In my earlier post about circadian rhythms in thyroid health, I asked two quiz questions about TSH, FT3 and FT4 variability. First I asked “Which value varies the most during the day, a) TSH, b) Free T3 or c) Free… Read More ›
Healthy thyroid axis
Circadian rhythms of TSH, Free T4 and Free T3 in thyroid health
Let’s take a thyroid hormone rhythm quiz to get into this article. It’s only two questions long, and both questions and answers are in this introduction. Question #1. Which value varies the most during the day, a) TSH, b) Free… Read More ›
Visual bias: The pituitary gland in HPT axis diagrams
Too many diagrams focus on the “HPT axis,” in which the Hypothalamus, the Pituitary, and Thyroid gland are the biggest icons. Take for example this diagram from Ortiga-Carvalho’s chapter in a physiology textbook. The huge, super-ballsy pituitary. Seriously? In diagrams… Read More ›
Thyroid T3 secretion compensates for T4-T3 conversion
In health, what happens when you don’t convert enough T4 into T3 hormone? Your healthy thyroid secretes more T3. This is an aspect of the amazing adaptibility of the thyroid gland. However, a common generalization makes it sound like our… Read More ›
Relational Stability, part 3: Shifting TSH-T4-T3 relationships
Why are some people extremely hypothyroid while their TSH is above reference range, while others have no symptoms and are completely healthy? How important is the Free T3 test when diagnosing true “euthyroid” status within the TSH reference range? Is… Read More ›
Relational stability among thyroid hormones and TSH, part 1
In a series of posts, I’m sharing my plainer-English paraphrase of a very important article in thyroid science. My hope is that the public, doctors, and educated thyroid patients can better understand and appreciate its insights. This article by Dr…. Read More ›
The basics of thyroid hormone action, transport and conversion
This comprehensive educational post collects the basics of thyroid hormone, transport and conversion. T3 action on nuclear receptors Every organ and tissue in your body must maintain a healthy level of T3 hormone activity to function properly. Bloodstream T3 supply… Read More ›
The TSH-T3 disjoint in thyroid therapy
There’s a deep lie behind today’s TSH-based definition of “euthyroid” status and today’s policies of TSH normalization in therapy. The lie is that the loss of the thyroid and the initiation of thyroid hormone dosing has NOT altered and skewed… Read More ›