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hashimotos and hair loss
I am in desperate need of some advice on how to stop my extreme hair loss. My labs are as follows, T3 free is 3.4 range is 2.3-4.2, T4 free is0.96 range is 0.90-1.80, TSH is low at 0.01 range is 0.40-4.50, Thyroid Peroxidase AB is high at 558 range is<35. Iodine is low at 45, range is 52-109, Ferritin is normal at 94 range is 10-232. I feel fine except for vertical ridges in my finger nails and night sweats. My Peroxidase has come down since I have started LDL therapy. Does anyone have any suggestions or something that has worked for hair loss. If I increase my Thyroid medication I experience heart palpitations and I am afraid that my TSH would be way to low. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Would it be possible that my low Iodine levels could be causing the hair loss, should I supplement with sea kelp?
Thank you so much! I will stop into my doctors office tomorrow to discuss with him. My Thyroid Peroxidase AB is at 558 range is <35. So they are high, I have never been able to get them any lower. I have just started with LDL therapy to see if that helps. I was gluten free for over a year and that had no effect, I had food sensitivity testing and have avoided all food on that list {list included foods that I never really ate anyway} I will ask the doctor to prescribe a 25mcg Synthroid. No wonder my hair has not improved. I thought that those numbers were good. I know Hashi's affects everyone differently and in me it has just been my hair. Thank you again for all your help I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it, maybe there is hope in regaining my hair.
COMMUNITY LEADER
Per my previous message, rule of thumb (where most of us feel best) is that FT3 should be in the upper half to upper third of its range and FT4 should be about mid range.
My apologies, though, I did make an error in calculating your FT3 level, which I said was 47% of the range... it's at 58% of the range instead, so for all practical purposes it should be okay, though there is room for increase.
Your FT, on the other hand is only at 7%, and it should be at 50%. Using the reference range used by your lab, that means your FT4 should be around 1.35; yours is only 0.96, so there's a lot of room for increase there.
It's not unusual when one is on desiccated hormones to have very low FT4, because of the high amount of the more potent T3 in the desiccated hormones. Many people find that they have to add a source of T4, such as Synthroid, Levoxyl, or generic Levo to bring up their FT4 level, which helps alleviate symptoms. Hair loss is a symptom s hypothyroidism and the low FT4 could be leaving you with some hypo symptoms.
If you've never had antibodies tested, you should have that done to be sure you have Hashimoto's - not everyone who is hypo has Hashimoto's, though many doctors make that assumption. While the treatment won't change, it's good to know whether your hypo is autoimmune or not. The tests you need are Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (TPOab) and Thyroglobobulin Antibodies (TgAb). You need them both, because some of us have one or the other, some have them both, but both are diagnostics for Hashimoto's.
A dog bite would not cause, either, Hashimoto's or hypothyroidism, though a stressful event could trigger it.
If you tried increasing your NatureThroid by 16.25, perhaps that was too much or you don't need anymore T3. You could either try increasing by a smaller amount or try adding a small dose of T4 (maybe 25 mcg) and retest in 4-6 weeks to see how your FT4 level is coming up and if it's helping to alleviate your symptoms. You can even split a 25 mcg T4 pill to get 12.5 mcg or you can alternate days (take one every other day to get an average of 12.5 mcg) if you want to start out slower and work your way up, which is often the best way, though it takes a lot longer to get where you're going.
When you're actively adjusting meds/dosages, you should be retesting for both FT3 and FT4 every 5-6 weeks so you can keep a very close watch on your levels and keep in mind that it's not unusual for hypo symptoms to reappear or for new to crop up when changing meds/dosages, but as with most meds, those symptoms, typically, go away once the body gets used to the med/dosage.
Remember, TSH is irrelevant when taking thyroid replacement hormones, particularly ones with T3 in them.
Talk this over with your doctor.
My apologies, though, I did make an error in calculating your FT3 level, which I said was 47% of the range... it's at 58% of the range instead, so for all practical purposes it should be okay, though there is room for increase.
Your FT, on the other hand is only at 7%, and it should be at 50%. Using the reference range used by your lab, that means your FT4 should be around 1.35; yours is only 0.96, so there's a lot of room for increase there.
It's not unusual when one is on desiccated hormones to have very low FT4, because of the high amount of the more potent T3 in the desiccated hormones. Many people find that they have to add a source of T4, such as Synthroid, Levoxyl, or generic Levo to bring up their FT4 level, which helps alleviate symptoms. Hair loss is a symptom s hypothyroidism and the low FT4 could be leaving you with some hypo symptoms.
If you've never had antibodies tested, you should have that done to be sure you have Hashimoto's - not everyone who is hypo has Hashimoto's, though many doctors make that assumption. While the treatment won't change, it's good to know whether your hypo is autoimmune or not. The tests you need are Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (TPOab) and Thyroglobobulin Antibodies (TgAb). You need them both, because some of us have one or the other, some have them both, but both are diagnostics for Hashimoto's.
A dog bite would not cause, either, Hashimoto's or hypothyroidism, though a stressful event could trigger it.
If you tried increasing your NatureThroid by 16.25, perhaps that was too much or you don't need anymore T3. You could either try increasing by a smaller amount or try adding a small dose of T4 (maybe 25 mcg) and retest in 4-6 weeks to see how your FT4 level is coming up and if it's helping to alleviate your symptoms. You can even split a 25 mcg T4 pill to get 12.5 mcg or you can alternate days (take one every other day to get an average of 12.5 mcg) if you want to start out slower and work your way up, which is often the best way, though it takes a lot longer to get where you're going.
When you're actively adjusting meds/dosages, you should be retesting for both FT3 and FT4 every 5-6 weeks so you can keep a very close watch on your levels and keep in mind that it's not unusual for hypo symptoms to reappear or for new to crop up when changing meds/dosages, but as with most meds, those symptoms, typically, go away once the body gets used to the med/dosage.
Remember, TSH is irrelevant when taking thyroid replacement hormones, particularly ones with T3 in them.
Talk this over with your doctor.
Hello, thank you for your reply. I am very confused though, could you give me a target number for my T3, T4 numbers. I misunderstood and thought that they were in the normal range. So a increase should be made. I take Nature-throid at 113.5 mg, I have been on that same dosage for over a year. I was diagnosed almost 2 1/2 years ago, although I have had hair loss for over 7 years. No one checked my antibodies, I developed the hashi's after I was attacked by a dog, he crushed the bone in my arm in the attack. 2 months after my hair started to slowly come out. I tried increasing my medication by 16.25 for a few days, but the heart palps were awful. Maybe I did not give it enough time. Please let me know what you think., again thank you for all your help. I have been taking biotin and every hair supplement available for 7 years to no avail.
COMMUNITY LEADER
Iodine supplementation is contra-indicated with Hashimoto's, as it can make the autoimmune attack worse.
What thyroid medication are you taking and what dosage? How long have you been taking it?
Your FT3 is only at 47% of its range and rule of thumb (where most of feel best) is upper half to upper third of the range. Your FT4 is nearly in the toilet at only 7% of its range and rule of thumb is for it to be around mid range.
As far as TSH is concerned, you shouldn't worry about that at all. At best it's a diagnostic tool and a poor one, at that. It neither causes nor alleviates symptoms and is often suppressed when one is on thyroid replacement hormones. My own TSH has been at < 0.01 - 0.01 for the past 7 yrs and I've never been hyper once.
How long have you stayed on an increased level of thyroid medication with the heart palpitations? It's not unusual for symptoms to worsen or for new ones to appear when increase dosages or changing meds and the symptoms usually go away once the body adjusts to the new dosage, plus palpitations are common with hypothyroidism. I had them really bad when I was at my most hypo.
Biotin often helps with hair loss.
What thyroid medication are you taking and what dosage? How long have you been taking it?
Your FT3 is only at 47% of its range and rule of thumb (where most of feel best) is upper half to upper third of the range. Your FT4 is nearly in the toilet at only 7% of its range and rule of thumb is for it to be around mid range.
As far as TSH is concerned, you shouldn't worry about that at all. At best it's a diagnostic tool and a poor one, at that. It neither causes nor alleviates symptoms and is often suppressed when one is on thyroid replacement hormones. My own TSH has been at < 0.01 - 0.01 for the past 7 yrs and I've never been hyper once.
How long have you stayed on an increased level of thyroid medication with the heart palpitations? It's not unusual for symptoms to worsen or for new ones to appear when increase dosages or changing meds and the symptoms usually go away once the body adjusts to the new dosage, plus palpitations are common with hypothyroidism. I had them really bad when I was at my most hypo.
Biotin often helps with hair loss.
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