Community ClicksQ: My doctor recently told me that my TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) is high and that this means I have hypothyroidism.
She wants me to have more blood work done to measure my T3 and T4 levels.
I have no idea what this means.
My doctor is planning to prescribe Synthroid (levothyroxine), but I am already taking Coumadin, Monopril, flaxseed, vitamins and minerals.
Do I really need more medicine?
Can you send me information about thyroid tests and interactions with other medicines?
A: TSH goes up when the brain tries to kick the thyroid gland into higher gear.
It suggests there is not enough thyroid hormone circulating in your body, which is why your doctor would like you to take levothyroxine.
People with too little thyroid hormone often feel cold, tired and constipated.
They may report dry skin, hair loss, depression, a slow pulse and high cholesterol.
We are sending you our Guide to Thyroid Hormones so you can interpret your blood tests and learn about interactions between thyroid hormone and drugs such as Coumadin.
Your doctor will need to proceed carefully in your treatment.
For a copy, send $3 in check or money order with a long (No. 10), stamped (61 cents), self-addressed envelope to: Graedons’ People’s Pharmacy, No. T-4, P.O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027.
It also can be downloaded for $2 from our Web site: www.peoplespharmacy.com.
Q: Is there any way to make passing a kidney stone less painful?
I went from uncomfortable to unbearable pain within a couple of hours.
The emergency-room doctors gave me narcotic pain relievers, but nothing to speed the stone out.
If this ever happens again, I’d like something to help move the stone along.
A: If surgery is not necessary to remove the stone, there is one treatment that may be helpful.
The same drug that is used to ease symptoms of prostate enlargement, Flomax (tamsulosin), may facilitate passage of kidney stones (Current Opinion in Urology, March 2008).
Shock-wave treatment (lithotripsy) is sometimes used to break kidney stones into smaller pieces.
Flomax has been used in combination with lithotripsy to help smaller stones move.
Not all studies show that the drug is effective, however, so you will need to discuss this approach with your urologist.
Q: I am a 62-year-old male emergency-room nurse with a history of drinking six to eight alcoholic drinks a day for the past 30 years or so.
My drinking is confined to the hours between 5 and
10 p.m.
I drink because I like the buzz.
I honestly don’t believe my alcohol use is a coping mechanism, since my life is very satisfying, both personally and professionally.
I do have an addictive personality and used to smoke two or three packs a day.
I stopped “cold turkey” 20 years ago.
I have no desire to stop drinking, but I realize that if I continue at my present rate, I will eventually suffer health problems.
I just want to reduce my consumption to a reasonable level.
I heard your radio show about naltrexone as a treatment and started taking it in January.
I could be the poster child for this drug.
In the three weeks that I have been taking it, I’m down to about two drinks a day, and have suffered absolutely no side effects.
If this continues to be so helpful, I’d really like other people to know about naltrexone for problem drinking.
A: There is more information about naltrexone in The Cure for Alcoholism: Drink Your Way Sober Without Willpower, Abstinence or Discomfort by Roy Eskapa, Ph.D.
Q: What a nightmare!
I used the Vaseline treatment to get rid of lice.
It seems to have worked, but I have tried all of the suggestions to get the petroleum jelly out of my kids’ hair, and it is not coming out.
I cannot imagine using baby oil on this greasy goo.
I am going to the store for more Dawn.
I have used baking soda and cornstarch, and the kids are getting tired of having their hair washed.
A: Coating hair with petroleum jelly overnight is a last-ditch home remedy to kill lice.
We first learned about it in 1997 from a desperate mother who had tried all the usual products to eliminate lice first.
Neil Prose, M.D., a pediatric dermatologist at Duke University, had recommended this approach to her pediatrician.
That mother reported that applying baby oil liberally helped wash out the Vaseline.
Others have found getting petroleum jelly out of hair is quite a challenging chore.
Q: I began taking celery seed extract capsules six months ago for gout.
Within a day, all my foot pain was gone.
A blood test six weeks later showed normal levels of uric acid.
I take two capsules each morning.
Celery seed is a miracle, as far as I’m concerned.
A: We could find no clinical trials proving that celery seed extract controls gout.
Nonetheless, herbal expert James Duke, Ph.D., reports that this botanical medicine works well to prevent flare-ups.
An animal model of arthritis and gout suggests that a combination of celery seed and New Zealand green-lipped mussel extract (Lyprinol) eases inflammation (Inflammopharmacology, December 2003).
Q: My wife suffers from depression and sleep deprivation.
She refuses to see a doctor or take any drugs.
Are there any supplements or remedies that could help with her depression and sleep problems?
A: Sleeping problems and depression may be linked and often seem to intensify each other in a vicious cycle.
The supplement most often considered for treating sleep deprivation is melatonin.
Several studies suggest benefit, although the research is not definitive (Current Treatment Options in Neurology, September 2009).
We are sending you our Guide to Getting a Good Night’s Sleep, with many suggestions for nondrug approaches to overcoming insomnia, as well as a discussion of melatonin and other treatments.
For a copy, send $3 in check or money order with a long (No. 10), stamped (61 cents), self-addressed envelope to: Graedons’ People’s Pharmacy, No. I-70, P.O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027.
Or download it for $2 for www.peoplespharmacy.com.
One reader offered this experience: “My doctor, a sleep specialist, told me to put four daylight lights in my bedroom. (They are also called ‘happy lights.’)
“Go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time every morning.
“Set the alarm, then turn the clock around so you can’t see it. (I used to look at the clock every hour.)
“When the alarm goes off, get up, no matter how tired you are.
“Turn on the daylight lamps and spend half an hour in the room.
“You don’t have to look at them, just be in the room with them.
“After following that regimen for two weeks, I started waking up refreshed and ready to go.
“I had been desperate, like a zombie during the day and dreading bedtime.
“This worked for me.”
