Trying to find something I read here... help!

[Guest guest]

I'm trying to dig up either an old post or a file that talked about

the fluctuations of thyroid hormones over the course of the day -

that they're not a constant and they can be lower / higher during

the day and during the week.

I can find all kinds of support for TSH rising and falling, but I

can't seem to find info on FTs - and I'm sure I read something here

recently to that effect (there's just so much good stuff to read

here that I can't find half of it when I want to!!)

Thanks!

Nat

[Guest guest]

Thank you Tish, this is very helpful, I thought the information came

from Dr. Peatfield. I knew you'd be able to help

Nat

>

> It's logic that thyroid levels fluctuate since thyroid controls

> energy and the more energy you expend, the more thyroid you need.

> Other hormone fluctuations affect thyroid needs and use. Eating or

> fasting also have an effect. The level of hydration of the body

and

> salt levels probably affect it. Activities that raise or lower

> cortisol will affect thyroid levels. But, here is one quote I know

> of on your topic:

>

>

> Dr. Barry Peatfield from his book " The Great

> Thyroid Scandal " Page 87-88:

>

> The disgraceful fact is that all these measurements (except the

> last) may not be worth the paper they are written on; or may be so

> flawed that treatment based on them is bound to be wrong. So what

> goes wrong? And why are doctors not aware that they may be so badly

> off the beam? And why do so many have minds so closed?

>

> The reasons blood tests may be so flawed we need now to examine.

> First and foremost these are measures only of the levels of thyroid

> hormone in the blood. What we need to know is the level of thyroid

> in the tissues, and, of course, this the blood test cannot tell us.

> The nearest we can go is the Basal Temperature Test, or the Basal

> Metabolic Rate. The first we have discussed; the second is now of

> historical value. The patient is connected up to an oxygen uptake,

> carbon dioxide excretion, measuring device, and the rate of usage

> determines the metabolic rate. This is also subject to various

> errors. The amount of thyroid hormones being carried by the

> bloodstream varies in a highly dynamic way, and may be up at one

> point and down the next. The blood test is simply a two-dimensional

> snapshot of the situation at that moment. The slowed circulation

may

> cause haemo-concentration from fluid loss, so that the thyroid

> levels are higher than they should be. (A simple way to explain

this

> is to think of a spoonful of sugar in your cup of tea. If it is

only

> half a cup of tea but you still put in your teaspoon of sugar, then

> although the amount of sugar is the same, the tea will be twice as

> sweet.)

>

> But the blood levels depend mostly on what's happening to the

> thyroid hormones. If the cellular receptors are sluggish, or

> resistant, or there is extra tissue fluid, together with

> mucopolysaccharides, the thyroid won't enter the cells as it

should;

> so that part of the hormone is unused and left behind, giving a

> falsely higher reading to the blood test. It is simply building up

> unused hormone. This may apply to both T3 and T4. Further

> complications exist if the T4 + T3 conversion is not working

> properly, with a 5'-diodinase enzyme deficiency. There will be too

> much T4, and too little T3. If there is a conversion block, and a

T3

> receptor uptake deficiency, both T3 and T4 may be normal or even

> raised. The patient will be diagnosed as normal or even over-

active;

> in spite of all other evidence to the contrary. It grieves me to

> report that I have intervened several times to prevent patients,

> diagnosed as hyperthyroid, having an under-active thyroid removed

> when the only evidence was the high T4 level (due to receptor

> resistance) and the patient was clinically obviously hypothyroid.

> The patients thanked me, but not the consultants.

>

> Adrenal insufficiency adds another dimension for error to the T4

and

> T3 tests. Adrenal insufficiency, of which more anon, will adversely

> affect thyroid production, conversion, tissue uptake and thyroid

> response. It may make a complete nonsense of the blood tests.

>

> The most commonly used test of all is the TSH. I have sadly come

> across very few doctors who can accept the fact that a normal, or

> low TSH may still occur with a low thyroid. The doctrine is high

TSH

> = low thyroid. Normal TSH = normal thyroid. But the pituitary may

> not be working properly (secondary or tertiary hypothyroidism). It

> may not be responding to the Thyrotrophin Release Hormone(TRH)

> produced by the hypothalamus, which itself may not be producing

> enough TRH for reasons we saw earlier. The pituitary may be damaged

> by the low thyroid state anyway, and be sluggish in its TSH output.

> ______________________________

[Guest guest]

Thank you Tish, this is very helpful, I thought the information came

from Dr. Peatfield. I knew you'd be able to help

Nat

>

> It's logic that thyroid levels fluctuate since thyroid controls

> energy and the more energy you expend, the more thyroid you need.

> Other hormone fluctuations affect thyroid needs and use. Eating or

> fasting also have an effect. The level of hydration of the body

and

> salt levels probably affect it. Activities that raise or lower

> cortisol will affect thyroid levels. But, here is one quote I know

> of on your topic:

>

>

> Dr. Barry Peatfield from his book " The Great

> Thyroid Scandal " Page 87-88:

>

> The disgraceful fact is that all these measurements (except the

> last) may not be worth the paper they are written on; or may be so

> flawed that treatment based on them is bound to be wrong. So what

> goes wrong? And why are doctors not aware that they may be so badly

> off the beam? And why do so many have minds so closed?

>

> The reasons blood tests may be so flawed we need now to examine.

> First and foremost these are measures only of the levels of thyroid

> hormone in the blood. What we need to know is the level of thyroid

> in the tissues, and, of course, this the blood test cannot tell us.

> The nearest we can go is the Basal Temperature Test, or the Basal

> Metabolic Rate. The first we have discussed; the second is now of

> historical value. The patient is connected up to an oxygen uptake,

> carbon dioxide excretion, measuring device, and the rate of usage

> determines the metabolic rate. This is also subject to various

> errors. The amount of thyroid hormones being carried by the

> bloodstream varies in a highly dynamic way, and may be up at one

> point and down the next. The blood test is simply a two-dimensional

> snapshot of the situation at that moment. The slowed circulation

may

> cause haemo-concentration from fluid loss, so that the thyroid

> levels are higher than they should be. (A simple way to explain

this

> is to think of a spoonful of sugar in your cup of tea. If it is

only

> half a cup of tea but you still put in your teaspoon of sugar, then

> although the amount of sugar is the same, the tea will be twice as

> sweet.)

>

> But the blood levels depend mostly on what's happening to the

> thyroid hormones. If the cellular receptors are sluggish, or

> resistant, or there is extra tissue fluid, together with

> mucopolysaccharides, the thyroid won't enter the cells as it

should;

> so that part of the hormone is unused and left behind, giving a

> falsely higher reading to the blood test. It is simply building up

> unused hormone. This may apply to both T3 and T4. Further

> complications exist if the T4 + T3 conversion is not working

> properly, with a 5'-diodinase enzyme deficiency. There will be too

> much T4, and too little T3. If there is a conversion block, and a

T3

> receptor uptake deficiency, both T3 and T4 may be normal or even

> raised. The patient will be diagnosed as normal or even over-

active;

> in spite of all other evidence to the contrary. It grieves me to

> report that I have intervened several times to prevent patients,

> diagnosed as hyperthyroid, having an under-active thyroid removed

> when the only evidence was the high T4 level (due to receptor

> resistance) and the patient was clinically obviously hypothyroid.

> The patients thanked me, but not the consultants.

>

> Adrenal insufficiency adds another dimension for error to the T4

and

> T3 tests. Adrenal insufficiency, of which more anon, will adversely

> affect thyroid production, conversion, tissue uptake and thyroid

> response. It may make a complete nonsense of the blood tests.

>

> The most commonly used test of all is the TSH. I have sadly come

> across very few doctors who can accept the fact that a normal, or

> low TSH may still occur with a low thyroid. The doctrine is high

TSH

> = low thyroid. Normal TSH = normal thyroid. But the pituitary may

> not be working properly (secondary or tertiary hypothyroidism). It

> may not be responding to the Thyrotrophin Release Hormone(TRH)

> produced by the hypothalamus, which itself may not be producing

> enough TRH for reasons we saw earlier. The pituitary may be damaged

> by the low thyroid state anyway, and be sluggish in its TSH output.

> ______________________________

[Guest guest]

Thank you Tish, this is very helpful, I thought the information came

from Dr. Peatfield. I knew you'd be able to help

Nat

>

> It's logic that thyroid levels fluctuate since thyroid controls

> energy and the more energy you expend, the more thyroid you need.

> Other hormone fluctuations affect thyroid needs and use. Eating or

> fasting also have an effect. The level of hydration of the body

and

> salt levels probably affect it. Activities that raise or lower

> cortisol will affect thyroid levels. But, here is one quote I know

> of on your topic:

>

>

> Dr. Barry Peatfield from his book " The Great

> Thyroid Scandal " Page 87-88:

>

> The disgraceful fact is that all these measurements (except the

> last) may not be worth the paper they are written on; or may be so

> flawed that treatment based on them is bound to be wrong. So what

> goes wrong? And why are doctors not aware that they may be so badly

> off the beam? And why do so many have minds so closed?

>

> The reasons blood tests may be so flawed we need now to examine.

> First and foremost these are measures only of the levels of thyroid

> hormone in the blood. What we need to know is the level of thyroid

> in the tissues, and, of course, this the blood test cannot tell us.

> The nearest we can go is the Basal Temperature Test, or the Basal

> Metabolic Rate. The first we have discussed; the second is now of

> historical value. The patient is connected up to an oxygen uptake,

> carbon dioxide excretion, measuring device, and the rate of usage

> determines the metabolic rate. This is also subject to various

> errors. The amount of thyroid hormones being carried by the

> bloodstream varies in a highly dynamic way, and may be up at one

> point and down the next. The blood test is simply a two-dimensional

> snapshot of the situation at that moment. The slowed circulation

may

> cause haemo-concentration from fluid loss, so that the thyroid

> levels are higher than they should be. (A simple way to explain

this

> is to think of a spoonful of sugar in your cup of tea. If it is

only

> half a cup of tea but you still put in your teaspoon of sugar, then

> although the amount of sugar is the same, the tea will be twice as

> sweet.)

>

> But the blood levels depend mostly on what's happening to the

> thyroid hormones. If the cellular receptors are sluggish, or

> resistant, or there is extra tissue fluid, together with

> mucopolysaccharides, the thyroid won't enter the cells as it

should;

> so that part of the hormone is unused and left behind, giving a

> falsely higher reading to the blood test. It is simply building up

> unused hormone. This may apply to both T3 and T4. Further

> complications exist if the T4 + T3 conversion is not working

> properly, with a 5'-diodinase enzyme deficiency. There will be too

> much T4, and too little T3. If there is a conversion block, and a

T3

> receptor uptake deficiency, both T3 and T4 may be normal or even

> raised. The patient will be diagnosed as normal or even over-

active;

> in spite of all other evidence to the contrary. It grieves me to

> report that I have intervened several times to prevent patients,

> diagnosed as hyperthyroid, having an under-active thyroid removed

> when the only evidence was the high T4 level (due to receptor

> resistance) and the patient was clinically obviously hypothyroid.

> The patients thanked me, but not the consultants.

>

> Adrenal insufficiency adds another dimension for error to the T4

and

> T3 tests. Adrenal insufficiency, of which more anon, will adversely

> affect thyroid production, conversion, tissue uptake and thyroid

> response. It may make a complete nonsense of the blood tests.

>

> The most commonly used test of all is the TSH. I have sadly come

> across very few doctors who can accept the fact that a normal, or

> low TSH may still occur with a low thyroid. The doctrine is high

TSH

> = low thyroid. Normal TSH = normal thyroid. But the pituitary may

> not be working properly (secondary or tertiary hypothyroidism). It

> may not be responding to the Thyrotrophin Release Hormone(TRH)

> produced by the hypothalamus, which itself may not be producing

> enough TRH for reasons we saw earlier. The pituitary may be damaged

> by the low thyroid state anyway, and be sluggish in its TSH output.

> ______________________________