Can a little selenium help kids with thyroid problems?
Selenium decreases thyroglobulin concentrations but does not affect the increased thyroxine-to-triiodothyronine ratio in children with congenital hypothyroidism.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Selenium supplementation normalized TSH without changing T4, T3, or T4/T3 ratio
It’s counterintuitive that a mineral critical for T4-to-T3 conversion had no effect on hormone levels, yet still fixed the pituitary’s overstimulation signal.
Practical Takeaways
Do not give selenium supplements to children with congenital hypothyroidism expecting improved hormone conversion.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Selenium supplementation normalized TSH without changing T4, T3, or T4/T3 ratio
It’s counterintuitive that a mineral critical for T4-to-T3 conversion had no effect on hormone levels, yet still fixed the pituitary’s overstimulation signal.
Practical Takeaways
Do not give selenium supplements to children with congenital hypothyroidism expecting improved hormone conversion.
Publication
Journal
The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism
Year
2001
Authors
J. Chanoine, J. Nève, Sing-yung Wu, J. Vanderpas, P. Bourdoux
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Claims (4)
The body converts the thyroid hormone T4 into its active form, T3, using enzymes that require selenium as a component.
In children with congenital hypothyroidism who are already taking levothyroxine, taking a selenium supplement for three months lowers thyroglobulin levels by about 74%, but does not change the amounts of thyroid hormones in the blood or the ratio between T4 and T3.
Giving children with congenital hypothyroidism selenium supplements at 20–60 mcg per day for three months does not change the levels of thyroid hormones T4 and T3 in their blood, or the ratio between them.
Children born with an underactive thyroid who take levothyroxine medication show different levels of certain thyroid-related substances in their blood compared to children with normal thyroid function, including lower selenium, T3, and thyroglobulin, and higher TSH, reverse T3, and T4.