Anyone here on Synthroid?

[Triskeliongirl]

By consistency, I mean that armour is made from the dessicated thyroid glands of pigs, so the variablity from animal to animal is going to be greater than a preparation of purified chemicals produced in a laboratory.

And, as you said, the ability to titrate the dosages separately of the T4 and T3 is easier with synthetics. That doesn't mean that armour isn't a good option for some, but for me, I like my synthroid/cytomel combo. In terms of cost, for me my insurance has the same co-pay regardless of which drug I am on so its the same.

[ZenSojourner]

By consistency, I mean that armour is made from the dessicated thyroid glands of pigs, so the variablity from animal to animal is going to be greater than a preparation of purified chemicals produced in a laboratory.

Whatever variation there may be from one animal to the next is handled by the processing of the raw substances into the final drug. That processing IS a process of titration and purification.

One batch of Armour has the exact same proportion of T3 and T4 as every other batch. That's what is meant by consistency.

And people should take what works for them. Unfortunately many many people are never given the option of natural thyroid hormone, or even a synthetic T4 with an additional dose of T3. Partly this is due to misconceptions on the part of doctors and pharmacists as to the consistency (or the alleged lack thereof) of the natural products, coupled with an additional misconception that T3 is not necessary.

Some people do fine without it. Some people get by, but could improve their situation even more with a bit of T3. And some people can't do without the additional T3. There's just no one solution for everyone.