I had an opportunity talk at length this week with both Rick Cox, the CEO of RLC Labs -- the company that makes natural desiccated thyroid drugs Nature-Throid and Westhroid -- and RLC's Chief Science Officer, Dai Jinn.
Here is some information for patients who are currently taking Armour, the natural desiccated thyroid produced by Forest, and are having problems with Armour's availability, or with the effectiveness of the reformulated Armour, or who are considering starting on natural desiccated thyroid treatment for hypothyroidism.
First, except for the 3 grain size, Nature-Throid and Westhroid are fully in stock, and there are no other shortages or backorders. All dosage sizes except for 3 grain are fully available. And, according to RLC CEO Rick Cox, "We are 100 percent dedicated to doing everything we can to make there is a consistent supply of natural desiccated thyroid medication in the marketplace."
Second, realize, however, that many pharmacies and even drug distributors do not understand natural desiccated thyroid drugs, and they mistakenly seem to think that Armour is the name for all of these drugs. So when they are hearing about the severe shortages and backorders of Armour, they are wrongly assuming that Read more...
According to an
article in the New York Times, the Department of Justice (DOJ) is charging drug company Forest Laboratories -- which makes thyroid drugs Levothroid, Thyrolar and Armour Thyroid -- with defrauding the government. According to the DOJ, Forest has fraudulently obtained millions of dollars through the illegal marketing of popular antidepressants Celexa and Lexapro for unapproved uses in children and teenagers.
Prosecutors are charging that Forest covered up studies showing negative results for Celexa and Lexapro in children, paid kickbacks to doctors who prescribed Forest's drugs, and ran studies that were in actuality marketing efforts to promote the use of these antidepressant drugs.
The DOJ charges do not relate to Forest's thyroid drugs, but you have to wonder WHAT is going on with Forest, don't you? They have been reformulating Armour Thyroid on and off for several years, including the most recent Armour formula changes that are causing major problems for patients, and have had shortages for years. Currently, many of their thyroid products are unavailable and on backorder, and Forest will provide no explanation.
Given the DOJ information about Forest, and what's been happening to thyroid patients at the hands of this company, it certainly makes you wonder what else Forest is covering up...and what other shenanigans they might be up to?
If you're a thyroid patient who is finding it difficult to get Armour Thyroid or Thyrolar because of the mysterious shortages and backorders, or your Armour's not working because of the unexplained changes to the formula, sad to say, but I think it's time to abandon Forest's thyroid products and switch to other thyroid medications.
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Attention Thyroid Patients: Is There Gluten in Your Synthroid?
Monday July 6, 2009
A reader Cathy wrote to share some thoughts about Synthroid's fillers and ingredients. "
Hay fever and lactose intolerance are not the only conditions that may be adversely affected by Synthroid. I have been recently diagnosed with celiac disease and must be on a strict gluten-free diet. In my research of gluten-free drugs, both prescribed and over-the-counter, I was surprised to learn that Abbott Pharmaceuticals cannot guarantee the gluten-free status of Synthroid because they do not test the additives they put into the drug for gluten. My doctor does not want to change my medication as I've been taking Synthroid and doing well on it for over 8 years. I have been gluten-free for 8 months and feel fantastic - better than I've felt in a long time - but it really aggravates me that Abbott can't be bothered to test for the gluten."
This is unfortunate, given the established link between celiac disease/gluten intolerance, and autoimmune thyroid disease. Come on Abbott...get with the program!
For more information on the link between celiac disease and thyroid problems, read: The Celiac/Autoimmune Thyroid Connection.
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Armour Thyroid's Spring 2009 Reformulation Causing Problems: Some Patients Switching to Nature-Throid and Westhroid
Thursday July 2, 2009
During the Spring of 2009, the natural desiccated thyroid drug, Armour Thyroid, apparently underwent a reformulation of fillers, including a decrease in the amount of dextrose, increase in cellulose, and the addition of cornstarch to the tablets. Since that time, some patients have been reporting a variety of problems with this new Armour formula. Find out more about the
thyroid symptoms some patients are experiencing with the reformulated Armour, learn how to switch to other natural thyroid drugs such as Nature-Throid and Westhroid, and find out what patients are reporting after they've made the switch.
Readers Respond: Armour Reformulation Problems, The Switch to Nature-throid and Westhroid
If you've refilled your Armour Thyroid prescription recently, share your own experiences -- negative or positive -- with the reformulated Armour Thyroid. And if you've made the switch to another drug like Nature-Throid or Westhroid, please share how it went for you, and how you're feeling now in our Readers Respond special feature on the Armour reformulation.
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