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Sheila W
Stopped budesinide, gained weight
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Sheila
- Rockhopper Penguin
- Posts: 1150
- Joined: Wed May 18, 2011 5:10 am
- Location: Palm Beach Gardens, Fl
Stopped budesinide, gained weight
Has anyone else gained weight after stopping budesinide? This is very weird. I gained weight in my upper abdomen, a place that has stayed the same forever, excepting pregnancy. I hate it!
Sheila W
Sheila W
To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
Sheila,
Has your thyroid function been checked recently? By recently, I mean at least 6 weeks or longer after you stopped using budesonide. The reason I ask is because corticosteroids are known to suppress TSH (by affecting the output of the hypothalamus). This means that if you are hypothyroid (which is associated with an elevated TSH), corticosteroids will artificially lower the TSH (which will convince the body that the thyroid is functioning normally).
After the corticosteroid use is discontinued, the TSH will return to whatever level it should be, according to your actual thyroid function. IOW, if you are hypothyroid, then your TSH will now be elevated (accurately indicating hypothyroidism). And of course hypothyroidism is associated with weight gain, particularly in the abdominal area.
That said, on a theoretical basis, the TSH effect of budesonide should be minimal (assuming that research showing that 19 % or less of it is absorbed into the blood stream). So if that is true, then discontinuing budesonide shouldn't make much difference.
Still, if I were in that situation, I believe that I would have my thyroid checked, just to rule it out.
Tex
Has your thyroid function been checked recently? By recently, I mean at least 6 weeks or longer after you stopped using budesonide. The reason I ask is because corticosteroids are known to suppress TSH (by affecting the output of the hypothalamus). This means that if you are hypothyroid (which is associated with an elevated TSH), corticosteroids will artificially lower the TSH (which will convince the body that the thyroid is functioning normally).
After the corticosteroid use is discontinued, the TSH will return to whatever level it should be, according to your actual thyroid function. IOW, if you are hypothyroid, then your TSH will now be elevated (accurately indicating hypothyroidism). And of course hypothyroidism is associated with weight gain, particularly in the abdominal area.
That said, on a theoretical basis, the TSH effect of budesonide should be minimal (assuming that research showing that 19 % or less of it is absorbed into the blood stream). So if that is true, then discontinuing budesonide shouldn't make much difference.
Still, if I were in that situation, I believe that I would have my thyroid checked, just to rule it out.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
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Sheila
- Rockhopper Penguin
- Posts: 1150
- Joined: Wed May 18, 2011 5:10 am
- Location: Palm Beach Gardens, Fl
Thanks a lot, Tex. I just checked out symptoms of low thyroid and I have quite a few of them. I would not have thought to have my thyroid checked. As always, your insight is invaluable. I'll make a doctor's appointment today.
Sheila W
Sheila W
To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein