I've had a lot of people ask if taking selenium mineral and vitamin E will help them if they are just hypothyroid but do not have hashimoto's disease.
Regarding the thyroid, selenium is a component of the enzyme that helps
convert T4 to T3 peripherally, so deficiencies of selenium may impair
thyroid function and promote hypothyroidism. According to the New England
Journal, "selenium deficiency can result in thyroid injury and decreased
extrathyroidal triiodothyronine production" (reduced peripheral T3
production.) Some experts believe that low T3 levels may be characteristic
in areas with insufficient selenium.
The mineral selenium also proves itself as a powerful anti-cancer medicine. THIS is a very interesting article on the benefits of taking selenium. I think it is definitely worth taking as a supplement.
Ok Crystal - picking up some supplements today! At this point I cannot see how I could feel much worse so it is a good a time as any to start. I want to be able to go fly fishing again with my teenagers and start radKIDS courses back up. Those things seem really ambitious right now and even overwhelming, but I know that radKIDS is something that the Lord wants me to do, and He is giving me the tools and knowledge I need to help heal myself and to ask my doctor the right questions. Your caring is really appreciated! i will keep in touch and am curious to see what my lab results will be.
ReplyDeleteChristina! Please do keep me updated on your labs and feel free to contact me anytime! I hope the supplements start to help you soon so you can get back to enjoying your family and the things you love doing! :)
ReplyDeletehello i would like to ask you which vitamins you used to eat for copper and zinc and after how long u start feeling better i am interesting to buy thanks
ReplyDeleteHello!
ReplyDeleteI take these 3 supplements.
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/SW223/ItemDetail?n=0
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/NWF032/ItemDetail?n=0
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/SW1113/ItemDetail?n=0
I felt better in a month! Hope this helps!
Hypothyroidism can start as estrogen dominance, eventually leading to low thyroid when balance does not come back. That is why I am taking desiccated bovine thyroid tablets to balance my thyroid hormone and increase my libido.
ReplyDeleteYou are right Beverly!
ReplyDeleteI have found that many women with hypothyroid do have estrogen dominance. It is very important to get your hormones in balance.
If I had to take a thyroid pill I would go with something more natural like you are taking. Hypothyroid can be tricky and caused by different things for different people. The best thing to do is reasearch and find out what is causing yours. Thanks for posting!
HI Crystal, Than you so much for sharing your story! I have been on a similar journey, and your experience has helped me tremendously. I'm 28 and was diagnosed with Hashi's 2 yrs ago (TSH 7.8, antibodies +. I tried acupuncture and Brazil nuts (for the Selenium) in an effort to reduce the TPO. It helped somewhat, but I still ended up having to start thyroid meds. About 6 months ago, I found out I was allergic to dairy and started a dairy/gluten free diet. Unfortunately, my TPO went up to the 800's, and TSH kept going up as well despite being on meds. After reading your blog, I decided to cut out soy and start Selenium/Vit E. I also started VItamins, B,D, zinc, copper, probiotics and ferritin (low levels). After about a month on this new regimen, my TPO is down to 300! Hurray! Unfortunately, my TSH is still high despite taking meds :(. I hope you can answer some questions...How long did it take for your TPO and TSH to normalize after the diet? How ofter would you recommend that I have my TPO tested? What type of allergy test did you have? I had a blood test, and I know there are diff ones out there. Am I missing something as far as the protocol? I read your blog, but am not sure if I am missing a particular element...Again thank you so much for putting this together. Any feedback is greatly appreciated! ~DairyFreeGirl
ReplyDeleteHi,
DeleteMy tsh is 7.0 and TPO > 1000 and t3 and t4 are normal. What diet would you recommend for starters. I have not checked my selenium levels so I do not know whether I am deficient in selenium. I hear extra doses of Vitamin E came be harmful to the heart?.
In any case what would you recommend for a diet?
Thanks
Mike age 50
Hi Dairyfreegirl!
ReplyDeleteMy TSH regulated after 3 months off soy and on selenium and vitamin E about 4 years ago. I took alittle over a year to get rid of the TPO antibodies after I stopped eating dairy.
What is your TSH right now. Also have you had your Free T3 tested, if so what is the number? That way I can get and idea of your numbers and help you figure out what's going on. :)
Hi Crystal,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for you reply! My most recent numbers were as follows
Medication: T4/T3 38mcg/9mcg SR compound
TSH: 3.83
T4, Free (direct) 0.99 (0.82-1.77)
TPO: 386 (0-34)
T3, Free Serum 2.8 (2-4.4)
I just switched the medication to Armour, at a slightly higher dose based on these results and bc I was still exhausted (sleeping 10-11 hours to feel OK)... Have been on it for a few days, and feeling better so far, but my ultimate goal would be to get off thyroid meds completely... Any advice is greatly appreciated! Thank you again :)
~DairyFreeGirl
Dairyfreegirl!
ReplyDeleteSorry it took me so long to respond. I was on vacation. It can take awhile for your body to regulate itself when you change your diet and nutritional supplements. It may be a good idea for you to have some more blood work done. I would suggest a metabolic panel. This test will give you a good idea of how your liver and kidneys are functioning(90% of Free T3 is made in the liver)it will also check your adrenals. Stress can cause issues with your TSH. Also get a CBC test it will check your blood cells, platelets and check you for anemia. This way you will know if there is any other underlying problems. Please keep me updated on how things are working out for you! ;) Crystal
Hi Crystal,
ReplyDeleteI too have recently started on this journey, I developed and enlarged thyroid gland with hyperthyroid symptoms (anxiety, heart racing, insomnia...)one day basically out of the blue and had labs done which revealed Hashimotos with a slightly elevated TSH (normal T3 and T4), Looking back I have had intermittent symptoms of hypo and hyper thyroid for at least the last 2 years without really realizing what was going on. I want to try to preserve my thyroid function and reduce the antibodies as much as possible. I had an ultrasound done and have multiple nodules on the thyroid gland (probably due to over consumption of Iodine prior to this coming to ahead- which I have tried to cut out of my diet as much as possible), I have started on many of the supplements you have suggested already accept for the copper which I plan on adding (thanks!), but I do not know what to do to get rid of the thyroid enlargement and nodules. I am currently also taking a low 0.25 dose of synthroid to try and help reduce TSH and thyroid size until the autoimmune attack gets better under control. Do you have any suggestions?