Thyroid/Early onset alzheimers/dementia--warning, long post!

November 21, 2005

These issues can all thyroid related especially if part of her thyroid was taken out. She needs to get her Free T3 and Free T4 levels tested with a blood test. This will show where the actual hormone levels are. Do not go by the regular T4 test because this shows both free (usable) and bound (not usable) hormone levels. To feel well, most people need their levels to be in the upper third of the range (just a starting point because everyone is different). The problem with Synthroid is that MDs feel it is a one-size-fits-all type of drug. It is synthetic (which in itself may be a problem) and only provides the thyroid hormone T4. There is a natural thyroid med called Armour (Biothroid and Naturethroid are similar) that contains both T4 and T3 made from pig thyroid. There is a little bit of a hurdle with this because the pig thyroid produces approximately 80%/T4 and 20%/T3 while the " normal " human thyroid produces approximately 93%/T4 and 7%/T3. Many people will start taking Armour and feel great initially and then problems will start creeping back because the T3 is high and T4 low. What I do is take a combination of Armour plus Levoxyl (synthetic T4 med) to get to the correct ratio for me.

I realize that this is not a " natural " way of resolving the issue but I was so sick before the meds and am constantly trying to get my health to the point where I can reduce the meds. If part of her thyroid was removed, she most likely will not be able to make up for the loss of hormones without supplementing with meds. You need to find a doctor who is more naturally oriented. Initially, I diagnosed myself and then had to find a doctor who would take me seriously since my labs were " in range, " although on the low end. My regular doctor was fired after telling me it couldn't be my thyroid. I then found an old-school D.O. who looked at my symptoms (including a cognitive test that I failed miserable). Within an hour of taking the first Armour tablet, my mind cleared (my issue was not enough T3 and that is very fast acting while T4 is more slow acting).

Check out the about.com thyroid site run by Mary Shomon. It's not necessarily a " natural " site but there is a lot of information and a " Top Doc " list where you might be able to find a holistically oriented doctor who will look at symptoms and prescribe Armour.

Good luck!