I have taken Levothyroxine for many years and still have low energy, very dry skin and hair, signs of low thyroid function despite a good diet and regular thyroid checkups. I have heard of Cytomel and Armour for hypothyrodism... anyone know of the effectiveness of either of these? I've heard that Cytomel can be added to Lev. and Armour treats the condition by itself.
How effective is Cytomel or Armour thyroid for hypothyroidism ?
- Posted:
- 2 Oct 2011 by oneofme
- Topics:
- armour thyroid, cytomel, thyroid disease, dry skin, levothyroxine, hypothyroidism, diet, skin, medication, thyroid
Details:
Answers (2)
suzanne663 Oct 2011
The purpose of treatment is to replace the thyroid hormone that is lacking.
Most doctors recommend levothyroxine, the synthetic form of thyroxine (T-4) However, natural extracts are available that contain thyroid hormone derived from the thyroid glands of pigs. These products — Armour Thyroid, for example — contain both levothyroxine and triiodothyronine (T-3).
Controversy exists over which is better and research is ongoing - there is some evidence to suggest that T-3 may offer benefit to patients who have had their thyroid surgically removed.
Studies have shown there is little to no benefit of adding Cytomel to patients already taking synthetic thyroxine.
http://www.drugs.com/enc/hypothyroidism.html
meyati10 Oct 2011
Armour thyroid extract is a beef product. It's processed in Phoenix, AZ. Porcine-pork thyroid is compounded at pharmacies. The dried porcine thyroid comes from canada. A few years a go, Armour had to stop producing thyroid because of contamination that could affect the ground water. Also PETA was involved, trying to force the EPA and FDA to stop Armour thyroid production. Ignoring the fact that the cows were turned into hamburger, steaks, pot roast, etc, These 2 groups decided to give validation to the argument that it's wrong to use cows for medical purposes. But jewish and Muslim people still need thyroid hormone suppliment. Many of us can't tolerate synthetic thyroid-I'm Irish, but for some reason the year that I spent on porcine compound was miserable, and I just wasn't myself. Now my hair is nicer, my skin is nicer, I'm not drooling and feel comfortable.
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