Dr. Westin Childs Podcast: Thyroid | Weight Loss | Hormones

Why is it that some thyroid patients experience almost too good-to-be-true side effects when they STOP taking thyroid medication? And why does taking thyroid medication seem to make some people feel WORSE? Should thyroid medication make thyroid patients feel better? You would think so, but life isn’t always that simple. There are some people who lose weight when they stop taking thyroid medication and, in this video, I want to explain why. Here are two reasons: 1. You were taking levothyroxine when you didn’t need to be on it. Up to 30% of thyroid patients taking thyroid medication right now don’t need to be on it. If you are someone who is taking medication when you don’t need to, you may be making your thyroid worse (because your own thyroid gland would do a better job at regulating your levels compared to a medication). 2. Your dose of levothyroxine was too high. Contrary to what you might think, high doses of levothyroxine will not always cause weight loss. In fact, taking too much thyroid m