9 Sneaky Thyroid Toxins Hiding in Your Home Dr Izabella Wentz, PharmD

SYNTHROID® (levothyroxine sodium) tablets, for oral use is a prescription, man-made thyroid hormone that is used to treat a condition called hypothyroidism in adults and children, including infants. It is meant to replace a hormone that is usually made by your thyroid gland. Generally, thyroid replacement treatment is to be taken for life. Note that weight gain is a symptom of hypothyroidism (low levels of thyroid hormones), which Synthroid is used to treat.

• You won’t experience symptoms of overdose for that long, however, but it may take you some time to find the correct dose because of this.
• If your dose is too low then you will tend to feel depressed or suffer from depression.
• While most women tolerate the different generics just fine, some may have a reaction to the other ingredients used in the pills.
• These improvements can be life-changing for people, and my clients and readers who follow liver support protocols are always amazed at their results.

If you do the math (7 days x 5 half-lives) you find that Synthroid will be in your system for a total of about 35 days. It may be that taking a higher dose of Synthroid increases your risk of both osteoporosis and atrial fibrillation, but the risk may only increase from say 1% up to 3-4% per person per year. The absolute risk is not well defined and there are some studies that show that suppressing the TSH does NOT cause these conditions (5), but they are still important to consider for each person.

When you make this change, you might start to absorb higher levels of thyroid medication. Your thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) level should be checked every six to eight weeks after beginning thyroid hormone replacement until the correct level is achieved. It also should be checked after changing the brand, formulation, or dose of your medication. In some cases, the symptoms and side effects of taking too much levothyroxine are similar to those of hypothyroidism. For example, you may feel more exhausted than usual, achy (as if you have the flu), or jittery and anxious.

Reasons You Have Symptoms of Too Much Thyroid Medication

Dr Bernet served as the past president of the American Thyroid Association from 2020 to 2021 and is a retired colonel in the US Army Medical Corps with over 21 years of active-duty service. With numerous peer-reviewed publications, including an article examining the quality of thyroid supplements on the market, he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to this important discussion. Most people, including me, get their Synthroid from their local drugstore or a mail-order pharmacy. But if you want to buy Synthroid online, make sure to get a prescription from your doctor and use a licensed pharmacy, which means you’ll have access to a licensed pharmacist in case you have questions. Dr. Friedman echoes this advice and encourages patients to read the site’s privacy and security policies to ensure their information is kept private.

Synthroid (Levothyroxine): Side effects, Interactions, and Overdose

These interactions can be avoided if levothyroxine is taken at least 30–60 minutes before consuming any of these foods and beverages. It’s generally safe to drinkalcohol as long as the alcohol is not consumed at the same time as the levothyroxine dose. Talk with your doctor if you have weight changes while taking Synthroid.

So anytime you mess with your hormone levels you have the potential for a real headache. That said, many women find their chronic headaches improve once the Synthroid kicks in. If your negative symptoms persist despite implementing steps 1–3, your gut may need more attention. In this case, check out my book Healthy Gut, Healthy You where I lay out my Great-in-8 action plan for gut healing. It synthroid metamucil walks you through several small changes that you can make to boost the effectiveness of your medication without the need to get a new prescription or take a higher dose. You should be aware, though, that each dose of levothyroxine will stay in your system for about 4 weeks total (4).

“Because it mimics the hormones your body makes naturally, side effects of Synthroid are more often from having the wrong dosage than from the drug itself,” she says. Chances are, they’ll do some thyroid function blood tests and ask you about your symptoms to determine how to adjust your medication. Women with subclinical hypothyroidism who are pregnant or struggling with infertility can benefit from temporary thyroid hormone replacement 8 9. However, if overt hypothyroidism after childbirth isn’t present, continuing hormone replacement can lead to hyperthyroid symptoms. You might have too much levothyroxine in your body if you’ve recently been pregnant. You may need to be prescribed a higher dose of medication than you usually take during this time.

Synthroid Overdose: Signs & Symptoms You’re Taking too Much

Levothyroxine is the #1 most prescribed thyroid medication on the market and one of the most commonly prescribed medications period. You can treat overdose symptoms usually by simply reducing your dose of thyroid medication. Most people, when they look at their thyroid lab tests, focus solely on the TSH as a marker of thyroid function. I’ve found that these 10 foods cause the most problems for thyroid patients. Learn which foods you should avoid if you have thyroid disease of any type. Research suggests that eating seaweed once or twice a week is likely safe.

Drugs that contain estrogens, such as hormone replacement medications and oral contraceptive pills, can also interfere with thyroid hormone requirements. When you stop taking them, your body might need more or less thyroid medication than when you were taking them. One situation where this could occur would be if you cut back on your fiber intake.

Common brand names of levothyroxine in the US include Synthroid, Levoxyl, Unithroid, and Tirosint. Gut conditions can mimic the symptoms of hypothyroidism, leading patients and prescribers to believe there isn’t enough thyroid hormone. Before increasing levothyroxine, it’s important to check thyroid hormone levels with thyroid function tests 2.