About.com

Popular Over-the-Counter Thyroid Supplements Contain Actual Thyroid Hormone

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 00:41:45 +0000

Researchers recently reported on a study of the thyroid hormone content in the ten most popular over-the-counter (OTC) health supplements that are marketed as ''thyroid support." The selected products were ...

Read Full Post

Tirosint Bypasses Coffee�s Effect on Thyroid Drug Absorption

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 00:22:10 +0000

Most thyroid patients are aware that drinking coffee with -- or a few minutes after -- taking regular levothyroxine prevents proper absorption of the medication. (See Coffee and Thyroid Medication.)

But new research presented at the American Thyroid Association meeting in 2011 reported on the softgel capsule formulation of levothyroxine known as Tirosint -- the newest entry to the levothyroxine market -- evaluating whether patients could drink coffee around the time they took Tirosint, and still not suffer impaired absorption.

What the researchers learned was that the Tirosint softgel capsule appears to be "coffee-resistant" and according to the researchers, can be used to achieve a target TSH level -- and proper medication absorption -- in patients who are unwilling or unable to change the way they take their levothyroxine.

Interestingly, even in patients who do not drink coffee within an hour of taking their medication, TSH testing suggested that patients were achieving better absorption using the Tirosint, as compared to levothyroxine in tablet form.

Learn more about Tirosint now.

SAVINGS TIP: At Tirosint's patient web page, you can print a coupon that will get you your first 28-day prescription for Tirosint for free.

_{Sources: S. Benvenga, et. al. "A Novel Formulation of L-Thyroxine (L-T4) Solves Problems of L-T4 Malabsorption Caused by Coffee in Patients Under Replacement or TSH Suppressive L-T4 Therapy with Conventional Tablets," Abstracts of the American Thyroid Association Annual Meeting, 2011}

Supplement Helps Reduce Levothyroxine Side Effects in Thyroid Patients

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 00:13:54 +0000

Italian researchers studied hypothyroidism treatment with levothyroxine (synthetic T4, like Synthroid, Levoxyl) in three groups of patients -- patients taking additional bioflavonoids; patients taking supplements that include oligomeric proanthocynidins (OPA), ...

Read Full Post

Electronic Prescribing of Brand-Name Thyroid Drugs Resulting in Substitutions

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 00:06:43 +0000

Many doctor's offices are now using electronic prescriptions, which are automatically transmitted to pharmacies, rather than typical paper prescriptions. A recent study looked at how electronic prescribing affects the dispensation ...

Read Full Post

Should Doctors Treat Subclinical Hypothyroidism to Help Prevent Heart Disease?

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 21:17:51 +0000

Some studies show that failing to treat subclinical hypothyroidism can have negative consequences for heart health, but it's controversial. Find out more about the relationship between untreated hypothyroidism and the risk of developing heart disease...

Read Full Post

Thyroid Valentine: A Letter to Loved Ones

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 21:15:53 +0000

Someone posted on my Facebook wall a while back to ask an important question that in all my years of thyroid patient advocacy, I'd never really tackled. The question was: ...

Read Full Post

Review: The Everything Guide to Thyroid Disease

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:00:27 +0000

Dr. Theodore Friedman is one of the most respected endocrinologists in the country, and at the same time, he breaks out of stereotypes by being especially open-minded and patient-oriented. Find ...

Read Full Post

Thyroid Patients: What's The One Thing You Would Change About Your Doctor?

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:56:43 +0000

If you're a thyroid patient, finding the right thyroid doctor, being an empowered thyroid patient, and maintaining good communications with your doctor can all be challenges.

I asked thyroid patients who are part of my Facebook Thyroid Support group to share the one thing they would change about their doctor. A few people happily answered that they love their doctors and wouldn't change a thing, But overwhelmingly, the responses were similar.

The one thing many patients would change is that they want their thyroid practitioner to:

Be more proactive
Be more open-minded, in terms of willingness to prescribe T3 or natural thyroid drugs
Be more willing to listen
Be closer in proximity -- some people drive hours or even fly to see their doctors
Take a big picture view, instead of considering each symptom separately
Be willing to read, research and learn about thyroid disease on an ongoing basis
Be on-time, and not keep patients waiting for hours
Address symptoms, and not just lab test results
Be available -- it's impossible to get appointments with some practitioners
Return phone messages more promptly
Look at the patient as a person, and not a number on the scale or lab result
Take more than 5 minutes during appointments
Have greater understanding of nutrition
Show greater compassion and empathy
Not excuse symptoms, as in "Everyone has dry skin, it's winter time." "Of course you're tired, you don't get enough sleep."

And what was the most common complaint -- the one that underlies much of the concerns? Patients wish their thyroid practitioners would LISTEN.

What one thing would you like to change about your thyroid practitioner? Feel free to share in the comments section below.

About Mary Shomon | Thyroid Forum | Twitter | Facebook

_{Photo: clipart.com}

The Ten Things A Thyroid Patient Should Never Do

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 14:06:04 +0000

If you have a thyroid condition, you'll want to do everything you can to take good care of yourself, and do whatever possible to stay healthy, and on top of ...

Read Full Post

More Is Known About Autoantibodies That Cause Autoimmune Diseases

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 21:33:33 +0000

A new study has found that more than 32 million people -- or nearly 14% of the US population -- have autoantibodies in their bloodstream. Autoantibodies are proteins produced in ...

Read Full Post