T3 Therapy in Hypothyroidism - Risks and Advantages

The newest discovery in the treatment of hypothyroidism, the under active thyroid gland, seems to be seen as a miracle therapy. The use of the combination between the thyroid hormones T3 and T4 is believed to be the most promising way of therapy ever found for cases of hypothyroidism condition. But treated patients don't always know the risks they confront during therapy as they are in most cases poorly informed by their curing physician.

In the introduction of the new treatment's study a few basic information about the thyroid are required. The thyroid gland secretes and releases into the bloodstream two different hormones; T3 called triiodothyronine contains a chain of three Iodine atoms and is the 90% amount of the secretion, it is the active thyroid hormone. The second secreted substance is T4 called thyroxin with four Iodine atoms; it can activate and turn into T3 by a chemical reaction of reduction of an Iodine atom. T3 is eight times more powerful than the other hormone but in crisis situations when the body urgently needs more triiodothyronine T4 will rapidly turn into T3.

During the hormone replacement treatment many patients have complained of a strange unwell sensation; the pills simply seemed to harm them in some way even though the thyroid hormones level in the blood was perfectly normal. In normal circumstances, the standard method of replacing the thyroid secretion was the administration of a pill containing thyroxin only. When a doses of T3 hormone was added to the regular medication patients showed immediate improvements in the general estate.

The new combination of both triiodothyronine and thyroxine seemed to release hypothyroidism symptoms like depression, fatigue and brain fog. A new clinical study was made upon the T3-T4 medication to see its long-term effects. A number of 33 hypothyroid patients with severe underactivity of the thyroid gland were firstly treated with a high concentrated dose of thyroxine and then with a combination of a lower amount of T4 and also T3. The conclusions were a certain success in the combined medication with great improvement in the quality of life.

This study has also proven why the alternative medicine treatments have shown so many benefic result while administering the hypothyroid patients the Armour thyroid, a natural thyroid extract contained in drugs like Westhroid and Naturethroid. Both the products as well as the synthetic drug Thyrolar contain a moderate combination of both basic thyroid hormones. The standard medication with concentrated T4 can now be easily completed by administering the additional pill Cytomel containing pure T3 extract.

The new medication has highly improved the life and the symptomathology of severe hypothyroidism patients. Some however still complain of persisting symptoms like depression, muscle aches or lethargy, signs that we cannot replace nature as hard as we try to.