Hair Loss: Hypo or Hyper and on Levo or NDT?

Thanks Shelly, I am so happy healthwise with my NDT but I am having hair loss. I want to increase my dose (because I get sleepy in the afternoon) but the Endo wants to decrease my dose (because - you guessed it - my TSH is very low). I would hate to increase it and lose more hair while if I "do as I am told", decrease the dose, my hair grows back.

Hello LAH:

That is good if your TSH is not too low, so can you find a compromise dose? You can cut the pill and make up a better dose for you.  How much are you on?  Is your T3 okay?

Regards,

Shelly

Thanks Shelly. I was on 1 1/4 grains, my T4 was at the bottom of the scale, .8ng/dL  (.8 - 1.8)ng/dL and my T3 was 2.9 pg/mL (2.3 -4.2pg/mL) - although don't forget that I didn't take any NDT before my blood test so this T3 is probably my residual.

For these reasons I bumped my dose to 1 1/2 grains (haven't told the Endo yet, he wants to lower it down to 1 grain! I told him, "NO WAY JOSE".

But for all of this, my hair is thinning terribly.

Hi Barbara:

That is also a good idead LAH needs her full blood count and ferritin checked. Along with her thyroid levels.  If possible a blood cortisol level, just to make sure the adrenals are okay.

XO Shelly

 

Thanks Shelley

XO Barbara

Thanks barbara, yes I must get Ferritin checked. I have been trying to upstage this issue by eating red meat twice a week but, yes, I do not know if it is having any affect. My lower eyelids are not bright red nor pale pink so at a first approximation I guess it is not too bad.

Hi LAHs, my recent experience might be relevant here. I was on a dose of 750mg of an NDT (this one is measured differently, i think 1 grain is equivalent to 300mg) and blood tests were all fine. I didn't change my diet - which involves eating roast chicken, cabbage, kale, broccoli and carrots twice a day because my diet is severely restricted due to allergies and intolerances. All blood tests came back fine (iron saturation = 46%). I dropped my NDT dose down to 600mg and my iron saturation plummeted to 17%. GP recomended I take an Iron tablet a day. I have increased my NDT dose back to 750mg and have a blood test next week. It'll be interesting to see what the results are. The relevant point is that if one's thyroid hormone dose is too low, iron levels can be wrong irrespective of how good one's diet is.

Hi Barabara,

I am not sure which NDT you are on nor if you are in the U.S.or the U.K. but, in the US 1 grain of Armour is the equivalent of 60mg of NDT and has the approximate potency of 100 mcg Levo, Synthroid etc.

Hi LAHs, That must hold the record for the quickest reply ever! Thanks for the info. I'm in UK. I'm on ThyroGold.

Hi rhw, thanks for your input. You probably know this but your hair can break off at the ends at the same rate it is growing! Mine does that, and I agree, if my natural dish water blonde wasn't growing through I too would be of the opinion that it wasn't growing at all.