Wishing to say something that may help all to understand proper usage of St. John's Wort within the realm of our modern world with its medicines, I point you all to a helpful website that discusses the Cytochrome p450 pathways. These are metabolic enzyme pathways, mostly in the liver, that our bodies utilize to "tag" molecules for elimination by the kidneys and also sometimes cause slower clearance of other molecules. So we talk about inducers and inhibitors as well as metabolism. Some of these substances, whether drugs, herbs, or even foods, affect other substances that come into our bodies by making them stronger or weaker in effect. For example, if a drug like paclitaxel, which is metabolized in CYP3A4 pathway is taken with St. John's Wort, a CYP3A4 inducer, the metabolism is speeded up and the drug clears from the body faster, making it less effective in killing cancer cells. The "side effects" may seem weaker because the effect of the drug is weaker. On the other hand, a form of Ginseng with a high concentration of ginsenoside Rh2, may act as a CYP3A4 inhibitor, making the metabolism of the paclitaxel slower, increasing thereby the effect of the drug. This also could cause a more noticeable "side effect." This is shown in cell culture studies that combined paclitaxel with Rh2. There may be other reasons why the IC50 increased (a measure of effectiveness in killing cancer cells in culture), but this is one of them. While we do have good data available from our pharmacies about cytochrome p450 pathways, the practitioners do not always have time to look things up. Recently, at an all-night pharmacy, I asked about a prescription I was picking up for a family member. That family member was considering taking either SJW or an SSRI, so I wanted to know about the reaction with cytochrome p450 and the new drug. The answer I got was curteous, but what was actually done was for the pharmacist to hand me the notes from the drug company that come in the package that the pharmacist uses to fill our bottles. I hesitate to think that most people might not ask about it and others who do may not know what the drug company's paper says. Of course, I want to be fair with the pharmacy. It was late at night. Maybe they take more time during the day. The website referenced below even mentions grapefruit juice and its effect. So be careful out there in your morning juice selection if you take drugs. I hope that my post helps with out marshalling the opposing sides too much. We all need to try to educate ourselves about the herbs and drugs that we take. I look forward to the day when the drug companies list the potential negative effects that their drugs may have on the herbs that I take. But I won't lose sleep waiting. Richard Here is a link that might be useful: Cytochrome p450 site

Hi there...popping in to conversations this evening. I'm hypo, but my issue is different. TSH tells your body to make T4 T4 converts to T3 and Reverse T3 T3 is works at the molecular level in your body. In the US, most doctors will tell you that Reverse T3 has no impact. Others will tell you that R T3 will impart your body's ability to absorb and use T3. So back to me....I don't convert T4 to T3 well. When I Finally found someone who would treat me, my RT3 was through the roof and my T3 was really low. My TSH and T4 were borderline. I was exhausted and had gained a lot of weight - including a 20lb weight gain over less than three months. I actually went to an endocrinologist who told me he could see something was wrong, but couldn't treat me because my TSH and T4 were both borderline normal. It took 10 years to find someone who would look beyond the standard tests and help me. I am on a compounded T3 only. T3 has a short uptake, so many doctors who prescribe it will have you get a compounded sustained release formula. I've tried Armour and supplementing with T4 with no benefits. It is also not uncommon for hypo patients to also be low D and B. Here are some resources that helped me finally understand the condition. Mary Shomon is a thyroid advocate and has written many books on the subject. Google her for a link to her website. Her site lead me to Holtorf Medical Group in Torrance, CA. Their website is Holtorfmed.com. This is where I first started getting treated. My only caution is that while they were more aggressive with testing and research, he seems to be pushing for the money and I was less impressed with the other doctors in the practice. That being said, the website has very valuable information.

Earthclinic.com is a great site. That's where I get the info. to treat my own eczema when doctor's prescribed medications failed. Here's some excerpts on treating one's hypothyroid: http://www.earthclinic.com/cures/hypothyroidism.html Posted by Mari (California) on 04/23/2014 "I've had an goiter for several years, but lab tests were always within normal. The right side of my thyroid is definitely larger than the left. Finally, one doctor did an antibody test and determined I have a diagnoses of Thyroiditis. I was always able to manage without meds, but a few months ago I started having trouble breathing at night and a couple of times had laryngospasms that were pretty frightening. I was pretty desperate to find something that would help with my symptoms and read quite a bit about Lugol's solution. I sent away for a bottle and began adding 1-2 drops to water once a day. I have been taking it for several weeks now and have noticed my goiter is shrinking and getting softer. I also have no more trouble breathing at night or laryngospasms. Lately, I've increased to 3 drops/day without difficulty. I've also noticed my skin problems have cleared up and I attribute that to the Lugol's too." Mari (California) From StrawChicago: Doctors often resort to surgical removal of thyroid, without consideration for long-term effects. After my niece got 1/2 of her thyroid removed, she became severely depressed and has to be on medications for the rest of her life. Here's more excerpts from earthclinic.com: Posted by Harley_girl_1000 (Mt. Dora, Fl) on 09/19/2010 [NAY] 10 years ago I developed goiter on both sides of the thyroid. Each side was as large as a golf ball and multi-nodular. The doctors said that my thyroid blood work was normal. One side spontaneously shrunk and the other continued to grow. I opted for surgical removal of the larger side and kept half of the thyroid. Although I am on natural dessicated thyroid, my life has never been the same. The day after surgery I felt strangely different. A month later I was impotent. My energy levels have never been what they were. It has affected my whole life and I've had to give up many dreams. Despite a careful diet and exercise, nothing was as good as my old thyroid. Not one of 4 endocrinologists mentioned iodine to me. Now I take several drops of Lugol's a week. I have heard that painting the goiter with iodine can help. China is injecting young brides with iodine to prevent cretinism. I know it is possible to shrink a goiter since the half that I kept was at one time larger than the half that was removed. This post is to emphasize NAY to surgical removal of the goiter." http://www.earthclinic.com/cures/goiter.html Replied by Lisa Rabat, Morocco 02/06/2012 Are you also taking Vitamin C, magnesium, selenium and unrefined sea salt? These are recommended to take with iodine. I also was diagnosed with a goiter (by ultrasound) and after being on iodine for several months I no longer have one. You need very large doses of iodine if you have breast cancer, somewhere in the range of 50-300 mg/day. In any case, DON'T let them remove your thyroid. You will be on meds for life." Tchamers (North Carolina) on 10/22/2013 [YEA] I had hypothyroid issues and started eating 3 Brazil nuts a day that have high selenium in them and my thyroid is normal. Selenium regulates the endocrine system. Replied by Mama To Many Tennessee, Usa 12/02/2013 Glad to hear that the ACV (apple cider vinegar) and coconut oil are helping. I find them helpful, too. Regarding kelp versus potassium iodide....well, I have tried both in my family. The thing is that if you are truly deficient in iodine, which so many of us are, you would need a lot of kelp to get the amount needed. I don't personally notice much difference when I take kelp. But some do. I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism a few years ago. I took a very small dose of levothyroxine and it made me feel much worse. Well, I ended up going off the medication and trying natural stuff. It took some time but I did find things that helped me. ACV and coconut oil being some of them. But potassium iodide made the biggest difference for me. I take Iodoral (the pill form of Lugol's.) I take 1 12.5 mg tablet a day (12.5 iodine/potassium iodide.) Iodine supplements should be taken with Selenium and B-complex. Some also include vitamin C. You may find that you need less of your thyroid medicine if you supplement with iodine. It might be helpful to try Lugol's iodine (the liquid form) as it is easier to take less and build up to more.) Replied by Bill San Fernando, Philippines 12/03/2013 Hi Dee...If you have a hypothyroid condition, then this is a condition that occurs when you have low iodine levels in the body and perhaps a lack of certain critical minerals in your body as well. Most people are low thyroid these days but if you lack certain mineral anti-oxidants in your body -- like magnesium, zinc or glutathione peroxidase -- this can even cause or aggravate hypothyroid and thyroiditis problems. The protocol that you should be using is the full Lugol's Iodine Protocol with Companion Nutrients. Never take Lugol's Iodine just on it's own for reasons that are all explained here in this link. http://www.earthclinic.com/cures/hypothyroidism.html

I don't know if this is significant or not, but when I was a child (under nine, because my mom was still alive) I was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid. I'd say that could be very significant since a lot of the time all these health problems tend to be seen together. The current test for thyroid disease, the TSH isn't really a very good indicator of thyroid function.. but that's what most doctors go by. I'd suggest having your doctor run the thyroid antibody tests too. I went to doctor after doctor for over 10 years to finally get one to run the right tests. ALL my other blood tests were normal, but the antibody tests were way off indicating autoimmune Hashimoto's Disease. Good luck!