Any connection between Under Active Thyroid and weight gain?

I am another Underactive Thyroid sufferer, and I put on 4 stones before I

was diagnosed. I then lost 3 stones by serious dieting, but have since put

on 2 stones again. It`s a nightmare trying to lose weight with this Thyroid

problem. It`s so much easier to put the weight on than to lose it.

I have read the posts on underactive thyroid with interest - I have had to take thyroxine for the last 6 years and my weight gradually crept up, and I have found it very difficult to keep below 11st.
In America they apparently believe that just supplementing with thyroxine l is not enough and you need iodine supplements too.
I asked at the doctors' and the chemists and got a sort of 'you don't want to go there' brush-off with no real explanation.
I have however started using iodised salt for cooking and putting on food, and since Christmas have lost half a stone, and had to go out last week to buy a new pair of (smaller) jeans.
Of course I have no way of knowing whether my weight loss is due to the iodised salt, or the fact that I retired at Christmas and now spend most of my time gardening , walking and playing tennis
Anyone know anything about the iodine connection?

I agree that being a bit heavier as you get older helps if you are ill. My mum who is 88 has always been very slim, unlike me! When she became depressed after her younger sister died, she virtually stopped eating and buried herself in a darkened room for months.
She eventually became so disoriented that she started falling over and then two years of broken bones and hospital visits started. She was down to nothing and we feared and assumed she would just fade away.

Then something weird happened! She had a series of mini strokes due to infections and was completely out of her head for ages poor thing.... But she seemed to forget that she didn't eat and once we got her stabilised, she started eating like there is no tomorrow and almost stuffs food in. She is eating better than she has for years, is getting stronger and has more energy. She is able to take various tablets with no problem when she has always found it difficult to swallow. She iis forgetful and still in an EMI unit but she is looking better and fighting off infections better as time goes on.

Great news! My thyroid is back to normal (don't know why it was suspect in the first place ) so no need for further testing. Sounds daft but I was disappointed at first as I had convinced myself that it was the reason for my lack of weight loss [wishful thinking emoticon!] but obviously I am delighted as the experiences that some of you have had make me shudder !!!
The lack of weight loss has now to be tackled with the help of the weekly weigh-in thread!
Good luck and to all you thyroid sufferers, my heart goes out to you all.

Hot off the press! Saw the doctor today as I'm due to have another blood test to check thyroxine levels (I have an under-active thyroid).

She told me that latest research suggests that doctors are now being urged to lower the doses of thyroxine because there is a link between high doses and brittle bone disease. You can't win, can you?

PS: I am on 125 mc of thyroxine at the moment. I was on 150 mc. The GP will probably reduce it to 100 mc and I'll just keep piling on the pounds. Oh dear. And it's nearly time for lunch ...

Both my mum and dad were very slim all their lives. As they hit their 80s they got thinner and thinner - and as said below, when they got ill they had absolutely no reserves whatsoever. They were both like mummies when they died, just bones.

I've also heard that it's good for older women to have more body fat than when they were younger because of the fat cells' relationship to (especially female) hormone production. This helps in preventing some of the arthritic conditions, or something. Sorry, my knowledge is a bit vague, but I've seen/heard this a few times.

I know. I tell a lot of people that and it cheers them up no end! But it really is her experience and a friend of ours once broke a jaw and did he loose weight! Sipping soup through a straw for a couple of weeks. Unfortunately he was only 35, quite slim and had such a good appetite.

Your niece has made me feel much better already, charlotta. What a lovely girl. But the trouble is I'm 2 stone heavier than I should be Off to have some lunch!

You niece's view has made my morning charlotta! I'm sure she's right. It is good to be a stone heavier now than when we were 21. As my dear old mum used to say: "If you're ill, you need something to fall back on." Think I'll have a chocolate later ...

yes jessM that was an interesting article but most of what was listed in the older people symptoms I have quite regularly just because I'm over 70.
My thyroid was tested and not only the blood test, and found to be OK. I thought it was over active but it wasn't.

There are so many reasons for gaining weight and it is hard to get rid of once its on. The way forward is really only to eat less but that means doing without treats and comforts for the rest of your life and who wants that?

My niece is a nurse and she says it is good to be a stone heavier than when you were 21, because once in hospital with a really serious illness you will lose weight very quickly indeed and the thin ones suffer then from that.

This is a link to a publication by Harvard Medical school (their publication arm)
It is about thyroid conditions and aimed at patients.
I bought one of these online booklets once and found it quite good - written by doctors so occasionally strayed into the zone of "too much detail"
There is some free info and you usually have to pay a bit for the whole booklet.

view.mail.health.harvard.edu/?j=fe551679776302747117&m=febb15747d630d7a&ls=fdd215727360077a7614717465&l=fe5615777c6c037a7714&s=fe23157871640374731c71&jb=ffcf14&ju=fe2317737d6d0574711271&r=0

I have an Underactive thyroid have had for many a long year. In some way's I am lucky because I am 5ft 3" and only weigh 8stone 1lb, yes it is an under active thryroid. I had a over active thyroid when I was 21years old. I had an operation for it. I have all the other symptom's that go with an Underactive thyroid, but the high dose of throxine I am on certainly helps.

sba nothing like yours but I do have low blood pressure. I wonder if there is any conection with hypothyroidism? I just think how lucky I am but wouldn't if it was as bad as yours. Occasionally I take mine as DH has to monitor his and the other day we wondered if I was dead!

Thanks jeni

Vasovagal

Thank you all for all your input - it all made fascinating reading and I will take it all on board and bear it all in mind when I phone for my results at the end of the week.
AlisonMA I have been following your posts on the weigh-in thread with interest for several weeks - your experience sounds horrific and I am so pleased all is now sorted for you.
Those who have read my threads in the past will know I suffer from occasional vaselvagel (?spelling?) episodes when, for some unexplainable reason, my BP suddenly drops and I hit the deck. Normally I am 'out of it' for a few minutes but quickly recover. I feel rough for about 24hrs, then a 'bit under par' for the next 24hrs but after that I am fine again.
Following my last episode, which I admit was more intense than normal, I was rough for the first 24hrs, under par for the next 24hrs but never actually felt 100%. I am normally very active with work and my regular gym/swim sessions etc but I couldn't shake off the lethargy and extreme tiredness which is why the GP ordered all the original blood tests.
It looks like there are many of us in the same boat and the magic solution to my inability to lose weight does not lie here! I am now on MFP and I will persevere!
If I find the magic solution you will ALL be the first to know!

Yep, same here. I think it depends on how quickly ti is diagnosed and treated. Min was not diagnosed for a few years, and by then I had put a lot of weight on. I have lost some, 1 stone and a 1/2, since being on Thyroxine, very slowly, but seems stuck now.

Yes under active thyroid causes weight gain, it also alters the texture of your skin and makes you feel sluggish.

I'm another person with an under-active thyroid gland and have been on medication for about ten years and have regular blood tests. I was 9 stone for most of my adult life until the thyroid problem started affecting my health pretty badly and I was given a diagnosis. I put on 2 stone and simply haven't been able to shift this unwanted weight, despite healthy diet, swimming, busy life, etc. etc. So annoying. I thoughy the thyroxine would do the trick and the weight would fall off. But that doesn't seem to happen, so I have learnt to live with being bigger than I'd like.

Sorry. That's not very helpful to those of you who have just been diagnosed or are waiting for blood test results. Perhaps there are some gransnetters out there for whom thyroxine has helped with weight loss. If so, please let the rest of us know!

HI sba please read my comments on the latest and previous weigh ins.

My expereince is that it is very difficult to diagnose hypothyroidism. I was told for several years that I was depressed and that there was nothing wrong with my thyroid despite my mother having had problems. Eventually I was sent back to hospital and saw a different consultant who was surprised that the original one had not further investigated by 'partly retro-sternal thyroid'. The thyroid gland is supposed to be about the size of a butterfly but mine had grown into an enormous one deep down into my breast and was causing breathlessness. He referred me to a surgeon because it had to come out straight away. All this time the tests were saying I was fine.

The reason the thyroid grows is because it is not working properly and tries to make what it needs by getting bigger. Apologies to Jeni and all the medics if I am putting this badly!

GPs tend to rely on the TSH figures but mine have always been a problem and I was put on 50 mcg of thyroxin and felt dreadful. This is a very low dose even for someone who still has a thyroid! I went to see an edocrinologist who did loads of tests and told me to double the dose and rely on how I felt rather than the tests.

All the above is to show you that there is no majic solution, you and your GP will have to work together on this.

I think part of the weight gain from hypothyroidism is the way you feel and so you excercise less energetically and perhaps eat more than you need. I don't think it is all down to the lack of hormone.

I now can only eat a very small amount and am now under 1000 calories a day and losing weight very, very slowly. I find MFP very helpful for recording what I actually eat and encouraging by showing me the value of all the excercise.

Good luck and don't give up.

The thyroid hormone regulates your metabolism - a little more and your metabolism speeds up, a little less and it slows down. When it speeds up you burn up chemical energy (calories) faster. When is slows down the reverse - and also low thyroid levels can make you generally feel less energetic and active - so burn even less.
With any medication like this it is hard to get it just right for some people

Definitely contributes to inability to lose weight once it has been gained. It may take a while to find the correct dose that makes you feel better. Drs here tend to take the TSH levels as being the main indicator and the 'norm' is stated to be between 0.5 and 5. In the USA the 'norm' for TSH is between 0.3 and 3. You need to really know what your T4 and T3 levels are also.

In my case, had TSH levels in the 30's on diagnosis (no wonder felt absolutely rubbish) and since then they have fluctuated - sometimes going as low as 9 (where still felt terrible) and sometimes going as high as 54 (when felt that couldn't do anything)!

There are some very good books available - there's even a Dummy's Guide to the Thyroid that you can get in Smiths or any other good bookstore.

It is amazing how such a tiny organ can affect our bodies, our wellbeing and our whole outlook!

I've been on thyroxine for a couple of years now and am also finding it difficult to lose the weight I gained [possibly because I loathe exercise as well - see other threads!]. I still get occasional bouts of real tiredness too and can't do as much as I think I ought. This could be an age thing but could also be attributed to the fact that I am a busy person outside the home. Perhaps it would help if I did some housework - I've heard that's good exercise!

I had the opposite problem, a hyperactive thyroid, but when I was on medication (Carbimazole) which slowed everything down, I gained about 2 stone. It seems you can't win either way with thyroid!
I have been off the tablets for some time now but losing the extra pounds is proving difficult. I used the old Weight Watchers points method, following it to the letter and shifted 4 lb a week for the first 3 weeks then came to a standstill, where I am now, with 3 weeks weighing the same.
Good luck sbagran