Guest guest Posted April 7, 2010 Report Share Posted April 7, 2010 > > Bee, > Im sorry for all the questions. I have a few more. > I ordered the vitamin C you suggested by now. It is sustained release and it does not have the ingiedents that natural factors does. Is it still ok? +++Hi Ruth. Sustained release supplements are't the same as " time released " - notice that it is done with a small amount of Rose Hips. I also found niacin 50 mg by carlesons labs. It does not say it is no flush, however it says it is niacin and not niacinmide. Is this ok? +++Yes, it is labels it as Niacin (Vitamin B3) it is okay. What kind of coffee is ok for enemas? I know it has to be organic,but does it have to be a certain variety or...? +++You don't have to use organic coffee; you can use regular caffeinated coffee if you wish. Also I have been using a britta pitcher for my well water. I really dont like the taste of the water. Have you ever heard of the wellness carafe? Can you please go to www.globalhealingcenter.com and check it out for me. Please tell me if this is garbage or a scam or worth the money.Thank for all your help! +++That water filter is good. It may be worth the money if it helps make the water taste better. Cheers, Bee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Hi everyone, I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the clarification. Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 hours before taking calcium or other supplements. One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does it make a difference? When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining function, so it doesn't get any worse? Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful to have this place to learn and share information and support. Barbara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Thanks Roni. I appreciate your reply, however my doctor has prescribed Levothyroxin, which is just one pill. When I asked him about natural hormones he said they don't work as well as what he prescribed, and cause other problems. So I don't take T3 or T4, unless that's what's in the prescription. Barbara More Questions hypothyroidism Date: Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 8:35 PM Hi everyone, I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the clarification. Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 hours before taking calcium or other supplements. One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does it make a difference? When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining function, so it doesn't get any worse? Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful to have this place to learn and share information and support. Barbara ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Yes, if you are able to convert Ft4 to Ft3 then a T4 med is all you would need.  Betty Thanks Betty, but I'm so new to this I don't even know what that means. It must be what my doctor thinks I need, since it's all he prescribed. However, I'm supposed to go back in 6 weeks to see if a higher or lower dose is required. Barb More Questions hypothyroidism Date: Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 8:35 PM Hi everyone, I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the clarification. Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 hours before taking calcium or other supplements. One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does it make a difference? When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining function, so it doesn't get any worse? Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful to have this place to learn and share information and support. Barbara ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 I know it sounds strange but I don't worry about any of that. I take the pill with 4 others every night. I don't worry about whether I've just eaten or am about to eat. I don't even think about whether the cabbage in my slaw is " good " for me or not. And I don't have any problems; but YMMV. I do try to avoid soy after I found out what a negative concoction it is; however that is quite impossible unless you grow your own food. I read somewhere it's in way over half of every product on your grocery shelf; I don't know if that's true or not. I do know that it's not always labeled as soy, and that is legal believe it or not. Some things [calcium, iron?] can have very negative effects upon absorption IIRC so I guess we should avoid those for a few hours. Other than that if you typically eat or take something that reduces absorption by, say, 25% then you just need to take 25% more to make up for it. The half life of T4 is IIRC about a week so any " bumps " in your absorption tend to be somewhat smoothed out I suspect. OTOH if I were having any kind of problems with symptoms I would hasten to pay much more attention to the recommendations; and that probably would be a good idea for me and everybody anyway. I guess I'm just lazy and stubborn! [ggg] Regards, .. .. > > > Posted by: " macbarb0503@... " macbarb0503@... > <mailto:macbarb0503@...?Subject=%20Re%3AMore%20Questions> > westieabbey <westieabbey> > > > Wed Aug 25, 2010 8:36 pm (PDT) > > > > Hi everyone, > > I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's > also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two > before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the > clarification. > > Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it > strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait > before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 > hours before taking calcium or other supplements. > > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? > And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only > had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high > and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this > Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does > it make a difference? > > When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had > stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I > understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next > discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and > that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to > know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular > lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining > function, so it doesn't get any worse? > > Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful > to have this place to learn and share information and support. > > Barbara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Levothyroxine is T4. If your body wil convert properly, then it will definitely help you. If not, then you'll have to post here with results from a new set of tests, FreeT3, FreeT4 and TSH. Good luck. <>Roni Immortality exists! It's called knowledge! Just because something isn't seen doesn't mean it's not there<> From: macbarb0503@... <macbarb0503@...> Subject: More Questions hypothyroidism Date: Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 8:35 PM Hi everyone, I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the clarification. Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 hours before taking calcium or other supplements. One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does it make a difference? When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining function, so it doesn't get any worse? Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful to have this place to learn and share information and support. Barbara ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Hi, Barbara. Please see below... .. .. > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? > And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only > had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high > and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this > Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does > it make a difference? .. .. IMHO the risk is extremely small; but probably large enough to consider it. You might talk it over with your doctor whenever you're considering any such thing. Personally I suspect the risk/reward ratio is such that a reasonable number of exposures are well worth the risk. Consider what would happen, for example, if you DIDN'T have a mammogram that could have caught early stage cancer. There's often a risk associated with not doing as well as for doing many things. .. .. > > When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had > stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I > understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next > discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and > that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to > know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular > lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining > function, so it doesn't get any worse? .. .. First, 25 mcg is a very small starter dose. It might [but probably won't] suffice if you have most of your thyroid function left; but it usually doesn't work that way. What often happens is that you get hypothyroidism from one of several possibilities: Hashimoto's, tumors, a pituitary or other cause. Pituitary problems are pretty rare IMHO. Tumors are for the most part benign, although a small percentage are not. I suspect Hashimoto's is the biggest cause but I don't know the numbers. Hashimoto's can be diagnosed by testing for antibodies in your blood and your doctor should have done that I'd think. Hashimoto's can be difficult, largely because it can wax and wan. When that happens your thyroxin output from your thyroid can vary widely. That means what you need to take in the form of T4 can vary greatly, so it's hard to hit that moving target to get you the level you need. Typically Hashimoto's eventually destroys your thyroid completely and there's nothing you can do about it. But once that happens you then need a full replacement dose several times larger than you're taking now and it should remain MOL constant over long periods of time. You can with some level of success treat tumors and pituitary problems and seek a cure. There is no cure for Hashimoto's; but once the process is completed IMHO it's probably the best of the not so good choices. You can buy any number of supplements and other concoctions to " support " your thyroid gland. They don't work above chance or placebo; sorry. You might post your lab results here; please include ranges. If you don't have a full hypothyroidism panel I'd suggest you ask your doctor to do one. Be sure to include free T3 and free T4 as well as RT3 as well as Hashimoto's antibodies. Best, > Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful > to have this place to learn and share information and support. > > Barbara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Levothyroxin is T4. <>Roni Immortality exists! It's called knowledge! Just because something isn't seen doesn't mean it's not there<> From: macbarb0503@... <macbarb0503@...> Subject: More Questions hypothyroidism Date: Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 8:35 PM Hi everyone, I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the clarification. Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 hours before taking calcium or other supplements. One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does it make a difference? When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining function, so it doesn't get any worse? Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful to have this place to learn and share information and support. Barbara ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Thanks Re:More Questions I know it sounds strange but I don't worry about any of that. I take the pill with 4 others every night. I don't worry about whether I've just eaten or am about to eat. I don't even think about whether the cabbage in my slaw is " good " for me or not. And I don't have any problems; but YMMV. Regards, .. .. > > > Posted by: " macbarb0503@... " macbarb0503@... > <mailto:macbarb0503@...?Subject=%20Re%3AMore%20Questions> > westieabbey <westieabbey> > > > Wed Aug 25, 2010 8:36 pm (PDT) > > > > Hi everyone, > > I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's > also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two > before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the > clarification. > > Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it > strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait > before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 > hours before taking calcium or other supplements. > > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? > And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only > had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high > and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this > Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does > it make a difference? > > When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had > stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I > understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next > discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and > that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to > know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular > lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining > function, so it doesn't get any worse? > > Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful > to have this place to learn and share information and support. > > Barbara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 26, 2010 Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 Well that clears things up a lot. Thanks Ronnie. More Questions hypothyroidism Date: Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 8:35 PM Hi everyone, I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the clarification. Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait before eating. It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 hours before taking calcium or other supplements. One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. I've only had one of my chest area, but wonder if they started thescan too high and damaged my thyroid. After being diagnosed with this Hypothyroidism, would it be wise to avoid cat scans completely, or does it make a difference? When my doctor first discussed this with me he said my thyroid had stopped producing the hormones it was supposed to be producing, which I understood to mean it wasn't functioning at all. In our next discussion I asked him again, and he said he had caught it early and that's why he prescribed 25 MCG of Levothyroxxin. So what I'd like to know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining function, so it doesn't get any worse? Thanks to all of you who have responded to my questions. I'm grateful to have this place to learn and share information and support. Barbara ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 CT scans are probably good tests to avoid, unless no other test will work. The one and only time I had one, I said I didn't want it, but the person who administered the scan in the emergency room scared me into taking it. She led me to believe it was necessary to rule out a life threatening condition. Sometimes I think it has more to do with the money the insurance company pays for the test. In a message dated 8/26/2010 10:57:12 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, matchermaam@... writes: The only thing is that CT scans are very high in radiation. { Exposures above the threshold leave patients vulnerable to increased long-term risk of cancer. As a point of comparison, one chest CT is around 10 millisieverts of radiation and a traditional chest X-ray only 0.02 millisieverts.} Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 macbarb0503@... wrote: > > > Hi everyone, > > I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's > also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two > before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the > clarification. > Wait one hour after taking the pills before eating. If you eat something first, you need to wait at least two hours after eating. > > Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it > strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait > before eating. > They figure if they tell you to take it first thing in the morning, you already have an empty stomach. Some people find they sleep better taking it at night, in which case they need to wait two hours after the last snack or meal. > It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 > hours before taking calcium or other supplements. > Calcium, iron, and selenium all form complexes with T4 that prevent it from functioning. This can happen even after you have absorbed it, which is why they recommend a long four hours. > > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? > And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. > The risk would be for thyroid cancer, rather than hypoT. However, the exposure even from a cardiac cath procedure (like an X-ray movie) is still too low to make a significant risk. I would only be concerned if you had to have a daily CAT exposure for an extended period. > ... So what I'd like to > know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular > lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining > function, so it doesn't get any worse? > Unfortunately, no. Autoimmune conditions are difficult to predict, prevent, or even just slow down. We do know that excess iodine can aggravate or accelerate a thyroid autoimmune (Hashimoto's) attack. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 macbarb0503@... wrote: > > > Thanks Roni. I appreciate your reply, however my doctor has prescribed > Levothyroxin, which is just one pill. ...So I don't take T3 or T4, > unless that's what's > in the prescription. > Levothyroxine IS T4. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 That would be T4; your body uses it to make T3. It's all most of us need. Regards, .. .. > Posted by: " macbarb0503@... " macbarb0503@... > <mailto:macbarb0503@...?Subject=%20Re%3A%20More%20Questions> > westieabbey <westieabbey> > > > Thu Aug 26, 2010 7:26 am (PDT) > > > > Thanks Roni. I appreciate your reply, however my doctor has prescribed > Levothyroxin, which is just one pill. When I asked him about natural > hormones he said they don't work as well as what he prescribed, and > cause other problems. So I don't take T3 or T4, unless that's what's > in the prescription. > > Barbara > > Re: More Questions > > Hi, I hope this answers your questions about when to take T4 (any > brand). As for T3 if you take it alone and not in a combo pill like > Armour or Naturethroid, you don't have to worry about eating. > > http://www.drugs.com/pdr/synthroid.html > <http://www.drugs.com/pdr/synthroid.html> > > <>Roni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 The only thing is that CT scans are very high in radiation. { Exposures above the threshold leave patients vulnerable to increased long-term risk of cancer. As a point of comparison, one chest CT is around 10 millisieverts of radiation and a traditional chest X-ray only 0.02 millisieverts.} <>Roni Immortality exists! It's called knowledge! Just because something isn't seen doesn't mean it's not there<> > > > Hi everyone, > > I'm confused by what seem to be conflicting posts I've read here. It's > also possible I misunderstood. Is it necessary to wait one hour or two > before eating, after taking medication in the morning? Thanks for the > clarification. > Wait one hour after taking the pills before eating. If you eat something first, you need to wait at least two hours after eating. > > Since taking the pills on an empty stomach is important, I find it > strange that the prescription bottle doesn't specify how long to wait > before eating. > They figure if they tell you to take it first thing in the morning, you already have an empty stomach. Some people find they sleep better taking it at night, in which case they need to wait two hours after the last snack or meal. > It does say take with a full glass of water, and wait 4 > hours before taking calcium or other supplements. > Calcium, iron, and selenium all form complexes with T4 that prevent it from functioning. This can happen even after you have absorbed it, which is why they recommend a long four hours. > > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? > And what about cat scans? They are very high in radiation. > The risk would be for thyroid cancer, rather than hypoT. However, the exposure even from a cardiac cath procedure (like an X-ray movie) is still too low to make a significant risk. I would only be concerned if you had to have a daily CAT exposure for an extended period. > ... So what I'd like to > know now, is if I take the medication as prescribed and have regular > lab tests as suggested, is there a way to preserve the remaining > function, so it doesn't get any worse? > Unfortunately, no. Autoimmune conditions are difficult to predict, prevent, or even just slow down. We do know that excess iodine can aggravate or accelerate a thyroid autoimmune (Hashimoto's) attack. Chuck ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 Mammograms can cause breast cancer. You can google search for more articles, etc, but here is a comprehensive link: http://www.naturalnews.com/010886.html Better to have thermograms. Ultrasound and sonogram are also safer choices. Sam [...] > > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 That's interesting reading Sam. Thanks. Barb Re: More Questions Mammograms can cause breast cancer. You can google search for more articles, etc, but here is a comprehensive link: http://www.naturalnews.com/010886.html Better to have thermograms. Ultrasound and sonogram are also safer choices. Sam [...] > > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 I have medicare. I would love NOT to get mammograms. Will medicare pay for the thermograms ultrasound and sonograms? Are there any special circumstances that will induce them to pay or not pay? <>Roni Immortality exists! It's called knowledge! Just because something isn't seen doesn't mean it's not there<> From: Sam . <k9gang@...> Subject: Re: More Questions hypothyroidism Date: Friday, August 27, 2010, 9:22 AM Mammograms can cause breast cancer. You can google search for more articles, etc, but here is a comprehensive link: http://www.naturalnews.com/010886.html Better to have thermograms. Ultrasound and sonogram are also safer choices. Sam [...] > > One other thing I've wondered about is mamograms. Since one possible > cause of hypothyroidism is radiation, wouldn't continuing to have > mamograms every year, lessen any remaining function of the thyroid? ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 Roni Molin wrote: > > > The only thing is that CT scans are very high in radiation. > > { Exposures above the threshold leave patients vulnerable to increased > long-term risk of cancer. As a point of comparison, one chest CT is > around 10 millisieverts of radiation and a traditional chest X-ray > only 0.02 millisieverts.} > There is no threshold and no documented evidence of any connection between CT scans and cancer rates. Estimated elevated rates due to CT exposures are still only speculation. 10 millisieverts per scan should be compared to the allowed annual exposure for workers, which is 50 millisieverts or 500 millisieverts to extremities. It could become an issue if for some reason you get many CT scans in a short period. In contrast, a typical cine-cath procedure can produce about 25,000 millisieverts per minute. Of course, this is focused on a smaller region and is not a whole-body exposure, but it is still substantial. In contrast a CT scan is pretty tame. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 The problem with radiation is that it pretty much stays there and accumulates. In view of this, I'd rather get none or a little as is possible. I'm aware we all get radiation every day from electornics, riding in a plane etc. I can't help these oher sources, but if I can avoid a CT scan and can do something else instead, I will. I hope your boy is doing well. I know how awful it is when your child is ill. I wish him all the best. <>Roni Immortality exists! It's called knowledge! Just because something isn't seen doesn't mean it's not there<> > > > The only thing is that CT scans are very high in radiation. > > { Exposures above the threshold leave patients vulnerable to increased > long-term risk of cancer. As a point of comparison, one chest CT is > around 10 millisieverts of radiation and a traditional chest X-ray > only 0.02 millisieverts.} > There is no threshold and no documented evidence of any connection between CT scans and cancer rates. Estimated elevated rates due to CT exposures are still only speculation. 10 millisieverts per scan should be compared to the allowed annual exposure for workers, which is 50 millisieverts or 500 millisieverts to extremities. It could become an issue if for some reason you get many CT scans in a short period. In contrast, a typical cine-cath procedure can produce about 25,000 millisieverts per minute. Of course, this is focused on a smaller region and is not a whole-body exposure, but it is still substantial. In contrast a CT scan is pretty tame. Chuck ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 27, 2010 Report Share Posted August 27, 2010 Roni Molin wrote: > > > I have medicare. I would love NOT to get mammograms. Will medicare pay > for the thermograms ultrasound and sonograms? Are there any special > circumstances that will induce them to pay or not pay? > Probably not for early screening. Ultrasound (=sonogram) has mainly been used historically to determine how solid a palpable nodule is. Although there have been recent advances, it still has a much higher miss rate than the X-ray for early screening. It is apparently considered a good adjunct technique but not for primary detection. MRI, OTOH, can detect early tumors, but it does not detect calcification, which is one of the main indicators of trouble in a mammogram. MRI is also much more expensive. That might stop your insurance even if it had superior performance. While there is controversy whether the increased cancer risk attached to a mammogram offsets the risk of not detecting cancer early, the relatively small size of both risks (for any one procedure) shows that reality is a long way from " Mammograms cause breast cancer. " A similar trade off is supposed to be considered for every use of X-rays, including dental images. Since the risk is cumulative, and the increment decreases with age, the argument mainly takes the form of how often you should get one at each age. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 28, 2010 Report Share Posted August 28, 2010 Roni, You wrote: > > > > ...I hope your boy is doing well. I know how awful it is when your > child is ill. I wish him all > the best. > Thanks. We also just found out yesterday our hypoT dog of 11 years has lymphoma. So, we sleep in shifts. The dog gets 800 mcg of Synthroid a day, BTW. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 28, 2010 Report Share Posted August 28, 2010 Chuck, I'm not sure I understand exactly what you mean by: Since the risk is cumulative, and the increment decreases with age, the argument mainly takes the form of how often you should get one at each age. Does this mean as we get older we could sustain more xrays or less? <>Roni Immortality exists! It's called knowledge! Just because something isn't seen doesn't mean it's not there<> > > > I have medicare. I would love NOT to get mammograms. Will medicare pay > for the thermograms ultrasound and sonograms? Are there any special > circumstances that will induce them to pay or not pay? > Probably not for early screening. Ultrasound (=sonogram) has mainly been used historically to determine how solid a palpable nodule is. Although there have been recent advances, it still has a much higher miss rate than the X-ray for early screening. It is apparently considered a good adjunct technique but not for primary detection. MRI, OTOH, can detect early tumors, but it does not detect calcification, which is one of the main indicators of trouble in a mammogram. MRI is also much more expensive. That might stop your insurance even if it had superior performance. While there is controversy whether the increased cancer risk attached to a mammogram offsets the risk of not detecting cancer early, the relatively small size of both risks (for any one procedure) shows that reality is a long way from " Mammograms cause breast cancer. " A similar trade off is supposed to be considered for every use of X-rays, including dental images. Since the risk is cumulative, and the increment decreases with age, the argument mainly takes the form of how often you should get one at each age. Chuck ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 28, 2010 Report Share Posted August 28, 2010 Oh, it really doesn't only rain but pours. My DIL's aunt died last year, then her father and then their dog got cancer and finally had to be put to sleep. I'm so sorry for what you are going through. Thank you so much for giving your time to this group in spite of the problems you and your family have now. <>Roni Immortality exists! It's called knowledge! Just because something isn't seen doesn't mean it's not there<> > > > > ...I hope your boy is doing well. I know how awful it is when your > child is ill. I wish him all > the best. > Thanks. We also just found out yesterday our hypoT dog of 11 years has lymphoma. So, we sleep in shifts. The dog gets 800 mcg of Synthroid a day, BTW. Chuck ------------------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 28, 2010 Report Share Posted August 28, 2010 Roni, You wrote: > > > I'm not sure I understand exactly what you mean by: > > Since the risk is cumulative, and the increment > decreases with age, the argument mainly takes the form of how often you > should get one at each age. > > > Does this mean as we get older we could sustain more xrays or less? > Yes, sensitivity to (and risk from) radiation exposure decreases with age. OTOH, risk of developing any cancer increases with age. So, the number of mammograms recommended increases with age, as risk from the procedure goes down, but risk from not doing the procedure goes up. The older you are, the less risk radiation poses. This is why the unborn need to be protected more than an older person from radiation. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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