What distinguishes NDT medications?
It's the issue of "fillers"
Why are there fillers?
Why can’t medication manufacturers just put the thyroid in a pill and leave it at that?
Thyroid hormone is so very potent that the body only makes about 94-110 micrograms T4 and 10-22 micrograms T3 daily.
To appreciate how little this is, a milligram is less than a grain of salt, so 100 micrograms of T4 is one-tenth of that and 10 micrograms of T3 is one-onehundredth of that!
Therefore, if a thyroid medication has 38 micrograms of T4, you can appreciate how tiny an amount that is. That is why there are fillers.
At first manufacturers used cornstarch and other problematic fillers. Some people still have undesirable reactions to the fillers.
Check the ingredient list of your thyroid medication. You might be surprised what is in it!
Current commonly used fillers include:
Microcrystalline Cellulose
- synthetically derived fiber base
- utilized to provide volume and bulk
Dicalcium Phosphate
- derived from a mined ore
- utilized as a binder to hold all the ingredients together during tableting
Colloidal Silicon Dioxide
- derived from a mined ore
- utilized as a natural desiccant to ward off moisture and humidity
Sodium Starch Glycolate
- synthetically derived starch molecule
- utilized for proper disintegration of the tablet in the stomach
Magnesium Stearate
- derived from a vegetable source
- utilized as a lubricating agent so the tablet doesn’t stick to the molds
Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose
- derived from a plant cellulose base
- utilized to provide bulk and density to the tablet for proper compression
- also part of a clear coating solution
Polysorbate 80
- an inactive water soluable emulsifying agent
- blends the ingredients to prevents separating
Stearic Acid
- derived from a vegetable source
- utilized as a binder to hold all the ingredients together during compression
Carnauba Wax
- derived from the pores of the leaves of the Brazilian wax palm tree
- utilized to provide a complete seal in the final stage in tablet coating
Polyethylene Glycol (PEG)
- synthetically derived, water-soluble, waxy solid
- utilized with Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose as part of the clear coating solution
Lactose Monohydrate
- present in traceable amount as part of Thyroid USP
- diluent for the NDT powder
Whew! That's quite a list.
Is there an alternative?
Yes. RLC Labs is producing a “Pure” form of its Natural Dessicated Thyroid called WP Thyroid.
(It wasformerly called Westhroid-P.)
It only has two natural inactive ingredients:
- inulin from chicory root (a natural fiber)
- medium chain triglycerides from coconut (easily absorbable fats)
It is interesting to note that the formulations of the WesThroid and NaturThroid have been identical for years. They continue to make both because of name recognition.
It turned out that they were more easily able to gain an alteration of the WesThroid in order to make this new product.
Effective August 2013, RLC labs changed the name of the product form Westhroid-P to WP thyroid to minimize confusion between the existing Westhroid and Westhroid-P.
It may be available from pharmacies and some doctors offices. It is a prescription medication, so a doctor's prescription is necessary to obtain it.