TSH Test

[Guest guest]

http://search.lef.org/src-cgi-bin/MsmGo.exe?grab_id=21 & EXTRA_ARG= & CFGNAME=MssFind%2Ecfg & host_id=42 & page_id=9047040 & query=thyroid+and+TSH & hiword=thyroid+and+TSH+

Title: THE THYROID STIMULATING HORMONE (TSH) TESTLife Extension Foundation Health Protocol

The trouble is that the TSH reference range is so broad that most doctors will look at a TSH reading as low as 0.2 and think it is as normal as a 5.5 reading. The difference between 0.2-5.5, however, is an astounding 27-fold. It would seem almost absurd to think that a person could be in an optimal state of thyroid health anywhere along this 27-fold parameter, that is, TSH readings between 0.2-5.5.

A review of published findings about TSH levels reveals that readings of more than 2.0 may be indicative of adverse health problems related to insufficient thyroid hormone output. One study showed that individuals with TSH values of more than 2.0 have an increased risk of developing overt hypothyroid disease over the next 20 years (Vanderpump et al. 1995). Other studies show that TSH values greater than 1.9 indicate abnormal pathologies of the thyroid, specifically autoimmune attacks on the thyroid gland itself that can result in significant impairment (Hak et al. 2000).

More ominous was a study showing that TSH values of more than 4.0 increase the prevalence of heart disease, after correcting for other known risk factors (Hak et al. 2000). Another study showed that administration of thyroid hormone lowered cholesterol in patients with TSH ranges of 2.0-4.0, but had no effect in lowering cholesterol in patients whose TSH range was between 0.2-1.9 (Michalopoulou et al. 1998). This study indicates that in people with elevated cholesterol, TSH values of more than 1.9 could indicate that a thyroid deficiency is the culprit causing excess production of cholesterol, whereas TSH levels below 2.0 would indicate no deficiency in thyroid hormone status.