Tsh Is 2.6 And My Doc Says It's Normal

[gatita]

I had my TSH tested recently. Came out to 2.6 and I keep reading that it should be close to 1. I pointed this out to my GI doc, that new studies say anything over 2 is hypothyroid. He repeated that it's normal and said our lab uses 4 or more as the standard.

I know very little about thyroid stuff so didn't feel I could argue with him.

What I want to know is, if I am slightly hypothyroid, what is the treatment? Can I deal with it through diet? Do I really need to take synthetic thyroid, or can I just live with it? What symptoms should I watch for?

Sorry for so many questions, this is new to me!

PS. No, he didn't order any other thyroid-related tests, just TSH. Insurance reasons, I guess.

[Takala]

Sigh. They always seem to do this. The equivalent of checking one tire on your car to see if they are all inflated. You should get a full panel of thyroid tests, including the antibodies, not just the hormone levels. Any doctor can do this, and it should be done because celiac auto immune disease and thyroid problems are known co- conditions. Then stick to the gluten free diet, if it still comes out "normal," and see if some of your symptoms resolve. I have read somewhere by a doctor- author that deals with a lot of this, that almost all celiacs are slightly under, or hypo, and then some of them go on to develop actual measurable thyroid disease.

If you have auto immune thyroid disease, you can have normal levels of thyroid hormone, on one or more of the different tests, as the swings back and forth, or up and down, will put your ranges technically within "normal" even if you are having the thyroid attacked by your own body, because it tries to compensate and pumps out more hormone.

Also, if you do take replacement hormone, be aware that some brands are no longer gluten free, the ultimate level of Catch-22 brought to you by Big Pharma.

[beachbirdie]

I had my TSH tested recently. Came out to 2.6 and I keep reading that it should be close to 1. I pointed this out to my GI doc, that new studies say anything over 2 is hypothyroid. He repeated that it's normal and said our lab uses 4 or more as the standard.

I know very little about thyroid stuff so didn't feel I could argue with him.

What I want to know is, if I am slightly hypothyroid, what is the treatment? Can I deal with it through diet? Do I really need to take synthetic thyroid, or can I just live with it? What symptoms should I watch for?

Sorry for so many questions, this is new to me!

PS. No, he didn't order any other thyroid-related tests, just TSH. Insurance reasons, I guess.

TSH is the first-line test they use to see if anything is out of whack with your thyroid. What they should be doing is TSH, Free T3 and Free T4. TSH is a measure of the pituitary hormone that gets secreted for the purpose of telling the thyroid gland to make thyroid hormone. As Takala said, your hormones can swing around quite a bit if you have autoimmune thyroid. Your TSH can swing around a good bit even if you DON'T have autoimmune thyroid.

You have a TSH number that would concern me though not alarm me (not a medical professional, just an experienced thyroid patient!).

If this doc won't test your thyroid hormones, find one who will. There are also places online you can order your own labs if you really want to get that info and can't get a doc on board, and they use the same laboratories your doc would use (such as LabCorp) so your doc can't say they are suspect.

[nvsmom]

TSH can vary pretty widely over a few days. Mine can change by 2.0 in only a couple of weeks. Because of that, and the doctors love of the TSH test, my hypothyroidism was ignored for well over a decade. I remember getting a TSH test done 11 years ago because I'd been taking my basal body temp (trying to get pg) and it would not go above 97F; my TSH was right around where yours was and since our lab range is 0.2-6.0 I was deemed perfectly normal. Grrr. I was uneducated about thyroid health at the time and didn't know to push for more tests.

See if you can get those other tests done... Your TSH is a bit high. I wouldn't be surprised if you are hypo.

Good luck!!

[MoMof2Boyz]

The high end of the range for TSH was recently changed to 5!! yes 5!!! You can order thyroid tests from www.canaryclub.org or as someone mention, find another doctor!

[gatita]

Thanks for all the enlightening tips!

 

My GI is very good on the gut stuff (so far) so I want to keep him for that... but for this issue, I think I will seek another specialist or do the home tests or both. Maybe the home temperature test once this #@!! cold is gone...

 

I never really considered this problem because even though I usually have a low temp and am always cold, I am in no way constipated (the opposite) and not fatigued....

[IrishHeart]

I have to add a different perspective here which illustrates Takala's example of a thyroid problem that resolves off gluten.  .

 

Before my celiac DX, my TSH was 5.3 and I was put on thyroid medication.(i had many symptoms that shouted HYPO)

It swung to 0.1 and I was hyperthyroid.

 

This created all sorts of symptoms for 2 years and made me jittery, sleepless and gave me hair loss

 

I saw another doctor who agreed with me that I did not need meds. Because I did not even have thyroid antibodies, I was being dosed with drugs I did not need and after DX and  off gluten,  my TSH , free T4 and T3 are all perfectly normal.

I have no symptoms of Hashi's (as they said I did) and the TSH is almost always between 1.8 and 2.6

These swings are not cause for alarm..

 

My temp has always been 96.5-97.5 

This is not always an indicator of thyroid disease.

 

I was always cold, even wearing a sweat suit in summer when I was quite ill before DX. That all resolved.

 

I believe the range is up to 3.0. Higher than that may require thyroid medication, but it depends on your symptoms and as Takala said, the antibodies test.

 

Yes, see an endocrinologist if you are concerned, but I am guessing she will say you're in optimum range.

 

Many members of my family (including my sister and mother) are hyper or hypo, had goiters, thyroidectomies and even thyroid cancer. Most are on meds. (and they are not gluten-free and refuse to be tested). but my thyroid seems to function perfectly now on its own.

[gatita]

Irish, that is very encouraging... I really don't want to go on medication, so maybe I should stop worrying and just stay the gluten-free course lol....

[IrishHeart]

This was just my experience of course, but unless you are experiencing hypo symptoms, IMHO, there's no point in worrying about it.

If you are concerned, see an endocrinologist. Ask for the antibodies test. Best wishes, hon!

[pricklypear1971]

The thing to remember is that IH doesn't have tpo antibodies (Hashimotos). You don't yet know if you do. There's a difference between the two.

Hashis will probably need treatment. Non AI thyroid issues can resolve. Hashis doesn't go away...it can be controlled. It doesn't go away.

So, first, find out if you have thyroid antibodies.

I understand you don't want meds, but if you do have a Hashis you probably will need them to feel better.

All that said, you could very well not have any thyroid issues. Could be something else.

[gatita]

Oh okay... well, once I get my colonoscopy/endoscopy out of the way (I keep picturing a chicken on a spit! ), I'll look into the antibodies questions.

 

I learn so much around here!!!

[beachbirdie]

Oh okay... well, once I get my colonoscopy/endoscopy out of the way (I keep picturing a chicken on a spit! ), I'll look into the antibodies questions.

 

I learn so much around here!!!

 

Hope you get sorted out in short order!