usually i don’t have to worry about eating too much and not gaining but they put me on levothroid for underactive thyroid and i’m gaining weight! the only thing is; i lose weight easier when i exercise but i can’t really miss a day. i have to do an hour for at least 3-4 days. which is fine but, why is it making me gain weight ?
why is my thyroid meds making me fat?
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You are probably gaining weight because your dosage is too low or you are a poor converter of T4 into T3. The med you are on is a T4 med. When on a T4 med you need to test first thing in the morning and get your morning TSH around 1.0. Having a higher TSH makes weight loss real difficult.
Another problem could be that you are a poor converter of T4 into T3. Get a free t3 to find out. It should be at least midrange or high in range. To correct this, you would go on a med that is both T4 and T3.
Next issue……get tested for insulin resistance. THis condition makes it hard to lose weight. It is diagnosed by a fasting glucose and fasting insulin.
It should not.
Go see your doctor and have your TSH level checked.
The problem with thyroid replacement is that there are so many generic medication, and each is different in strength. So, when the pharmacy change from one generic to the other, your dose changes.
It has to do with the FDA mandate – that for a drug to be called a certain dose, it must be within 15 percent of the listed dose. So, a dose of, say, 100 mcg may be everything from 85 to 115, depending on manufacturer. The problem is that, for 100 mcg, the two adjacent doses are 88 and 112, and if you have Maker A making a dose of 86 and call it 100 and Maker B making a dose of 111 and calling is 100, then you just jumped two doses when you change from A to B.
Two things you need to do. #1: have your doctor check your TSH level every 3-6 months. #2: buy branded thyroid medicine – Synthroid or Levoxyl. All other generic substitutes will have the above problem.
The drugs might be overcompensating for the low thyroid levels, and making them too high. Symptoms can be similar. I would check back with your GP as he may want to change the dosage.
Along with increase metabolism, I noticed thyroid medication increases my appetite.
I keep hearing it shouldn’t but it seems like there are some people who do gain weight. Right now I am about 10 lbs heavier after 3+ years on medication.
The other thing is you are taking T4 hormone, and you thyroid produces that and T3 hormone. This may have something to do with it. Some people do better taking both T4 and T3.
It is not the medicine that is making you gain weight but your condition – hypothyroidism. When you are a low thyroid hormone procuder – your metabolism slows down and you gain weight. Even if you eat less and exercise more you gain weight! (Well most of us do!!) Sounds like you just started taking your synthetic medicine. It will take a few months until you feel better and a year or so until your body (muscles, cells) get enough thyroid hormone to function normally. Having said that – I reccomend you to adjust your diet, lifestyle and make sure that you are on the correct dose of thyroid hormone. Once you watch your portions, eat a healthy balanced diet, get plenty of rest, and cut your stress in life you will begin to see that you remain the same and slowly losing weight. If you do not feel good on the medicine after 6 months – consider trying others. I started on Levothyroixine, went to Levoxyl and now I am takign Armour. On Armour I was able to lose 20 lb in 1.5 years through hard work, moderate exercise and good diet with lifestyle. Armour is hard to get because many doctors do not prescribe it. If the synthetic T4 medicine does not work for you – you can add synthetic T3 to it. If that does not work – then it is worth trying Armour even if you have to travel a little to get to a doctor who will. For many of us that is worth it once we feel crappy enough. Good luck to you!