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Archived
E-mail Newsletters Fibromyalgia Research Foundation
The Metabolic Treatment
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December 11, 2002 New Items: 1. Under-treatment of Hypothyroid Patients Getting Worse Under-treatment of Hypothyroid Patients Getting Worse In the past several months, we've received e-mails from steadily more patients whose hypothyroid symptoms continue despite their use of thyroid hormone. Why their symptoms continue is no mystery—most of the patients are grossly under-treated, and more so than in the past. If the patients are using T4 (usually Synthroid in the US), the dose their doctors restrict them to is usually between 75 mcg (0.075 mg) and 25 mcg (0.025 mg). If the patients are taking desiccated thyroid, their doctors usually restrict them to ½ to 1 grain. For comparison, consider the doses of thyroid hormone hypothyroid patients used to get well before the TSH test came into widespread use some thirty years ago. Back then, doctors treated patients with as much thyroid hormone as needed to safely eliminate their symptoms. The dose range of T4 that was effective was 200-to-400 mcg (0.2-to-0.4 mg). The dose range of desiccated thyroid was 2-to-4 grains. These higher doses relieved patients’ symptoms. Basal metabolic rate testing proved that the doses also provided patients with normal metabolism. If basal metabolic rate testing were available today, it would show that patients on the lower doses of thyroid hormone have abnormally slow metabolism. It's worth emphasizing that the higher doses were safe; the research literature contains no reports of patients being harmed by these dosages. The lower doses of thyroid hormone conventional doctors are currently prescribing are extremely ineffective for most hypothyroid patients. As I (JCL) explain on drlowe.com, these doses may actually cause a patient's metabolism to slow even further. And when a hypothyroid patient's metabolism becomes slower, her hypothyroid symptoms usually worsen. Many patients who contact us report that their doctors repeatedly lower their thyroid hormone doses based on TSH levels. When the patients' symptoms worsen, the doctors either have no explanation or attribute the symptoms to some other undetermined cause. We don't know why conventional doctors are under-treating hypothyroid patients more than they have in the past. We're seeing a definite trend, however, and it bodes ill for hypothyroid patients being treated by conventional doctors. What we'll see from this trend is more patients suffering from worse hypothyroid symptoms despite their use of thyroid hormone. And we'll see conventional doctors prescribing more drugs (such as antidepressants, painkillers, and cholesterol-lowering agents) to control the patient's hypothyroid symptoms. I (JCL) must admit that this untoward trend proves wrong my long-held belief that conventional medicine couldn’t do worse. Fortunately, most hypothyroid patients no longer have to settle for conventional thyroid hormone therapy. This means they don't have to continue suffering from hypothyroid symptoms due to under-treatment. Patients can now purchase desiccated thyroid in the United States over the Internet without a prescription. And unconventional doctors such as ourselves will guide patients to recovery through their self-treatment with the product. For guidance in your hypothyroid treatment through long-distance consulting, please phone Tammy Lowe (603) 391-6061, or write to her at Tammy@drlowe.com. Fibromyalgia has been solved! Article by UK's Peter Warmingham "Fibro Focus Supporter" is the magazine/newsletter of the Nottingham and East Midlands Fibromyalgia Support Group in the United Kingdom. The November 2002 issue contains an article by Peter Warmingham, the organization's Group Researcher. In the article, Mr. Warmingham correctly reports that the problem of fibromyalgia has been solved. He bases the report first on our research findings and secondarily that of Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum. The key ingredient to successful treatment—shown in our studies and that of Dr. Teitelbaum's—is patients' use of integrated metabolic therapies including thyroid hormone. In his article, Mr. Warmingham quotes a most important Q&A on drlowe.com. The question is, When will we solve the problem of fibromyalgia. The answer is, We already have. Unfortunately, as I (JCL) explain in my answer, we now face a more daunting problem. To inquire about obtaining a copy of the issue containing Mr. Warmingham's article, please e-mail the group at webmail@fibrofocus.org.uk. Vitamin C Content of Orange Juice The "Journal of the American Dietetic Association" (April 2002) recently reported that the vitamin C content of ready-to-drink orange juice products is lower than formerly believed. Four weeks after a container is open, practically all the vitamin C is gone. Compared to frozen juices, ready-to-drink juices have a lower vitamin C content to start with. Ready-to-drink products are put through pasteurization, which destroys some of the vitamin C. When reconstituted, frozen orange juice contains about 86 mg of vitamin C. When a carton of pasteurized juice is opened, it contains only about 45 mg. We hope, however, that you don't depend on juices for your daily allotment of vitamin C. Optimal health is possible only with amounts of vitamin C that far exceed what juices provide. I (GHL) give my recommendations for vitamin C intake in the nutritional section of drlowe.com. Four of Our Published Articles Now Reprinted as Booklets Several of our published articles—those most requested by patients and doctors—are now available in booklet form. If you'd like to purchase one or more of the booklets, please phone Tammy Lowe at (603) 391-6061. She'll give you the prices of the booklets, or combinations of them, take your mailing address, and send the booklet(s) to you. If you purchase one or more of the last three booklets, a copy of the first (The Hypometabolism Hypothesis) comes with it for no additional charge. The titles of the articles available as booklets are: (1) The Hypometabolism Hypothesis: A Scientific Explanation of Fibromyalgia. This booklet is the easiest to understand description of our theory and treatment of fibromyalgia. Written by Dr. Lowe and edited by Jackie Yellin (Director of Education: Fibromyalgia Research Foundation), it’s as clear as "Reader's Digest" articles. (2) Thyroid Status of 38 Fibromyalgia Patients: Implications for the Etiology of Fibromyalgia. This booklet also contains the abstract of another article titled "Thyroid Status of Fibromyalgia Patients." The two reports in one contain the results of studies of the thyroid status of 92 fibromyalgia patients. The first article also contains detailed information on the interpretation of the thyroid function tests used in the studies, including the TRH-stimulation test. (Originally published in the Clinical Bulletin of Myofascial Therapy.) By Dr. John C. Lowe, Dr. Gina Honeyman-Lowe, Dr. Alan Reichman, Jackie Yellin. (3) T3-induced Recovery from Fibromyalgia by a Hypothyroid Patient Resistant to T4 and Desiccated Thyroid. By Dr. John C. Lowe. This article is a report on a patient evaluated and treated Dr. Lowe, a neuropsychiatrist, and a physical therapist. Patients and doctors have been intensely interested in the report. The reason is that Dr. Lowe describes in detail how the patient failed to respond to T4 and desiccated thyroid, how she recovered with the use of T3, and the protocol that enabled her to recover. The case report shows the value of systematic "single-subject"study that Dr. Lowe and his colleagues at the Fibromyalgia Research Foundation have used in study the role of thyroid hormone in fibromyalgia. (Originally published in the Journal of Myofascial Therapy.) (4) Fibromyalgia and Thyroid Disease. By Dr. John C. Lowe and Dr. Gina Honeyman-Lowe. In this report, we present the evidence that some 90% of fibromyalgia patients have thyroid disease. (We presented this paper in Grenoble, France at a conference of the French Fibromyalgia Association of Région Rhône-Alpes. It was then published in the French medical journal named Lyon Méditerranée Médical: Médecine du Sud-Est. Long-Distance Consulting and Treatment To inquire about long-distance consulting services or treatment through the Center for Metabolic Health, please contact Tammy Lowe. You can reach her by e-mail at Tammy@drlowe.com or by telephone at (603) 391-6061. Very best wishes, November 9, 2002 New Items: Our New Assistant, Diane Patterson When you phone the Center for Metabolic Health, the positive, energetic, welcoming voice you’ll hear on the phone is our new assistant, Diane Patterson. We are extremely happy that she’s joined our staff. Her extraordinary competence and efficiency have already begun making life easier for us. We know you’ll find her delightful and that she’ll see to it that you get prompt and friendly service at the Center. Patients can reach Tammy at (603) 391-6061, or by writing to tammy@drlowe.com. Boulder Conference on Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome A short while ago, Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum and I (JCL) talked with each other by telephone. Dr. Teitelbaum is an internist who practices in Annapolis, Maryland, and is a fibromyalgia/chronic fatigue syndrome researcher. Six or seven years before, he and I had "talked"—but only by messages he and I left on one another’s answering machines. Now, after all those years, we were finally on the phone together. Our talking was way overdue. His best-selling book "From Fatigued to Fantastic" is one we’ve admired and found useful—both the first and second editions. Also, we had read the two studies he had conducted showing that his holistic, integrated clinical approach provides most fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome patients with relief. We knew from reading his book and study reports that his and our treatment approaches, although different in some respects, are similar in many others. Most importantly, both effective relieve most patients of their symptoms. Perhaps it’s from the similarities of our approaches that Dr. Teitelbaum and we are the only three U.S. doctors on the medical advisory board of England’s Thyroid UK. Thyroid UK is a highly active patient advocacy group working to revise the false beliefs of conventional endocrinology that now keeps millions of hypothyroid patients kept sick and predisposed to premature death. While we were talking, Dr. Teitebaum and I decided to hold a conference in Boulder the first weekend of this coming December—Saturday the 7th and Sunday the 8th. The conference will be geared toward practitioners of all disciplines, but anyone is welcome to come, including patients. The focus of the conference is for us teach our treatment protocols. Dr.
Lowe & Dr. Honeyman-Lowe Write Chapter for We just completed our chapter on fibromyalgia for the forthcoming 3rd edition of the "Textbook of Natural Medicine." The editors of the Textbook are the imminent naturopathic physicians and educators Dr. Michael T. Murray and Dr. Joseph Pizzorno. The "Textbook of Natural Medicine" is a two-volume set. The set provides scientifically-based natural medical treatments for a vast range of health problems and diseases. It is the most scientifically-grounded, authoritative textbook on natural medicine. The first and second editions of the "Textbook" didn’t contain a chapter on fibromyalgia. Our chapter in this 3rd edition will be the first. We are honored that the Editors consider our research, clinical approach, and point of view worthy of representing fibromyalgia in the textbook By including our chapter on fibromyalgia, the "Textbook of Natural Medicine" will offer physicians a practical approach to relieving fibromyalgia patients’ suffering. This is the complete opposite from what physician get from reading conventional textbooks. For the most part, the editors of conventional medical textbooks permit only the old-guard rheumatology researchers to write chapters on fibromyalgia. The rheumatologists’ conclusions in the textbooks are always the same: The cause of fibromyalgia is unknown, and no successful treatment is available. These are, of course, patently false statements. Repetition of the false statements reflects the authors’ failure to abide by proper scientific conduct and open-mindedly consider scientific evidence produced by researchers outside the closed rheumatology clique. Drs. Murray and Pizzorno, however, have worked diligently to provide a sound scientific basis to naturopathic medicine; in doing so, they’ve sought credible scientific evidence to include in the "Textbook of Natural Medicine" no matter who produced it. Their asking us to write the fibromyalgia chapter for their textbook reflects their commitment to open-mindedness and integrity in their search for scientific truth. This is the first time editors of a major textbook have asked us to personally write the chapter on fibromyalgia. However, the authors of at least fourteen other books have included information on our research and treatment, or have devoted entire chapters to our work. Three of these are major medical textbooks. (See http://www.drlowe.com/FRF/accomplished.htm) Dr. Lowe Replies to Errors in British Physician’s Review of Our Work Dr. Alex Allinson, a North London physician in the United Kingdom, recently wrote a review of our treatment approach and "The Metabolic Treatment of Fibromyalgia." Dr. Allinson made three factual errors in his review. In a reply to him, I (JCL) noted and corrected his errors. Possibly more important, however, I commented on a statement of Dr. Allinson’s that I must agree with, although with deep regret for the pernicious implications for hypothyroid and fibromyalgia patients in the UK. My reply is posted to my commentary page. Kind regards, September 20,
2002 New Items: Dr.
Lowe and Vicky Massey, LMP Speaking in Seattle Area On Sunday, September 29th, Vicky and I (JCL) will give an in-depth workshop titled "How to Recover from Fibromyalgia." We will cover in far greater depth the information we’ll briefly cover in our presentations on Saturday. We will also interact with those who attend, answering questions and providing information that’s relevant to the interests of the audience. New
Book "Your Guide to Metabolic Health" Jane
Jones, RN Becomes Research Coordinator of FRF Filling Jane’s position with FRF took us a long time. The reason is that the position requires an extremely special person. We are happy we finally found that person, and we're delighted that Jane is now a member of the FRF team. Mary
Shomon’s New Book This book, like Living Well With Hypothyroidism, is chock full of information of practical value for patients from many experts on autoimmune disease. In the book, Mary covers Lupus, Sjögren's Syndrome, Thyroid, Addison's, Premature Ovarian Failure, Insulin-dependent Diabetes, Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia-Fibromyositis, Alopecia, Psoriasis, Irritable Bowel, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Multiple Sclerosis, Raynaud's Autoimmune Hepatitis, and other autoimmune diseases. We are happy that Mary interviewed us for the book about our beliefs on improving the status of patients with autoimmune disease. We strongly endorse Living Well With Autoimmune Disease, especially for those with autoimmune thyroid disease. Dr.
Lowe & Dr. Honeyman-Lowe Write The book is a useful alternative to most other books on fibromyalgia. Most books on fibromyalgia for clinicians mainly promote drug treatments to control the symptoms of fibromyalgia. Most books for patients only promote ways to learn to live with their symptoms. Patients and doctors alike often say that reading these other books leaves them with overwhelming feelings of hopelessness and despair. Such is the legacy of the conventional medical and rheumatology approach to fibromyalgia. Dr. Chaitow’s book contrasts well with these other books. The chapters in his book provide clinicians with practical methods for treating fibromyalgia patients. The methods can improve the status of patients without the drugs that often complicate and worsen their fibromyalgia symptoms. In our chapter in the book, of course, we describe a method that can completely and lastingly relieve patients of their symptoms. The new information we added to the chapter is classified as "ancillary" treatments. These treatments complement the other therapies we wrote about in the first edition of the book—the proper form and dosage of thyroid hormone, nutritional supplementation, diet modification, exercise to tolerance, and physical treatments. The ancillary treatments are for health problems that occasionally cause a person with normal thyroid function to meet the criteria for fibromyalgia, but more often compound or complicate "fibromyalgia" symptoms caused by hypothyroidism or thyroid hormone resistance. The treatments we added to the chapter are for blood sugar irregularities, sex hormone imbalances, and decreased adrenal reserve or adrenal deficiency. Churchill Livingstone publishes Fibromyalgia Syndrome: A Practitioner’s Guide to
Treatment.
The 2nd edition will be available in June 2003. The first edition is still
available. For information on the book, see the addresses below: We
Now Do Long-Distance Consulting for Kind regards, July 28, 2002 New Items: Advocate
of Dr. Paul St. Amand’s Apologizes Negotiations
to Conduct Study of Booklet
Now Available Again For copies of the booklet, if you live in the USA, please send $5.00 and your name and address to the address below. If you live in another country, please send $7.00. Dr. John C. Lowe Kind regards, July 13, 2002 New Items: Dr.
John L. Gedye Passes Away Let’s
Live Magazine
Publishes Article Vicky
Massey, LMT: Appointed to Vicky is perfect for the Advisory position. She returned to school and became a massage therapist after undergoing metabolic rehabilitation and recovering from eleven years of debilitating fibromyalgia symptoms due to under-treated hypothyroidism. Since she graduated and obtained her license, she’s continually undergone advanced postgraduate education and training. She’s also distinguished herself as an unusually knowledgeable and highly skilled therapist. She's particularly attuned to the special needs of patients with fibromyalgia symptoms, and her accurate and thorough knowledge of metabolic rehab makes her an especially valuable practitioner for patients with hypothyroidism or thyroid hormone resistance patients, regardless of their diagnosis (such as fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome). We’re proud to have Vicky on our Board and thank her for taking part in FRF’s mission. You can read more about Vicky Massey at http://www.drlowe.com/vicky.htm. Kind regards, © 2002 John C. Lowe. All rights reserved. This Center for Metabolic Health, LLC Email Newsletter may be copied and distributed subject to three conditions: (1) All text within the full document or any section copied must be copied without modification with all pages included. (2) All copies must contain the following copyright notice: "© 2002 John C. Lowe" (3) Neither this full document nor any section of it may be distributed for profit. |
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