Thyroid problems, whether overactivity, outright failure or a disease like cancer, affect millions worldwide, according to the American Thyroid Association. The thyroid gland in your neck may be small but produces hormones that influence every cell in your body and also impacts metabolism, energy and heart rate. The nutrient L-carnitine may be an important tool in helping thyroid patients improve their symptoms and control disease; however, it is important to first check with your doctor.
Identification
L-carnitine is also known as acetyl-l-carnitine or carnitine. Your body produces carnitine in the liver and kidneys and stores it in your muscles, heart, brain and also in sperm. Carnitine helps reduce oxidative stress, a process where harmful free radicals circulate in your body, causing damage to cell walls and even your DNA.
Thyroid Benefits
L-carnitine may be able to help symptoms of an overactive thyroid, called hyperthyroidism, which include insomnia, nervousness, a fast heart rate and tremors. Many with hyperthyroidism and the opposite problem, an underactive thyroid called hypothyroidism, often have muscle weakness due to a deficiency of carnitine levels found in muscle tissues.
Expert Insight
Italian researcher Dr. S. Benvenga has been at the forefront of studies into carnitine's effects on the thyroid. In two studies he led, he showed that 2 g and 4 g per day of oral L-carnitine improved nine thyroid hormone-sensitive biochemical parameters. The carnitine supplementation also led to an increase in bone mineral density in the thyroid patients. These studies were published in 2001 in the "Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism" and in the "Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences" in 2004. Dr. Benvenga also reported in the "American Journal of Medicine" in 2003 that carnitine was able to treat thyroid storm, a life-threatening condition resulting from untreated hyperthyroidism.
Considerations
No studies have occurred to determine possible side effects of L-carnitine the long term. It is also unknown which doses may be required over an extended period to produce beneficial results. High doses of 5 g or more a day in the short term can cause diarrhea, rashes and a fishy body odor. The studies on L-carnitine as of May 2011 used no more than 4 g daily. If you have a thyroid condition, check with your doctor before adding L-carnitine supplements to your diet.
References
- "University of Maryland Medical Center"; Carnitine (L-carnitine); Steven D. Ehrlich, NMD; March 2009
- RaySahelian: Acetyl l-carnitine
- "Muscle Nerve"; Muscle Carnitine in Hypo- and Hyperthyroidism; C. Sinclair, et al.; September 2005
- "Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences"; Effects of Carnitine on Thyroid Hormone Action; S. Benvenga, et al.; November 2004
- "Journal of Clinical Endocrinology Metabolism"; Usefulness of L-carnitine, a Naturally Occurring Peripheral Antagonist of Thyroid Hormone Action, in Iatrogenic Hyperthyroidism; S. Benvenga, et al.; August 2001
- "Life Extension Foundation"; Carnitine and Thyroid Disease: Why Hyperthyroid Patients Need Carnitine; Julius G. Goepp, M.D.; December 2007
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