When you have an underactive thyroid gland, your thyroid gland is not producing enough hormones. This is actually a more common occurrence than you might think, and while it can be a worrying situation to be in, there is plenty of support and guidance available to help you manage the condition.
As a patient, it is important to remember that there is no way of avoiding or preventing an underactive thyroid. This is something that, once understood, helps patients manage their treatment much better. Some underactive thyroid cases are caused by a person’s immune system attacking the gland.
When this happens, some damage can be caused, which is when the thyroid gland becomes underactive. Other cases occur when a thyroid is damaged when a person is undergoing treatment for another condition, such as thyroid cancer, or an overactive thyroid.
Symptoms
If you do develop an underactive thyroid condition, symptoms may take some time to develop. In some cases, symptoms do not develop for years. If you do notice any of the following symptoms and they seem significant, see a doctor:
- Some gain in weight
- Tiredness and general fatigue
- Depression
- Feeling oversensitive to cold temperatures
- Some muscle ache around the body
- Some dry skin and hair
Not all of these symptoms may present at the same time, and as stated earlier, it may take some time for symptoms to appear or bother you. If these symptoms start to become more noticeable, then that is a strong reason for you to see your GP and voice your concerns about potentially having an underactive thyroid gland.
Treatment
Daily tablets will need to be taken as part of the treatment for an underactive thyroid gland. These tablets are hormone replacement tablets to increase the amount of thyroxine you have. Taking the tablets is quite manageable, and most people are able to implement a medication regime into their lives with the minimum of change to their usual routine, as Liothyronine in the UK could be found on sites like internationalpharmacy.com.
In the first stages of your treatment you will be expected to have blood tests to manage the levels of hormone replacement. This may take some time, as doctors work out the correct level of dosage for your needs.
After you have a correct level set by the doctor and a dosage is identified, then it is just a matter of ensuring you take your medication. It is usually the case that you will see your doctor once a year to have a blood test to see that the levels of hormone production are right for you.
When your immune system is attacking your thyroid gland it is very important that you start to note symptoms as soon as you can, and that you see a doctor as soon as you think you need to. If left untreated, that attack can cause enough damage to destroy the thyroid, and in some cases create what is known as a goiter. These situations are becoming rarer as modern medicine develops, but it is important that a patient watches symptoms to make sure that a problem with the thyroid doesn’t get out of control.
A Complete Guide to Thyroid Medication in the UK
Thyroid medication and treatment can be bewildering due to a huge number of different recommended supplemental thyroid treatment options out there. You will need to know how to select the right one for you. Some of this may entail trial and error – there is no one-size-fits-all approach to thyroid medication. (Please consult your health care provider before ordering any thyroid medication).
A good resource is International Pharmaceutical Services, they supply a range of different thyroid medications including:
- Armour Thyroid
- WP Thyroid
- Nature-Throid
- NP Thyroid
- Cytomel
- Westhroid
- Liothyronine
The Importance of Comprehensive Thyroid Blood Tests
When selecting the best thyroid treatment for you, it can be helpful to have a full breakdown of your thyroid levels from a comprehensive blood test. This is because most simple tests only look at your Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) levels. This doesn’t give a full picture.
For example, a T4 test will show how well your body is holding thyroid in store. This is usually included in a basic test. However, you also need to know if your body successfully converts stored thyroid hormones into its active form (T3). If you are symptomatic despite a ‘normal’ TSH and T4 test, you will need to consider other options.
In addition, having more complex blood test results can help you and your health care provider to understand which thyroid medication will work best for you.
Different Types of Thyroid Treatment
Most GPs will prescribe the most common form of thyroid treatment which is a synthetic T4 hormone. Your body then needs to convert this to active T3. Individuals are sometimes also wary of the synthetic nature of these mainstream treatments.
T3 thyroid medication can supplement your T4 medication if you feel it is not working sufficiently. There are synthetic types, such as liothyronine (which is also sold under the brand name Cytomel).
There are then medications which include both T3 and T4 (as well as T1 and T2). They are made from desiccated porcine thyroid glands. The most popular brand names include Armour Thyroid, WP Thyroid and Nature-Throid.
Desiccated thyroid is also considered ‘slow-release’. It contains thyroglobulin, a binding protein, which slows down its distribution.
Each brand available also offers variable ranges of strengths, so you may look at this when considering which will work best for you. Different thyroid medications also contain different inactive ingredients such as corn starch or cellulose. Therefore, you may wish to choose based on this factor as well.
Choose International Pharmaceutical Services
IPS gives you access to a reputable source for thyroid medications from the US market, enabling you to make the right choice for your thyroid treatment in the UK and around the world.
