Dan Purser MD Thyroid Pearls & Tips 02-13-20
Wow! I see all this almost every day in my office -- same exact thyroid related medical issues/complaints. After ten years of endocrinology research and 33 years in practice (hey, I started very young), I've concluded that a lot of my fellow doctors weren't really taught the nuances of thyroid care or how patients need levels optimized, or how to really listen to patient's symptoms and treat accordingly, and that a lot of them were not taught even what labs to get at what time. So I always tell patients to believe THEIR LYING EYES (their symptoms are real), and not always the lab results (which can be inaccurate or not mean what that doctor was erroneously taught in residency). It is soo complicated! But let me try to make it simpler -- if your hands and feet are ice cold then you are probably NOT on enough thyroid medication. Download my thyroid book, NO MORE COLD HANDS FEET, now (on Kindle but please PLEASE leave a REVIEW) and start with that. Even at the most basic level what looks like hypothyroidism is not always hypothyroidism but could be a zinc or selenium or B12 deficiency. Sorry for the rant.
Your symptoms of hypothyroidism are more important than the lab results to good medical clinician. (I almost always believe "your lying eyes" before lab results.)
Why don't doctors check the FT3, the active part of thyroid, and instead check the FT4? This was something they were taught in medical school and residency, or not taught (the FT3 part) in medical school or residency. This directly stems from the 1970s when Knoll Pharmaceutical developed Synthroid (synthetic T4) and then "captured" the endocrinologists in the medical schools. They are still captured by this concept and to only use Synthroid. God forbid they use "animal thyroid" (as they derisively call Armour or Nature Throid).
You DO NOT KNOW what is going on with your thyroid (nor do I) unless you know your Free T3 (FT3) lab result.
If you are a Young Living Essential Oils Thyromin fan (who isn't?) then Gary always told me to tell YOU that the max dose you should take is 5 at night before bed, and 3 in the AM upon arising. I've seen this work many times.
Ideally you want a normal FT4, and a FT3 that is optimized up to near 4.1 pmol/L (or up near the top of the normal range). Being at the bottom of the range guarantees misery, cold hands. cold feet, weight gain, sluggishness, hair loss etc. FT3 is where it counts but most doctors have never been taught to get one of these levels.
Thyroid resistance is a real thing. Like insulin resistance -- you just need a lot more thyroid hormone to treat.Most doctors have never heard of it. I will talk more about that Wednesday night. I often see it in thyroid cancer survivors who need more thyroid than normal.
Cold hands and feet? You are probably not on enough thyroid. It is almost NEVER Raynaud's Phenomenon but is un or undiagnosed hypothyroidism and or under-treated hypothyroidism.
If you have GRAVES DISEASE or THYROID RESISTANCE, make darn sure you are taking extra CoQ10 (i.e. ubiquinol). I now suggest DFH COQUNOL 200-300mg a day. Hyperthyroidism blows through your COQ10 causing fatigue and brain fog on top of everything else.
Hashimoto’s requires a higher dose of thyroid to get optimal results. Ideally you should go by how you feel not just by what the lab says.
Call me at 801-796-7667 and set up some time if you need help with these. This is NOT difficult.
