L carnitine and thyroid meds

[qkcam]

HI
i am currently taking Naturethroid and some t3. my dr suggested i try l carnitine.. i think i could benefit from the lcarnitine yet i am a bit concerned that it may effect the adsorption of the thyroid meds as it is used for Hyperthyroid.. i am defiantly not Hyper .i am Hypo and can't afford to risk losing the benefit of the thryoid meds as i am just starting to get some life back into my body..

does anyone know or have experience with this? thank you

[steroid.com 1]

It won't effect your absorption and will help to support your thyroid.

L-Carnitine is very good for you on many fronts as it helps with vascular dilation as does L-Arginine.

I take both in max doses.

This is what you want to read enjoy: http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2007/...thyroid_01.htm

[qkcam]

thanks.. i am confused though this is article mentions" hyperthyroid" .. i am "hypo" with O not "er"

my body can't get enough thyroid into the blood-- which is the opposite of hyper i believe..

any thoughts ? all the things i have found so far say that carnitine lowers the thyroid absorption into the cells.. which is how it helps those with Hyper...

let me know what ya think.. thank you! i would love to be able to get the benes from carnitine but cant risk losing the help my body needs with the thryoid does that make sense? thank you

[jwh7699]

Is L-Carnatine good to take if you don't have Thyroid issues? Thanks!!

[Rusty11]

Having no thyroid (had it removed 15 years ago) and taking 100 mcg levoxyl, there are a lot of things I shouldn't consume or need to wait, at least, 4 hours or it will interfere with the absorption of my pill. I've been in the normal range for years, but seen it jump up to 8(hypo) when I took a multi with iron. There's been a few other episodes as well. Googling the interactions between the two, several articles came up with things like this: "Although l-carnitine supplementation has been found to benefit hyperthyroid patients, it can block the thyroid if taken in high doses. Most experts recommend against l-carnitine if you have low or borderline thyroid levels, since l-carnitine can impair the action of your thyroid hormone medications."

http://www.livestrong.com/article/86...rs-lcarnitine/

But, if your Dr. suggests it, either it's ok or he's wrong. Who knows. Me...I wouldn't mess with it. Being hypo is a total drag and screws up your life. But, that's just my opinion.

[steroid.com 1]

Here's one of the studies I found in my archives regarding Hyperthyroidism and L-Carnitine.

At the end of the day, if you're positive for Hyperthyroidism it appears, at least from this study, to add it in.

Read bold:

Effects of carnitine on thyroid hormone action.
Benvenga S, Amato A, Calvani M, Trimarchi F.
Source
Sezione di Endocrinologia, Dipartimento Clinico Sperimentale di Medicina e Farmacologia, University of Messina School of Medicine, 98125 Messina, Italy. [email protected]
Abstract
By experiments on cells (neurons, hepatocytes, and fibroblasts) that are targets for thyroid hormones and a randomized clinical trial on iatrogenic hyperthyroidism, we validated the concept that L-carnitine is a peripheral antagonist of thyroid hormone action. In particular, L-carnitine inhibits both triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) entry into the cell nuclei. This is relevant because thyroid hormone action is mainly mediated by specific nuclear receptors. In the randomized trial, we showed that 2 and 4 grams per day of oral L-carnitine are capable of reversing hyperthyroid symptoms (and biochemical changes in the hyperthyroid direction) as well as preventing (or minimizing) the appearance of hyperthyroid symptoms (or biochemical changes in the hyperthyroid direction). It is noteworthy that some biochemical parameters (thyrotropin and urine hydroxyproline) were refractory to the L-carnitine inhibition of thyroid hormone action, while osteocalcin changed in the hyperthyroid direction, but with a beneficial end result on bone. A very recent clinical observation proved the usefulness of L-carnitine in the most serious form of hyperthyroidism: thyroid storm. Since hyperthyroidism impoverishes the tissue deposits of carnitine, there is a rationale for using L-carnitine at least in certain clinical settings.

[qkcam]

well i am definatly not Hyper.. i am Hypo and being hypo does is a drag ..since this article mentions that carnitine "inhibits" thyroid from getting into the cells it does not seem like a good thing to take for me unfortunatly..
i am already on 2 grains of NDT and 10mcg of T3 and i dont get much absoroptoin from the NDT maybe from being too close to multivitamin dose- i do take the NDT sublingually though..so thought that might help with not needing to be so careful on the timing of the multivit.

thanks for all the input!
c

[--->>405<<---]

hey QK good to see u again. hope ur doing well!

QK i hope u dont mind me askn a coupl questions as i am not hypo thyroid but sub optimal according to my TRT doc.

GD i actually just started taking L-Carnitine (injectable IM) last week for potential fat loss purposes and had wondered the same thing. all the studies i saw on it only showed mainly positive benefits.

i was still a little bit hesitant to take it. i take 6mL(500mg/mL) per week (maintenance dose 3000mg/week). how much r u taking and are u injecting or taking oral? what do u think of injection?

[qkcam]

hey 405 good to hear from you!
I am only taking oral actyel carnitine and only 500 to 1000mg.. i am actually feeling worse (really hypo and depressed) after a few days of taking it unfortunately.. so i will probably stop for a while and see if i got back to feeling a bit better.
i dont think taking injections (for me) would make any difference as it seems to (from what i have read) inhibit the thyroid from getting into the cells in our body.. i believe it could be thyroid from our own thyroid or thyroid we are supplementing with it seems to somehow put up a block .. i dont quite get it and i also know we are all unique and have to find what works for our bodies

my last thyroid numbers were really on the very bottom of the scale.. so i think untill those numbers come up some.. i better lay off the carnitine.. you know me.. i just want to feel better sooner!-- but sometimes i toss too many things in the mix and then cant tell what is doing what-
i do know after taking some thyroid meds and increasing my dose i was able to start walking and working out again and my food.. i guess when my Free T4 and T3 are in the tank is when i feel like crap- and that is no fun..

you seem to be doinq well with fat loss.. .. also not having optimized thyroid can also inhibit fat loss from what i understand.

how do you feel since adding the injections? when i first started the pills i felt really good for a couple days..then seem to crash- : (
if you feel good with it then that may be a good thing .. there are alot of benefits for sure!

[Rusty11]

Oh wow....I feel for you. Hang in there. It'll get better. Sometimes (most times, actually), it takes a few dosage changes to start feeling normal, then good. When i still had my thyroid and suffering from really bad hypothyroidism, I was 40 lbs heavier, completely depressed, every joint/muscle hurt, no energy, etc... It was the worse feeling ever. My endo raised my dosage a couple of times and I went completely hyper. After this on-going back and forth, he finally gave me radioactive iodine to get rid of it. I've been much better ever since. I'm not sure which was worse, hyper or hypo. Ugh. I hope you start feeling better soon.

[qkcam]

thanks Rusty.. i need to hear this... the pit seems to be inclosing again.. got my thryoid #'s back and T4 is still in the tank.. t3 looks decent thanks to cytomel .
how do you do with no thyroid?

[Rusty11]

Yes, I remember the 'PIT'. It sucked big time. Anyway, with radioactive iodine, it takes up to a year to completely dissolve the thyroid. Doc started me on a small dosage of synthroid (levoxyl). Then checked every three months and adjusted dosage, as needed. After about a year, I was put on 88mcg of levoxyl and have been steady ever since...until recently when I screwed up by taking a multi too close to my pill. But, that was 1+ month ago since stopping and I feel fine again. BTW, after removal, I was never "in the pit" again. It was a life-changer for me. I was a new person who was given a new life. No more depression, weight gain/weight loss, lethargy, racing heart/slow heartbeat, constipation, jittery feeling, anxiety, etc... I/it was all over the place. Maybe your thyroid will settle down, but mine refused, so it had to go. keep me posted. I'd like to know when you feel "normal" again. It'll happen...

[qkcam]

thanks Rusty.. glad you got out of the pit. My thryroid numbers were better before i started on thyroid meds.. but the cfids dr did an experiment been trying to get better ever since.

have you heard of tirosant? it is a newish T4 in gel.
i am considering trying that instead of the Nature desicated thyroid.. who knows..

it is tricky with dosing and life.. but gald you are feeling better- that gives me hope.. thank you. is that your dog?

[Rusty11]

Yes, that's my bassett hound, Dixie. Such a silly dog.

anyway, re: tirosant...I'd not heard of it, but did a "google" search. Seems it's similiar to what I'm taking, but it's a gel cap. It seems that every thing I read came up with different (good and bad) results. I say, go for it. Got nothing to lose. Not sure about your Dr., but while changing doses, mine did BW every six weeks. But, if you are like me, you know your body and can, pretty much, tell if something is doing you good or harm.
Yes, dosing is tricky, but if this goes on and on and on and on....maybe getting the thyroid out might be an idea to consider (not saying it is now) but going on for years feeling crappy made it the right choice for me. And, as I already stated, once it was dead, there was little/no fluctuation.

EDIT: just re-read your post. Tirosant in gel? Do you mean something you apply or a gel cap? I only read about the gel caps. Definitely give it a whirl and see what happens.

[qkcam]

Dixie is great! i love dogs.. my ole girl passed away 2 yrs ago..she was my best friend.. how old is Dixie?

you are right it is a gel capsule.. i took a tiny bit earlier today.. i think it is way to strong for me.. i am really senstive..i did manage to make it out for a 1.17mile walk though! yay..
will wait and see what my other thyroid #'s look like. that reverse t3 and total T3 we will see what happens.. i for sure dont want to be dealing with this for years and years. i have an appt with stanford endo on the 24th.. maybe they will have some ideas solutions.. in the meantime..goal is to stay out of the pit! ..
thanks

[Rusty11]

Interesting....several articles/posts I read stated that it was strong stuff and that the dose needed to be smaller than with synthroid , for instance. I didn't mention it. didn't want to create a placebo for you...lol. Looks like they were on to something.

btw, Dixie is seven and snoring away right now. it's really loud at night.

[qkcam]

it definatly felt strong to me! i tried 75mcg of synthroid years ago and that was way too strong as well.

aahh the sounds of snoring Dixie! what a treat..she has a good life!