| So, you go to the doctor and spill your bucket of | | | | exposé of the artificial estrogen and |
| symptoms-fatigue, weight gain, hair loss, etc. If you | | | | progesterone in hormone replacement therapy. Instead |
| happened upon an alert doctor, you'll get a thyroid test. | | | | of doing the good doctors said it would, HRT created |
| And you'll celebrate that help is on the way. | | | | havoc. |
| Well, maybe. While doctors love blood tests-and | | | | But you can't patent the natural stuff, and the money's |
| disdain symptoms-thyroid tests aren't reliable. Doctors | | | | in the patent, so we get anything artificial Big Pharma |
| know this, but they go by the book. | | | | can come up with-regardless of whether it works or |
| But perhaps the test actually says you have a punk | | | | whether it does dastardly things to us. |
| thyroid. The doctor prescribes Synthroid, levothyroxin | | | | Artificial thyroid meds fail us. We can't convert artificial |
| or some other T4 med, assuring you it will fix things. | | | | T4 to natural T3, which is what we need to feel alive, |
| And you celebrate that help is here. | | | | We can faithfully take our meds and still feel like death |
| Well, maybe not. We need to talk about this. | | | | struck by a brick. |
| The body's natural thyroid hormone has five parts: T4, | | | | However, while T4 meds don't do you any good, they |
| tyrosine with four parts iodine, T3, tyrosine with three | | | | satisfy the blood tests. If you complain about still not |
| parts iodine, T2, tyrosine with two parts iodine, T1, | | | | feeling good, doctors wave the test results in your |
| tyrosine with one part iodine and calcitonin, which helps | | | | face and insist you're fine. And they don't want to hear |
| protect our bones (in a round about way). | | | | about symptoms, thank you very much. |
| T3 is where all the action is. Our bodies have to | | | | But wait! There's more! While artificial T4 meds don't |
| convert T4 to T3 before it can get in the game. | | | | help your thyroid, they do eat your bones. As doctors |
| Recent research says T2 is also quite active. Nobody | | | | reduce your medication despite ongoing symptoms, |
| knows what T1 does. | | | | they quote studies saying overdoses of thyroid meds |
| Doctors could prescribe Armour Thyroid, the natural | | | | cause osteoporosis. |
| medicine that includes all parts of the thyroid hormone | | | | Not so fast, Chester. All the studies used Synthroid. |
| and has a long, long history of successful use, but they | | | | Synthroid-and probably any artificial T4 med-causes |
| don't. | | | | osteoporosis. Overdoses have nothing to do with it. |
| Most doctors prescribe an artificial T4 medicine, such | | | | Before the days of artificial T4, when doctors |
| as Synthroid or levothyroxin. They're taught to distrust | | | | prescribed Armour, the average dose was twice what |
| Armour, although their doubts have no basis in fact. It | | | | it is now, and osteoporosis still didn't rear its ugly head. |
| may be one of the greatest medical frauds in all | | | | What we have then are tests that don't tell the story, |
| history. | | | | meds that don't fix the problem and doctors who don't |
| And, while it's bad enough 80% of the thyroid | | | | really care. You were wondering why things weren't |
| hormone's parts are missing, artificial T4 doesn't match | | | | going well? |
| natural T4. Some bodies react very badly, while others | | | | The moral to this sad tale? We have to take |
| just let it pass through. | | | | responsibility for our own health and push back when |
| Truth to tell, our bodies don't like wanna-be meds. You | | | | necessary. |
| may remember the Woman's Health Initiative | | | | |