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Estrogen and thyroid med

by Shari
(North Carolina)

My doctor started me on Levothyroxine 25mg when a blood test revealed thryoid "on the low side". After a couple months on Levothyroxine I started retaining most of what I drank, my bowels (once healthy) stopped working and I gained 3 lbs almost overnight. Blew up like a balloon.

Is it possible the Levothyroxine caused more estrogen production? I'm post-menopausal, never had or will have HRT and until this incident have keep my weight steady with little effort. Will progesterone therapy help? Thanks for your assistance!


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Aug 10, 2011
 Estrogen and thyroid med
by: Wray

Hi Shari I've not heard of thyroxine increasing oestrogen levels. In fact it's normally oestrogen adversely affecting the thyroid and slowing it down. But your symptoms certainly point to excess oestrogen, as it does cause water retention and constipation. Whereas progesterone is an excellent diuretic. I can't tell if it will help you in this respect, but I'm such a believer in it, and it's very safe, it would certainly be worth trying. I recommend 100-200mg/day, but please read our page on Oestrogen Dominance before starting it. You might like to read our page on Menopause for more info. It always puzzles me why people are given only thyroxine (T4), when tests reveal hypothyroidism. T4 is relatively inactive, T3 being the active hormone. There are also so many factors which affect the thyroid, many are not looked for. For instance a lack of tyrosine, iodine and selenium affect the thyroid adversely. Without these nutrients no T4 or T3 can be made. It appears to me it's more likely a deficiency in these which are to blame, as there is a shortage in our soils, see here and here. A lack of iodine and selenium also increase the risk for breast cancer. And a lack of selenium contributes to thyroditis, see here. There are now endocrine disrupting chemicals which not only mimic oestrogen, but affect the thyroid too, see the website Our Stolen Future. You might also like to see the website Stop the Thyroid Madness for more info. Vitamin D is another vital nutrient, in fact most of us have low levels, please have a test done. For more info see the Vitamin D Council, GrassrootsHealth and Birmingham Hospital websites. I'm pleased you have such strong feelings about HRT. Take care Wray

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