Iodine Supplementation
Imagine yourself in pain and bleeding to death from a gaping wound and your doctor telling you that you ’ ll be fine while just sending you home with a prescription for pain meds to mask the pain . You can use all of the pain meds you want and you might feel a little better , but it doesn ’ t change the fact that you ’ re bleeding to death . The pain meds are just covering up the more serious problem .
Using T4 only medication does practically the same thing . It can effectively lower TSH and mask your hypothyroidism from standard testing , but it doesn ’ t change the fact that you ’ re still hypothyroid and that your health is still suffering big time .
While some people do get a little bit of help from the T4 , there are typically many factors that inhibit the conversion of T4 to T3 , and this oftentimes causes a buildup effect of T4 in your body . While this non-active T4 builds up , your body begins to slow down your thyroid even further in order to stop from adding even more T4 , hence the worsening of symptoms in the above study .
So , in the end , these T4 only medications can have a negative effect on your thyroid and you can end up even more hypothyroid than when you started .
Important Note Regarding T4 Only Medication : For those who are using T4 only medication for the treatment of hypothyroidism , I do NOT recommend stopping any medication prescribed by your doctor . In some cases , this can be detrimental to your health . It is best to consult with a professional regarding the best options and how best to work with your doctor for a more effective treatment .
Iodine Supplementation
There are a lot of doctors and practitioners out there that highly recommend the use of iodine for hypothyroidism . This is also a subject that can be quite misleading for many .
Many years ago , goiters , which are a definite sign of hypothyroidism , were primarily caused by iodine deficiency . But today this is quite rare . Most goiters today are actually a result of excessive estrogen and / or progesterone deficiency that prevents the thyroid gland from releasing its stored hormones .
So , while it ’ s true that an iodine deficiency can cause hypothyroidism , this is rarely found today in developed countries .
There are some tests out there that are still being promoted that supposedly tell you if you ’ re deficient in iodine for the purpose of suggesting hypothyroidism . One such test suggests that you paint a spot of iodine on your skin and if the iodine disappears quickly then this is an indicator of a deficiency .
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