Page 32 - Summer2009

test was developed, which showed severe suppression of the TSH level in and cerebral arterial occlusion, even in patients
such patients, that practitioners realized that too much thyroid hormone who are merely slightly hypothyroid.
may have been prescribed in many of these patients. The only way to be Another reason physicians blame “over-
sure, in each individual case, would have been to obtain the free-T3 serum treatment with thyroid hormone” for cardiac
levels, which were not done in the reported cases! arrhythmias and osteoporosis or osteopenia is
So we have no way of knowing how many of those patients were really due to the fact that physicians do not use the
over-prescribed or how many had suppressed TSH levels for other reasons. more accurate blood tests for measuring mag-
Of course, those who developed cardiac arrhythmias and/or osteoporosis QHVLXP SRWDVVLXP DQG FDOFLXP WHVWV WKDW UHÀHFW
could have been over-prescribed thyroid hormones, although there are their true levels in the tissues and cells that they
RWKHU FDXVHV RI WKHVH FRQGLWLRQV VXFK DV GH¿FLHQFLHV LQ PLQHUDOV YLWDPLQV LQÀXHQFH 7KH WHVWV SK\VLFLDQV QRUPDOO\ XVH
protein and other hormones, which are too often automatically “blamed” measure serum levels of magnesium and potas-
on excessive thyroid function instead. VLXP EXW GR QRW UHÀHFW WKHLU LQWUDFHOOXODU DFWLYLW\
In my opinion, fears of precipitating or aggravating osteoporosis are which is where they exert their effects. Levels
unwarranted. Evidence for these fears is equivocal as both natural and of magnesium, potassium and calcium in the red
iatrogenic (treatment-caused) hypo- and hyperthyroidism may cause the blood cells should be obtained, which do UHÀHFW
condition. Apparently, under-treatment of either thyroid state is a risk their levels in the cells of the muscles and other
13
factor as well. The objections about aggressive thyroid treatment causing WLVVXHV ZKHUH WKH\ LQÀXHQFH WKH QHXURPXVFXODU
or aggravating osteoporosis and cardiac arrhythmias are found (in my activities of those tissues—heart and skeletal
practice) not only to be overblown, but to be entirely non-existent when muscles being particularly pertinent, the former
optimal corrections are made for certain mineral, vitamin, protein and for cardiac arrhythmias and the latter for muscle
VH[ DQG JURZWK KRUPRQDO GH¿FLHQFLHV cramps, spasms and “charley horses.” Conse-
If one always measures the free-T3 level, without any doses of the quently most physicians are at a loss to treat the
7 FRQWDLQLQJ SUHVFULSWLRQ EHLQJ PLVVHG LQ WKH KRXUV SULRU WR WKH GUDZ- latter as well, and often resort to quinine or drugs
ing of the blood, and the level is never too high for that patient’s age and WR VWRS WKLV V\PSWRP DUWL¿FLDOO\
medical condition, one can be certain that one is not contributing to car- When the intracellular/red blood cell levels
diac arrhythmias and osteoporosis by over-prescribing thyroid hormones. of magnesium and potassium are obtained, the
But, if one hardly ever measures the FT3 level, and relies excessively on physician realizes that many more people are
diagnosis based on the TSH level, one can easily assume that a suppressed GH¿FLHQW LQ WKHVH WZR DQLRQV²DQG much more
or very low TSH level automatically means that either the patient is being severely so—than when the serum levels are
over-treated with thyroid hormone or doesn’t need treatment at all, when measured. When these deficiencies are then
low TSH levels may actually indicate pituitary or hypothalamic underfunc- taken care of, with large prescription doses of
tion. The dose of thyroid hormone is then unnecessarily reduced, or the these minerals, patients are far less likely to
patient doesn’t get any at all, and the patient now suffers from what will be respond negatively to high, or even high-normal,
suboptimal thyroid function and inadequately treated thyroid underactiv- blood levels of thyroid hormones.
ity, with all the attendant negative effects, including heart attack, stroke, Similarly, the total serum calcium level is
peripheral vascular disease and premature death. T3 is more effective than QRW D WUXH UHÀHFWLRQ RI WKH DFWLYLW\ RI FDOFLXP LQ
7 LQ ORZHULQJ H[FHVV OLSLG OHYHOV DQG LQ GHFUHDVLQJ WKH ULVN RI FRURQDU\ the nerves, muscles and bones. It is the ionized

WILSON’S SYNDROME

Dennis Wilson, MD, was a practicing physician in Longwood, Florida in the ealry 1990s who noticed that many fatigued
and low-body-temperature patients had low T3 levels (often with normal T4 and TSH levels). Instead of realizing that these
were patients with the three other types of hypothyroidism than primary hypothyroidism, he proposed a new syndrome,
which he called Wilson’s Syndrome (a name that had already been taken by a metabolic disease in which there is the ac-
cumulation of too much copper in parts of the eyes, liver and blood stream). His treatment, instead of a combination of
T4 and T3 (so that the T4 level can be maintained as a source of newly-converted T3, when necessary, especially for the
brain) was to prescribe high doses of T3 only. This treatment takes care of most of the physical needs of patients, in regard
to thyroid function, but tends to leave their cognitive and other brain functions neglected. I don’t see any benefit in leaving
out T4 altogether, especially as it is already the “junior partner” in the desiccated thyroid and Thyrolar preparations (which
raise the T3 level more than the T4 level).

30 Wise Traditions SUMMER 2009