I have hypothyroid and am taking 175 mcg of thyroxine everyday. I eat low fat diet and exercise regularly. But still my cholesterol levels are rising especially triglycerides.
Is there a connection between them? My blood reports show that my thyroid levels are normal with the current medication. Then why is my Cholesterol increasing?
What measures should I take to stop this?
am in the UK so the measurement system is different (mmol)
My TChol is 3.17. HDL is .99 and the ratio is 3.2. However, no LDL was done. I am told by my GP that there's no problem. Everything is fine and there's no need for a LDL test.
What do you think? Isn't the HDL a bit low?
I am male aged 68.
Hubby has had a few chest pains, so we went to the GP where he had an ECG, all pretty normal but we got referred to the hospital anyway, where hubby had another ECG, blood test and we were told that he may have Angina also his Cholesterol levels were high? i am puzzled as to why, we eat a healthy diet, we eat lean proteins, no fats, fruit and veg, we never eat fast foods and all our foods are home cooking and no fats, hubby doesn't drink or smoke, so why? we can't eat any better also he can't exercise as he has chronic Degenerative disc problems which makes him very immobile!!!! so can anyone tell me ,what i do now, how can i lower the cholesterol levels, hubby is a bit overweight but only due to his back problem, not food! he has to go for an Angiogram in a few weeks.
View 3 Repliesmy cholesterol is fine but been to ae the nurse and she told me i have to take atorvastatin?
View 3 RepliesI understand that most Gps try to convince us that our cholesterol levels should be below 5. Does anyone/ has anyone come across facts/ studies that give a clearer idea what range is healthy/safe?
View 47 RepliesAfter a heart attack in May I was prescribed, amongst other things, 40 mgs of atorvastatin daily as a precaution. My consultant cut it down to 20mgs in September as cholesterol levels seemed fine and I have no further appointments to see the consultant. Latest blood test showed my cholesterol level at 5 which my GP said would be fine for most but, as I've had a heart attack, he'd like my level to be 4 and he's put me back on 40mgs of atorvastatin. He'll do another blood test in a month or two.
Obviously one heart attack was ample and I don't want another and my GP is great so generally trusting what he says but...was a bit upset to return to 40mgs.
Has anyone experienced up and down dosages with statins or have a view on my recent experience. It goes without saying that I do my best to maintain a healthy lifestyle, watch what I eat and all that jazz.
I found out I had a B12 deficiency 5 years ago. My levels were very dangerously low at the cellular/functional level. I was told I was near paralysis. Now, after 5 years, they are still low. They have come up to almost borderline, but it still flags red on my tests. My serum levels though are too high for the lab to measure! Its just not getting into my cells so it's not able to be used. I do twice a week injections plus twice a month IV B12 and still it has taken my body 5 years just to go up a little bit. I feel the effects of the shot for about 15 hours barely then I just feel awful again, thankfully it's prescribed every 2 days. But I don't want to do it every 2 days forever!
In the beginning I was told it would take a month or two to get my body back to normal and then just a shot every few months for maintenance. My drs have not only increased my dose but also the frequency and STILL after all these years I'm deficient.
Why are my T4 levels and Cortisol levels low?
I have been having symptoms of depression, fatigue, low libido and weight gain over the last few years. I am 50 and have gone through menopause. My latest lab results are:
TSH 1.064 (0.358-3.74)
Free T4 9.7 (9.8-18.8)
ferritin 16 (3-105)
B12 498 (156-672)
Cortisol 28 (155-570)
RBC's normal
I am not taking any thyroid meds......only nexium and Cymbalta.
What do these results mean? Can someone give me some insight into the results please?
I had a general health check at doctors yesterday. Am a 41 year old male and am taking co-codamol painkillers and amitriptyline on regular basis for back/nerve pain. Try to be physically active when I can but have real issues with my back and legs that limits anything too physical or for any length of time, but in general I manage at least 30 mins of some kind of physical activity each day. My diet isn't brilliant but it isn't terrible either (can be improved I'm sure).
6ft tall, waist measured yesterday at 38" and I'm just under 80 kg in weight.
My health check said my blood pressure was good, and that my pulse was nice and steady but also that my good cholesterol was above average (over 1.5) but that my bad cholesterol was not where it needs to be at 7.2.
The bad reading has freaked me out a bit. I've never had a cholesterol test before so cannot compare reading to a historic level but nurse has requested me to have a further blood test and probably a chat with doctor.
So, question is does having an above average level of good cholesterol and good blood pressure help manage the higher levels of bad cholesterol? My overall risk of having some kind of cardiac issue in next ten years came out at 1.49% which seems fairly low, but I forgot to ask how low you can get this % ie a risk of 0.01%?
I can try to up my physical activity a little bit but how dramatic would you change your diet based on above? I have lost two relatives to heart disease on my father's side of family (his sister and his father) but both parents appear to be fine although not aware they have ever had their own cholesterol tested.
I'm going to try and lose a few kg in weight which I'm sure will help but any advice in how to better manage my bad cholesterol appreciated.
For several years I took Simvastatin lowest dose (cut in HALF) and had good cholesterol numbers that satisfied the internist. That doc retired and new internist did a CPK test last year (my first one ever) and found it elevated to 243 so stopped the statin due to fears of muscle damage.
A year later (last week) the retested CPK, after taking NO statin for a year, was 303 and chol. numbers were back up (see below)!! So, doc says go ahead and take atorvastatin because there is a percentage of people who have high CPK with no other apparent problem. He said atorvastatin is more effective re chol. lowering than simvastatin which I'd had years ago. Is that so?
I am female, 64 years old and at age 55 had a calcium scan of the heart which showed ZERO calcium score. This was because I had similar TC numbers to current numbers and one doc (a cardiologist!) said 'have the scan' -- "find out if you need a statin." When he saw the ZERO calcium score for someone 55 he laughed and said I did not need a statin.
Years later, however, this new internist/gerontologist says that's fine but that is just the hardened cholesterol seen in the zero score, not the 'soft,' which is what travels and causes heart attacks and stroke. Great! Money spent for nothing on the test! Guess I need to educate the cardiologist?
My current chol. numbers before re-starting a statin last week were: Total Chol: 251; HDL: 77; LDL: 157; and Trigs: 87. Ratio is 3.26 -- Doc says he does 'not like' the 157 LDL.
So... a week ago I started on atorvastatin at a super low dose (I cut the 10 mg. pills into quarters so 2.5 per day. I have read in multiple places that it's stronger than simvastatin so wanted to start LOW and research shows that 2.5 is often enough to bring numbers to reasonable levels. I am not aiming to have the world's lowest cholesterol.
Last night and today I developed sharp pains in upper mid section and read the 'side effects' -- sure enough -- it's a possibility. Have also experienced increase in heartburn since taking these pills for a week. Started almost immediately. Is there a connection?
NOTE: Gallbladder removed in '04, before ever starting on any statin at all -- I'm one of the many who still has occasional GB related pains, likely from sphincter of oddi problems (sludge or stones formed by liver). It is called SOD III and it's not uncommon and since it's not a frequent occurrence, there is nothing to do about it per gastro doc. I have not had an episode in three+ years until last night/today, though this was mild.
Any relation to start-up of atorvastatin and these pains? Who knows? I would prefer taking NO statins since they are known to raise glucose a little and can bring on Diabetes type 2. My fasting glucose is high normal already at 98 and type II runs in my family at older ages. Swell.
What do YOU experts think of this? Would you be concerned about taking atorvastatin (or switching to simvastatin, which I took with no obvious problems for a few years?) Or would you just say forget the statins and live your life and don't worry about it? There is NO history of heart attack in anyone on either side of my family before age 80 and no 'strokes' at all.
Usually people with hypo are cold but I'm always hot & sweaty even when the temp is chilly. I'm 37, have PCOS and hypothyroid. Since having kids I've gained a lot of weight and can't lose a pound no matter what I do. I'm on Synthroid but I feel like nothing helps.
View 1 RepliesHello All- I have so many symptoms of hypothyroidism and my mother and grandma are as well so I asked my Dr. to test me. She said everything came out perfect, but I still have so many true Hypo symtoms after doing some research on here. Can anybody tell me how normal these ranges are:
TSH- 2.16 (0.3-5.0)
FT3- 3.2 (2.3-4.2)
FT4- 1.02 (0.8-1.8)
Vitamin D- 18
I've been told I have post surgical hypothyroidism (left side, 2010) but TSH is consistently low (0.1) or low normal (.396), I don't understand the hypothyroid diagnosis with a low TSH. Can someone explain? I also had left temporal lobe brain tumors (cancerous) and gamma knife radiation. Could this be affecting the TSH level. I have many hypothyroid symptoms, basal body temp is on avg. 96.5, weight gain, tiredness/fatigue....blah, blah, blah. My endo doesn't do too much. Currently taking 50ug of levothyroxine 6 days/week and feel horrible. There are also 3 nodules in the right side now that continue to enlarge. Any answers? Thanks.
View 2 RepliesHas anyone heard of a special hypothyroid diet?
I would be grateful for any information please as to what foodstuffs to avoid and which ones would help.
Gas anyone heard of any medications that can cause or worsen hypothyroidism?
Many thanks
Jean x
hi, my gf is under treatment for PCOS and hypoThyroid and take Harmoni - F (Cyproterone Acetate, Ethinylestradiol & Folic Acid) and Femella tablets from a week. We had sex last night with protection (condom) i ejaculated outside but i found that the condom was punctured with 4-5 holes . will she get pregnant? Should she take any contraceptive pills to avoid pregnancy?
View 1 RepliesI've been hypothyroid for a long time. I've been taking Synthroid also a long time. I'm confused by my recent blood test. My TSH was 1.180 within normal range and my Thyroxine free 1.81 . The range should be 0.93-1.70. What does this mean. I'm I hypothyroid or hyperthyroid?
View 8 RepliesWondering if anyone has Hashimoto's disease? I saw a specialist a couple of weeks ago who told me I most likely have this. I went from extreme hyperthyroid to hypothyroid. Skinny and energetic to sluggish and heavy. I'm pretty miserable with it. I've just been sent a letter with my levels:
8 May - TSH .03, free T4 29.3, WBC count 5.1
15 June - TSH 15.95, free T4 9.9
6 July - TSH 12.38, free T4 8.3
I have recently been experiencing symptoms of raynaud's so I'm wondering if there's any link.
Last check all my thyroid numbers were good and been feeling good with that.
My thyroid antibodies were in the normal range when diagnosed, so not sure if that means mine is not autoimmune or if Raynaud's is auto immune?
I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's postpartum about a year ago. I was complaining of excessive fatigue/inability to return to running, and pretty bad carpal tunnel. At the time my TSH was 6.893 and Free T3 282.1 pg/dL [230-420] and of course high antibodies. My primary care put me on NatureThroid 32.5mg (25 mcg T4/T3). I felt better within the week and my carpal tunnel completely resolved in about 2 weeks. I felt great on this for a year. I had my TSH tested once during this time and it came to 2.785. I trained for a 50 mile race, including hard training with back to back long runs on the weekend. I then started training for a marathon in January with a goal time of 3:15-3:20. I was training hard but felt great. I did a half marathon March 20th at a 7:04min/mile pace. I felt on top of the world and was on track to run what I had termed my "comeback marathon". The next week I still felt good, but then the following week I came down with a minor respiratory tract infection. I was completely better in 3 days and just thought it was a small blip. I went out for a long run that weekend and felt good for the first 6 miles, and then got progressively worse and felt like I had no energy, completely flat, defeated. It was not normal but I just chalked it up to a bad run. The following week, I had a strange inexplicable flair of wrist pain/carpal tunnel for about 3 days, but then that resolved, so again I kind of dismissed it. I was able to do my weekly workouts and hit my paces although they did feel a little bit harder than normal. But every time I tried to do a long run, I crashed after just a few miles and finished feeling like complete crap. I started to get worried about my race but again just figured I needed a good taper and I would feel better. Well, my race came it was one of the worst experiences of my life. I ran the first half at my goal pace but after 8-10 miles I started feeling sort of ill, dizzy, and had no energy. Again, I have run several marathons and have had bad marathons, and this was above and beyond anything I'd ever felt. I am not prone to cramping, and by the end I could barely walk and my muscles were just spasming uncontrollably.
Ok, fast forward to the following week. The next day I called my doctor and moved my 6 month follow-up to the next week, and got blood work done (unfortunately he only tested my TSH). That week, I developed progressively worse carpal tunnel. I decided to double up on my thyroid dose, and after a few days of that, I then tripled it (so now I was taking 97.5mg (75 mcg T4/T3). I felt fine energy-wise (although was not running), but still had carpal tunnel. Then I went in to see my doctor. My TSH came to 2.94. He saw that and said my symptoms were probably not thyroid-related but that we could increase my dose by 16.25mg to see if that would help (I knew it wouldn't because I was already taking more than that but I didn't want to say that, and I started second-guessing myself that I was hypo). So I dropped my dose down to 65 mg, then back to 32.5mg. Well a few days later my carpal tunnel got so bad I was waking up in excruciating pain even wearing my braces. I was having shoulder impingement pain as well. I couldn't use my right arm in the morning for 30 mins after waking. I called my doctor asking for further testing and for him to test my free Ts. I did that bloodwork and it came out to TSH 2.58, free T4 0.71 ng/dL [0.6-1.6], free T3 3.59 pg/mL [2.39-6.79]. Seeing that my T4 was on the low end and T3 not super high, I figured that confirmed I was having hypo symptoms, even though they were technically within normal. So I started taking the 97.5mg dose of thyroid again. That weekend I upped my dose, I still felt terrible. I had a horrible run, couldn't move after, my whole body ached, and by Saturday evening I couldn't lift my right arm due to the shoulder impingement. I felt the same Sunday. But Monday (day of three of higher dose), I was SO much better.
Well my doctor looked at my results on Wednesday and said, "Your T3 is excellent." When I protested, he said rather condescendingly, "I've been doing this 30 years." Mind you, he's not an endo, he's a naturopath MD. I argued with him until he agreed to up my dose to 81.25mg. I knew this would not eliminate my musculoskeletal issues, but figured it was at least a move in the right direction. (note: he also tested for RA antibodies and sed rate and that was normal, and I don't have any joint tenderness)
I've still been taking 97.5mg dose this week, but won't be able to continue this once I run out of the extra Rxs from dosage changes. Still have carpal tunnel and morning stiffness, but my arm got better throughout the week, and then Thursday, I had a great run. However, today (Friday), I suddenly developed this shoulder impingement really bad again where I can't lift my arm. I'm thinking somehow running is triggering it, but I've never had a shoulder problem before.
Ok, so now for my question. I cannot think of any possible thing this could be other than hypothyroidism. I've scoured the internet and scientific papers for anything at all. But I'm just confused by how suddenly my symptoms worsened, and how my levels are not super low, but even tripling my dose hasn't completely alleviated my symptoms when I was great on a low dose for a year. I'm seeing a new primary care soon and am going to make an appt with an endo instead of continuing to see my current doctor who I'm really p*ssed with. But this will all take time (the endo I'm planning on takes months to get into), and I'm just curious if anyone has any insight into this or has experienced something similar. I'm nervous that I'm going to have to drop down to 81.25mg again and that I'm just going to be miserable, and that when we test my levels again they will be higher, but that I will still be having symptoms, and so my doctor will not listen to me. I know people say that it takes time to have symptom relief with dosage changes, but in my experience it seems like it happens very quickly. Like when I first started on the NatureThroid, I was almost completely better in a week. Is it normal to feel changes so quickly? And does anyone have experience with exercise worsening symptoms - like maybe free Ts are lowish and then exercise is an added stress that sort of depletes the body if it's not able to compensate with normal thyroid function? I'm not completely sure of the biochemistry (I don't know that anyone is actually), so I'm just kind of postulating.
i had 2 cold nodules in my thyroid and had a total Thyroid lobectomy on 16 sep (8 days ago) and still waiting for the results if the they were benign or malignant so that i start take the hormone replacement in case if benign or start to go into 6 weeks hypo in preparation for the RAI treatment in case if malignant problem is, i fear the result will take more days to finish, and my body is completely without thyroxine now if benign than this wait & deprivation was pointless, and i fear i will need many weeks to fix the damage the hyop state will impose on me so my question is, when will the hypo symptoms start to show in my case (no thyroid at all) ? considering my TSH levels were normal at 2 before the surgery i'm feeling really anxious about this whole thing, and i need your knowledge, i can't even get in touch with my doctor before tomorrow.
View 1 RepliesNot to go into too much detail, but I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's last Dec (2012). I have seen MANY docs that have no idea what they are talking about. I have finally found a good Endocrinologist who understands hypo-thyroid....but she just wants to treat with synthetic T4 meds. I have also found a Great Holistic doc, that happens to also be a certified nutritionist as well....who understands for every action, there is a reaction. I use both of these docs to collaborate on my health and lab results...to decide how I WANT to treat my self so I can get back to optimum health.
Ready anything you can get your hands on...I repeat! Read anything you can get your hands on! Turn off the TV....and start researching your own health. It's worth it.
I am finding that docs just "treat" the already diseased body, rather than looking for the underlying cause of the disease. Your body is more than capable of taking care of itself if you have the right balance of vitamin/nutrients/minerals. It's when these levels get deficient...that's when you open the door for disease. Once that starts, your health will spiral out of control.
Find out what your deficient in and you can fix your health issues!
So, keep reading and learning. Hashi's patients....look for gluten free, fluoride free...look up iodine and it's effect on your thyroid health. (Dr. Brownstein-Iodine Loading test) Try to get back to the basics....rather than eating frozen foods and processed foods. Check into organic food (Dirty Dozen and the Clean 15). Do a Saliva test to check your adrenal hormones, check your Neurotransmitter levels too (Pharmasan Labs-run it thru your insurance). Read, "Stop the Thyroid Madness" to understand treating thyroid disease with natural desiccated thyroid, rather than just synthetic T4 medication.
There are people out there that understand how to read these results. All of the "goofy" people that tell you not to eat this, take this supplement, etc...may not be as crazy as you think. Look for a holistic, natural doc. Some are better than others...try a couple and see who you are comfortable with.