# Synthroid and how to take it correctly



## vdshelton

Hi All,

Today is my last day of RAI and my endo said I should start taking my synthroid tomorrow. She has put me on 150 mcg and says that I should try not to eat any calcium products (among other products) within 4 hrs of taking the pill because it will interfere with the absorption of the hormone. She said "the longer you wait to take your calcium supplement after you take the hormone - the better off you'll be."

My question is do any of you take your synthroid at night on an empty stomach rather than in the morning? Then get up and eat breakfast as normal?

I'm trying to think of breakfast stuff I like to eat that will hold me over for 4 hrs but they all have at least a little calcium in them and I don't want to mess with the absorption of the synthroid. I figure if I take it at night on an empty stomach, then I'll at least have 6 -8 hrs of no calcium inference to optimize my hormone absorption. Then when I get up in the morning, take my calcium supplement and eat breakfast like normal.

Thoughts?


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## Octavia

Wow....you've really made me think on this one! I always wait several hours to take my calcium supplements (vitamins), but I've never waited to eat products containing calcium...never even gave any thought to the milk in my cereal almost every morning! (I've always interpreted the instructions as being for pills, not food containing calcium...makes me wonder!)

As for whether to take Synthroid at night, I'll share a brief conversation I had with my pharmacist yesterday. I take Levolxyl (my version of Synthroid) as well as Nexium, and both pills are "empty stomach, then wait 30-45 minutes to eat." So by the time I got to eat breakfast in the morning, I was STARVING! I talked to the pharmacist about it, and he said to take the Nexium at bedtime (on an empty stomach...no more evening snacks, which will be good for me), as he would not recommend taking the Levoxyl/Synthroid at night because of it stimulant effects. (He did not say "stimulant" but I can't remember what word he used.)

I do know others here on the boards who take their Synthroid at bedtime. I never have.

Regarding the calcium, here are the instructions, and they're still not totally clear to me about whether it applies to food or just pills with calcium:

Directions
Follow the directions for taking Levoxyl 100mcg provided by your doctor. TAKE LEVOXYL 100mcg by mouth on an empty stomach at least one-half to one hour before breakfast. SOME BRANDS OF LEVOXYL 100mcg MUST BE TAKEN WITH A FULL GLASS OF WATER (8 oz/240 mL). Ask your pharmacist how you should take your brand of Levoxyl 100mcg. DO NOT TAKE AN ANTACID OR PRODUCT THAT HAS IRON OR CALCIUM in it within 4 hours of taking Levoxyl 100mcg.


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## shellebean

I was thinking the same thing! I wait 4 hours to take my calcium SUPPLIMENT and other vitamins, but never thought about that bowl of cereal or breakfast drink that would have calcium in them....hummm. I know I'm absorbing my synthroid though because I just got back my latest labs and TSH has gone down considerably (more in a new thread I will start).


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## joplin1975

I don't know if this is helpful or not, but...

I get up at 5:30, take my synthroid, do barn chores, shower & get ready for work (only having water), and at 7:00, I have an egg and a banana. At that point, I take my zrytec. At work, I have a Greek yogurt at 10:00 and take my multivitamin and fish oil pill then. If I'm out of eggs/bananas, I'll have a wheat english muffin with low sugar peanut butter or, if I'be planned ahead, steel cut oats (without milk).

For me, getting as much protein as possible is key to staying full through out the morning.


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## miltomeal

I have been told that the 4 hour time frame for calcium/iron/magnesium is for supplements. These are active minerals and can block absorption of your meds.

BUT, that is not what i do... inevitably, i get up in the middle of the night, sometime between 1-3 because of my animals and this is when i take my meds. I have just come to accept this in my life. and that leaves it open for me to eat whatever breakfast or take whatever supplements i want when i get up and get ready for work. This surely does not work for everyone, but is going well for me.

Hope you find the sweet spot for taking your meds!


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## webster2

I am pretty regular at getting up at 4 and taking my pill. I go back to bed for an hour, and life is good!


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## sonnyjane

My doctor explained to me that it was calcium SUPPLEMENTS that I should avoid for 4 hours (like the 500 mg pills or chews), not everything containing calcium at all.

I wake up at 6:00, take my pill, then eat breakfast at 6:30... bowl of cereal, breakfast bar, etc.


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## Lovlkn

If you have not eaten for 3 hours or so you can take the pill before bed.

I take my Unithroid when I wake up every night between 2-4 and avoid the 4 hour calcium wait time. I have insomnia and always wake up so I decided to take the pill when I wake up. I have a system where I put 1 pill into a bottle next toa glass of water to be sure I have taken it.


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## I DClaire

My sister-in-law takes Synthroid at bedtime but I've never understood how??? She has to get up around 3:00 every morning so naturally she goes to bed early and she eats supper every night. I dunno'! She says it works for her.

I put my Armour pill in a little cup on the nightstand and take it when I wake up around 6:00 every morning. Generally I either catnap for awhile or get up and shower, etc., then I eat a good breakfast. I did the same thing when I was taking Synthroid - I never even considered calcium-rich foods.

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. Being retired lets us usually not eat lunch until 2:00ish, then I eat very little supper. Eating late used to cause me a lot of stomach symptoms but the best thing I ever did was buy a box of Sustenex probiotic pills at the pharmacy. One month later and my acid reflux-type problems, stomach burning, etc., were history!


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## northernlite

As you can see, everyone does something different. I feed my dogs and let them out at 5am and take my T4 then and then go back to bed until 6. Then I take my regular meds (no calcium) and I usually eat my breakfast at my desk at work around 8 which doesn't normally have calcium in it. I save my vitamins and supplements with calcium to take with my lunch or mid afternoon.

Some people do take their synthyroid at night and it does work for them. In fact there was one study that showed better absorbtion when taken then.

The real key, chose the routine that works the best for you and stick with it. Your Synthyroid will then be titrated appropriately for how much your body absorbs based on your routine or the time of day you take it. If your routine happens to cause you to absorb a little less Synthyroid then you may require a little higher dose to achieve the "feel good" results. There is nothing wrong with that. If I was a morning calcium consumer, I might very well chose to try my dose at night time because I never eat in the evening.

Just remember, do what you do consistantly and you should be able to settle on the dose that works for you.


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## Andros

vdshelton said:


> Hi All,
> 
> Today is my last day of RAI and my endo said I should start taking my synthroid tomorrow. She has put me on 150 mcg and says that I should try not to eat any calcium products (among other products) within 4 hrs of taking the pill because it will interfere with the absorption of the hormone. She said "the longer you wait to take your calcium supplement after you take the hormone - the better off you'll be."
> 
> My question is do any of you take your synthroid at night on an empty stomach rather than in the morning? Then get up and eat breakfast as normal?
> 
> I'm trying to think of breakfast stuff I like to eat that will hold me over for 4 hrs but they all have at least a little calcium in them and I don't want to mess with the absorption of the synthroid. I figure if I take it at night on an empty stomach, then I'll at least have 6 -8 hrs of no calcium inference to optimize my hormone absorption. Then when I get up in the morning, take my calcium supplement and eat breakfast like normal.
> 
> Thoughts?


Val; if you are taking calcium or iron "supplements", it would be prudent to wait 4 hours or more to do that after taking your Synthroid. Otherwise, the more consistent you are in all you do, the better your optimization and your Synthroid will be titrated to that pattern.

I have yogurt every morning and heavy cream in my coffee. I take my Armour at the same time. LOL! Been doing this for years and years w/no problems.

Taking it at night may keep you awake. It's hard to say; we all differ. So try it if that is what you would like to do. The main thing is to be consistent.


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## namebug

I didn't know calcium supplements were supposed to be taken with thyroid medication. I've been taking only the levothyroxine.

I'm glad to know I'm not the only person getting up in the middle of the night because of my animals.


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## Octavia

namebug said:


> I didn't know calcium supplements were supposed to be taken with thyroid medication. I've been taking only the levothyroxine.


The important thing here is that IF you take calcium supplements, don't take them within 4 hours of when you take your Levothyroxine.


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## shellebean

Funny about the animal thing. I've always griped about being woken up WAY earlier than I needed to in order to let the "doggin's" out. Now it works great. At least one of them will wake me up between 4:30 and 5:30 am. I take my synthroid then. Then when I wake up at 6:30 or 7am, I'm good to go! I do wait 4 hours to take ALL my vitamins; Multi, Calcium, E, D and periodic fish oil.


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## polly

Is Levothyroxin the same thing ? That is what my Endo says I'll be taking after my surgery. I did take it before when she was trying the block/replace method.

The main thing I recall on was you shouldn't eat any high fiber meal within 4 hours of taking it.


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## joplin1975

Yes, that's a semi-generic version of the same medication.


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