - There is clear evidence that small amounts of fluoride, at or near levels added to US water supplies, present potential risks to the thyroid gland, according to the National Research Council's (NRC) first-ever ...

Thyroid Concerns, again

Jun 13, 2009

"The thyroid, located in the neck, is a kind of master gland, secreting hormones that affect metabolism. Doctors usually check its activity by an indirect measure -- looking at levels of TSH, or thyroid stimulating hormone." ...

Natural Health News: Be Aware of SOY Risks

Apr 14, 2009

No large-scale human research studies have been conducted that examine the thyroid-related effects of long-term consumption of whole, natural soy foods consumed in ordinary amounts. Studies in this area have mostly focused on rats fed ...

Natural Health News: Good Resources for Radiation Exposure

Mar 14, 2011

Diabetes in this case may develop from loss of function of the thyroid gland, which in turn effects function of all other endocrine glands, including the pancreas. High quality digestive enzymes and other natural pancreatic support may ...

Natural Health News: Dr Paul Connett World's Leading Expert on ...

Apr 05, 2011

That's why nutrients such as Iodine, L-Tyrosine, Kelp and other iodine-rich seaweeds rejuvenate and balance thyroid function. These help to protect the thyroid and supports its detoxification process. While these low dose and natural ...

Natural Health News: Fluoride -laced Fosamax and Reclast Linked to ...

Jan 01, 2008

over-consumption of fluoride can raise the risks of disorders affecting teeth, bones, the brain and the thyroid gland," reports Scientific American editors (January 2008). "Scientific attitudes toward fluoridation may be starting to ...

Natural Health News: Another Statin Warning

Mar 21, 2010

An array of additional risk factors for statin AEs are those that amplify (or reflect) mitochondrial or metabolic vulnerability, such as metabolic syndrome factors, thyroid disease, and genetic mutations linked to mitochondrial ...

Calming the Chaos

Mar 18, 2011

Many customers already take Iodoral® (iodine/iodide) and therefore have taken an important and ongoing step in supporting thyroid and overall health. The reality is that we don't yet know the extent to which this disaster will truly ...

Natural Health News: Fluoride is not a cure for mothers or babies

Mar 16, 2009

The National Research Council has identified fluoride as an "endocrine disrupter" that may impair thyroid function, while recent research from Harvard University has found a possible connection between fluoride and bone cancer. ...

Vegans may be at risk for Cardiovascular Events

Feb 07, 2011

In addition to Zinc, Iron, B12, vitamin D, and EFAs, thyroid nutrients may be depleted in vegan and vegetarian diets. Vegans risk blood clots and atherosclerosis, so also heart attack. Meat eaters are known for having a significantly ...

Experts make Down syndrome and Alzheimer`s eye link

Jun 09, 2010

ODDLY IN BOTH DOWN SYNDROME AND ALZHEIMER'S, HIGH INCIDENCE OF THYROID PROBLEMS EXIST AS WELL Eye problems can be a symptom of thyroid imbalance. Contact Lenses News :: Experts make Down syndrome and Alzheimer`s eye link ...

A New Look at Fibromyalgia?

Jun 07, 2010

If there were to be something coming from this story I'd like to see proper thyroid testing, nutritional counseling, and supplement support. I say this because I worked for several years as a resource person for a large urban hospital

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Thyroid Concerns, again

I pulled out this paragraph of Fox's article to point out an error in "standard of care" currently.

No one can effectively determine your thyroid function by only a measurement of TSH.

An no lab worth its salt should be using the old TSH range of up to 5 or in some cases up to 8.

The current standard was lowered by the clinical endocrinologists 4-5 years ago and the "high" end of the range is now about 3.

And if you don't by my argument on the 'just TSH' approach, read what John Lowe has to say about it.

And skip the Synthoid unless you want to be foreced on to a bisphosphonate fluoride based bone destroying drug to add to what is already harmed by Synthroid. Just in case your doctor failed to explain to you.
"The thyroid, located in the neck, is a kind of master gland, secreting hormones that affect metabolism. Doctors usually check its activity by an indirect measure -- looking at levels of TSH, or thyroid stimulating hormone."

Low thyroid? Maybe you're an "elephant"By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor Fri Jun 12, 6:31 pm ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Low thyroid activity, one of the most treated conditions in the United States, may actually be a sign of longevity, researchers reported on Friday.

While they said it was far too soon for people taking thyroid pills to stop, they will be looking to see if the thyroid may hold the key to a long life, at least for some people.

Dr. Martin Surks and colleagues at the Montefiore Medical Center and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York studied hundreds of people who had lived to be 100, and found evidence that people with low thyroid activity were more likely to be in that group.

"We studied a large group of Ashkenazi Jews with exceptional longevity," Surks told a news conference at a meeting of the Endocrine Society, specialists in human hormones.

They used a large national survey of health to see what the average hormone levels are for people of various ages.

The thyroid, located in the neck, is a kind of master gland, secreting hormones that affect metabolism. Doctors usually check its activity by an indirect measure -- looking at levels of TSH, or thyroid stimulating hormone.

High TSH levels suggest the thyroid is underactive, a condition known as hypothyroidism. Low levels suggest it is overactive, known as hyperthyroidism.

People with low thyroid function may lose hair, gain weight and feel sluggish, while those with overactive thyroids may lose weight, feel their hearts race and have trembling hands Both can be easily treated with a daily pill.

Surks and colleagues found 15 to 20 percent of people over the age of 60 had TSH levels that suggest an underactive thyroid gland. He told the meeting he believed that may be normal for older people and may in fact be a sign of longevity.

"We estimate that 70 percent of old people whose TSH was minimally elevated and who were considered to have hypothyroidism were actually in their age-specific limits," Surks said in a telephone interview.

OLD AGE

They singled out 200 Jews who had lived to be 100, and 400 of their children. Two genetic changes were linked with low thyroid function but also with extreme old age.

Metabolic rate affects life span in animals. For instance, elephants have slow metabolic rates, slow heartbeats, and can live for decades, as opposed to mice, which have fast metabolisms and live for just months.

It may be, Surks said, that people with low thyroid function in old age were "elephants" with a slow metabolism who can live longer, as compared to 'mice" with fast metabolic rates who may have shorter natural life spans.

"If you are an older person with high TSH, this suggests you are on the road to a long life," Surks said.

What worries him is that millions of people in the United States are being treated for hypothyroidism. "In North America, thyroid hormone is used at the drop of a hat," he said.

His group is seeking to see if that might interfere with a person's natural life span.

Surks noted that having a low thyroid function before about age 50 is a separate condition and appropriately treated with hormones.

He also plans studies to see what the biological function of having high TSH levels might mean for cells and aging.

(Editing by Peter Cooney)

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Use Current Standards for Accurate Diagnosing

Read More about thyroid, radiation exposure and cancer: Keep in mind that your mobile phone radiates the region in your neck surrounding the very important thyroid gland.

Originally posted 9/23/08 -

From time to time people are searching for information on results of the TSH
(thyroid stimulating hormone) test.

The correct range currently and for the last several years for TSH is 0.3 to 3 or 3.2 mU/L. Even some whose TSH result is in this narrowed range may still be suffering with symptoms realted to abberation in thyroid function.

One medical naturopath overlooked low thyroid in a client and focused on getting cholesterol down, not the low thyroid that raises cholesterol.

A reader of NHN this morning seems to have been told a level of 6+ is "normal".

The old range used to be up to 8, some have been using 5. Both are invalid.

From this article, ranges not current with ACCE recommendations. "Normal thyroid function (euthyroid; TSH 0.45 - 4.5 mU/L), those with subclinical hypothyroidism (divided into moderate, TSH 4.5 - 9.9 mU/L, and severe, ≥ 10.0 mU/L), and those with subclinical hyperthyroidism (TSH < 0.45 mU/L)"

From Heartwire — a professional news service of WebMD

September 22, 2008 — A new study has found that older adults with severe subclinical hypothyroidism had almost double the risk of developing heart failure (HF) compared with those with normal thyroid function over a 12-year follow-up period [1]. Dr Nicolas Rodondi (University of Lausanne, Switzerland) and colleagues report their findings in the September 30, 2008 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Rodondi told heartwire that these results were in line with those of the only other study to have looked at subclinical hypothyroidism and HF incidence, which also found an increased HF risk only in those with high levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH).

The findings are important to inform the debate about subclinical hypothyroidism, he says. "There is a big controversy about whether we should screen and treat people with subclinical hypothyroidism. We know that people with overt hypothyroidism with symptoms need to get treated, but about those with no symptoms and just subclinical disease, there is debate. And within this debate about whether to treat or not is another controversy about the threshold at which you should treat."

These and other results from prior studies support the recommendations of several guidelines that those with subclinical hypothyroidism and no symptoms should be treated with thyroxine only if their TSH is 10.0 mU/L or more, Rodondi says. However, he points out that some endocrinologists disagree and advocate treating such patients at lower TSH levels. The debate is important, he says, because it is has been shown that monitoring of TSH levels under thyroxine is not always accurate in clinical practice, with overtreatment having its own attendant risks.

"Indirect evidence" that thyroxine might prevent HF

Rodondi and colleagues studied 3044 adults who were 65 or older participating in the Cardiovascular Health Study, all of whom were free of HF at baseline. They compared adjudicated HF events over a mean of 12 years of follow-up and changes in cardiac function over the course of five years among those with normal thyroid function (euthyroid; TSH 0.45 - 4.5 mU/L), those with subclinical hypothyroidism (divided into moderate, TSH 4.5 - 9.9 mU/L, and severe, ≥ 10.0 mU/L), and those with subclinical hyperthyroidism (TSH < 0.45 mU/L).

Over the follow-up period, 736 people developed HF events. Those with TSH 10.0 mU/L or more had a greater incidence of HF compared with euthyroid participants (adjusted HR 1.88, p=0.01). No such increased risk was seen in those with TSH 4.5 - 9.9 mU/L or in those with subclinical hyperthyroidism compared with euthyroid participants.

Baseline peak E velocity — an echocardiographic measure of diastolic function associated with incident heart failure in the cohort — was also greater in those with TSH 10.0 mU/L or more compared with euthyroid participants (0.80 m/s vs 0.72 m/s; p=0.002). And over the course of five years, left ventricular mass increased among those with TSH 10.0 mU/L or more, although other echocardiographic measures were unchanged.

In a further exploratory analysis, the researchers stratified people with TSH 10.0 mU/L or more into those who received thyroxine replacement therapy and those who didn't. They found that those who got thyroxine did not have an increased risk of HF, "providing indirect evidence that [thyroxine] might work to prevent development of HF in those with TSH 10.0 mU/L or more," said Rodondi.

He stressed, however, that "to definitively prove a link between subclinical thyroid dysfunction and HF, a randomized clinical trial would be needed in which one group is treated with thyroxine vs placebo to see if the former reduces the risk. That would be proof of concept, but it has not been done as yet."

Overtreatment with thyroxine has risks too

Rodondi said their findings — that those with less severe subclinical hypothyroidism do not seem to be at risk of HF — are "important," because a high proportion of older adults fit into this category and are treated with thyroxine in clinical practice, without consistent evidence that this is of benefit.

Monitoring of TSH levels under thyroxine is not always accurate in clinical practice, he explains, and it is estimated that around 20% to 30% of people receiving thyroxine are overtreated. This in itself has risks, as subclinical hyperthyroidism has been associated with atrial fibrillation and increased fracture risk.

"In aggregate, our findings might help refine a treatment threshold at which clinical benefit would be expected and demonstrate a subpopulation at risk for a life-threatening condition," he and his colleagues say in their paper.

"Clinical trials should examine the efficacy of screening for and treating subclinical thyroid dysfunction and assess whether the risk of HF might be ameliorated by thyroxine replacement in individuals with TSH levels above 10 mU/L," they conclude.

Source: Rodondi N, Bauer DC, Cappola AR, et al. Subclinical thyroid dysfunction, cardiac function and the risk of heart failure. The Cardiovascular Health Study. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2008;52:1152-1159.

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Wednesday, May 04, 2011

The TSH Test Can't Tell You About Thyroid Health

If you just test for TSH you cannot determine how much active T3 is circulating

How Your Thyroid Works "A delicate Feedback Mechanism"

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Thyroid Concerns, again

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Use Current Standards for Accurate Diagnosing