How To Fix High Reverse T3 Naturally

Reverse T3 is an anti-thyroid metabolite.

The more of it you have in your system, the worse your thyroid functions.

This is standard thyroid physiology 101, but here’s the problem:

First:

Doctors aren’t in the habit of ordering this test, so it’s very unlikely you’ll never know it’s a problem unless you know to look for it.

And second:

The thyroid medication that is most effective for lowering reverse T3 is the one that doctors like the least.

This means you’re probably not going to get the treatment you need, unless…

You understand how to lower your high reverse T3 the all-natural way.

Which is exactly what we are going to discuss right now:

1. Use Zinc, Selenium, Ashwagandha, and T2

Number one on this short list is the use of the right supplements.

Why are these so important?

Because they are incredibly easy to get, safe to use, and almost always at least somewhat effective.

There are certainly more dramatic things you can do to lower your reverse T3, but this one has the smallest barrier to entry, which means that every person reading this can do it.

How do they work?

By supporting the enzymes that normally work to convert T4 thyroid hormone into T3 thyroid hormone.

When you support these enzymes, you send the signal to your body to create T3 instead of reverse T3.

The more T3 you have, the better you will feel. The more reverse T3 you have, the worse you will feel.

So pushing your body to create T3 instead of reverse T3 is a winning strategy.

As far as supplements go, here are the most effective at doing this:

2. Reduce Stress & Lower Cortisol

If you’re reading this and you have no idea why your reverse T3 is sky-high, it’s probably due to stress.

The problem with stress is that it’s very easy to identify but very difficult to address.

It’s not always possible for you to change jobs, alter relationships, suddenly make your money problems go away, or reduce your workload at home.

And yet, these are the things you must do if you want to eliminate stress as a problem.

But since that’s not always an option, you can do things to help your body become more resilient to the stress that it must be placed under.

And for that, you can do these things:

• Improve Sleep Quality – For high reverse T3, you’ll need to sleep at least 7 hours per night (6), but if you can’t do that, you can at least improve the QUALITY of your sleep. Things like: square breathing to get to sleep, taping your mouth shut, wearing a black-out eye mask, and practicing CBT-I can help you get your sleep on track quickly. If sleep is a big problem for you, read this article.
• Meditate for 11 minutes a day – Despite being one of the most effective things you can do to reduce stress, patients just don’t do it. But with this 11-minute guided meditation, you really have no reason not to. Watch this YouTube video, follow along, and see how it changes your life (it will).
• Pilates + Daily Walking – Exercise is a double-edged sword for reverse T3. If you overexercise, you’ll make it worse, and if you don’t exercise it all, it will stay the same. The solution? Use a combination of pilates for 20-30 minutes a day and walk for 15-20 minutes a day. This combo will keep your cortisol happy and help boost T3 levels (7) while keeping your reverse T3 where it should be.
• Adaptogenic herbs – These herbs help your body become more resilient to stress and should really be a must-have for all thyroid patients. I’ve yet to see a thyroid patient who didn’t benefit from their use.

3. Support Your Liver

Your liver is, hands down, the most important organ in your body when it comes to managing reverse T3 levels.

Why?

Because around 60-80% of all T3 creation occurs there (8).

And if it doesn’t, because your liver is damaged or inefficient, then you can expect the T4 that would be turning into T3 to turn into reverse T3 instead.

The key to a healthy liver is all about your diet.

Here’s what you should eat if you want your liver to help (and not hurt) your thyroid:

Add these foods to your diet as often as possible.

But in addition, make sure to avoid these liver killers:

• Sugary Drinks (Avoid 100%)
• Alcohol (Avoid 100%)
• Seed Oils
• All Processed Foods
• Refined Sugar (table sugar, brown sugar, etc.)

If you want some bonus tips on how to improve your thyroid through your diet, check out my perfect thyroid diet.

4. Balance Your Blood Sugar

Up to 40% of American adults suffer from insulin resistance and imbalanced blood sugar levels.

We know from research that insulin resistance is linked to reduced T4 to T3 conversion and a lower T3:rT3 ratio (9).

In practical terms, this means that when your blood sugar is high, your T3 is low, and your reverse T3 is high.

The good news is that you can reduce insulin resistance FAST with these treatments:

• Water Fasting – There’s no better way to normalize your insulin and blood sugar than going without food. This also happens to be a thyroid-safe way to reduce calories for weight loss. Fast up to 1-2 days per week to see significant drops in blood sugar and insulin.
• Low-Carb Diets – In conjunction with fasting, cut out all added sources of sugar and carbohydrates. This shouldn’t be done long-term, as it may cause problems to your T3 if done for 12+ months, but it can be done for a few months without issue.
• Exercise – We keep coming back to zone-2 exercise, so if you aren’t convinced you need it, maybe this time will do the trick. Stick to pilates and walking, as I mentioned earlier.
• Take Berberine – Berberine is a GLP-1 activator that improves blood sugar (10), weight loss, and appetite.

5. Eat Enough Calories (And Protein)

Restricting your calories on a daily basis is a great way to increase your reverse T3 by pushing your body into a state of metabolic adaptation.

Many thyroid patients find themselves in a situation where they restrict calories while trying to lose weight, only to find out that their reverse T3 has increased as a result.

The solution? You MUST eat enough calories each day in order for your body to stay out of this adaptive state.

If you do need to restrict your calories for weight loss, then restrict them episodically with fasting.

Do NOT cut your calories by 200-300 each day and maintain that long-term.

Instead, use intermittent and prolonged fasting as a way to cut your calories and only if needed.

This is a hard one for a lot of thyroid patients, especially if they just finished a diet to lose weight.

But the reality is that you may have to sacrifice some short-term weight gain for long-term weight loss.  

6. Review Your Medications

This is something that you can do right now:

Go grab any prescription that you are taking to see if it’s one that is known to block T4 to T3 conversion.

Many thyroid patients are surprised to hear that some of the most common prescription medications given to thyroid patients also happen to increase reverse T3.

Some of the biggest offenders include:

• Beta-blockers (11) – Used for high blood pressure, anxiety, migraines, and tremors.
• Anti-depressants (12) – Used for depression, which is often caused by the thyroid.
• Pain medications
• Anti-thyroid medications like methimazole – Used to treat hyperthyroidism.
• Birth control pills (13) – These deplete zinc and selenium, which can contribute to high reverse T3. They also increase thyroid-binding globulin, which makes thyroid hormones less available for use.
• Other medications that deplete zinc and selenium include: valproic acid, medications for epilepsy, ACE inhibitors, diuretics, NSAIDs, steroids, and antacids.

The good news is that you can almost always switch to another medication to get the benefits you’re seeking from whatever you are currently taking.

The bad news is that it will take a trip to your doctor.

But that’s not all bad, considering what it can do to help you normalize your high RT3.

7. Reduce Your Dose of Levothyroxine

Speaking of medications, did you know that levothyroxine can increase your reverse T3 as well?

Here’s how:

Levothyroxine contains T4-only thyroid hormone.

If you take that T4 and there are problems in your body like inflammation or insulin resistance, that T4 will be turned into reverse T3 instead of T3.

The more levothyroxine you take, the higher your reverse T3 will get and the worse you will feel.

This is actually fairly common and happens to a lot of thyroid patients, which is part of the reason that so few people like levothyroxine.

You can stop this vicious cycle by doing one of two things (or both):

First, by flushing out the reverse T3 with a T3-only medication like liothyronine or Cytomel.

And second, by cutting back on your dose of levothyroxine to cut back on the fuel you’re throwing on the fire.

The first option is not really an all-natural approach because it requires another medication, but the second is which is why it’s included here.

By cutting back on your levothyroxine dose by 25-50% for a few weeks to months, you can help reduce how much rT3 is being created.

But this will only work if you also do the other treatments that we’ve mentioned so far.

If you don’t, your rT3 will spike right back up if and when you take your normal dose of levothyroxine.

Final Thoughts

You can get your reverse T3 under control using both natural and pharmaceutical treatments.

Which one you opt for is up to you, but if you’re asking for my opinion, I see the best results when using a combination of both.

By the way, if you landed here because your reverse T3 was high due to trying to lose weight, then I’d recommend checking out my 4x 100 thyroid weight loss formula.

It will help you lose weight WITHOUT increasing your reverse T3 and damaging your thyroid.