Armour vs Synthroid vs T3: Dr. Wilson's View

“Should I switch to Armour?” is the question a thyroid patient asks after reading that T3 matters. Dr. Wilson’s answer is more specific than yes or no, and it turns on what each medicine actually contains. His page on the subject is short; this guide sets it beside the manual chapter it draws on, so the reasoning is complete.

What is in each

Synthroid contains only T4. Armour contains T4 and T3.

To review, the purpose of the WT3 protocol is to clear T4 and RT3 out of the tissues of the body by reducing T4. T4 is reduced by treating patients with T3.

— Armour or Synthroid In The Treatment of Wilsons Temperature Syndrome?

That second sentence is the whole argument. In his model, the problem is a backlog of T4 and reverse T3 in the tissues; the treatment reduces T4. A medicine that adds T4 is working against that goal, whatever else it contains.

Why Armour is not a shortcut to T3

Some patients and physicians hear about the need for T3 and wonder if they can gain the benefits of T3 by using Armour instead of Synthroid because it contains T3. But Armour thyroid doesn’t contain just T3. It contains a lot of T4 as well! T4 is the very hormone we’re trying to reduce in Wilsons Temperature Syndrome. That’s apparently why Armour Thyroid is not good for correcting Wilson’s Temperature Syndrome.

— Armour or Synthroid In The Treatment of Wilsons Temperature Syndrome?

He does concede the thing people notice:

Patients often feel better on Armour than on Synthroid, but that’s probably because Synthroid has nothing but T4.

Since Armour has a lot of T4 in it, it may carry less risk than straight T3 therapy. But it also carries less benefit. It does not typically correct Wilson’s Temperature Syndrome and the symptoms tend to return when the treatment is stopped. And it frequently doesn’t address the symptoms as well as straight T3 even when the patient is taking the Armour. Armour Thyroid does not constitute T3 therapy as described in Wilson’s T3 therapy or protocol.

— Armour or Synthroid In The Treatment of Wilsons Temperature Syndrome?

The Synthroid story

The same page describes what he expects to happen on T4 alone, and it is the pattern the manual calls classic:

When Wilsons Temperature Syndrome patients are treated with Synthroid their symptoms may improve for a time, but typically come back after a while (2-3 months). Seeing that the Synthroid helped at first but isn’t helping any more, doctors often increase the dose. The symptoms may improve again for a time, and then worsen again. The Synthroid might be increased with the cycle repeating itself. Until eventually, the Synthroid might be increased and instead of the patient improving again at all, the patient may get worse right off the bat. This is a classic story of patients being pushed too far in the wrong direction with the wrong medicine.

Even if the symptoms remain improved while a patient is on the Synthroid, the symptoms almost always return once the Synthroid is discontinued.

— Armour or Synthroid In The Treatment of Wilsons Temperature Syndrome?

The manual gives the reason he thinks T4 cannot do what T3 does — the “resetting” he describes with T3 does not happen:

In my experience, the “resetting phenomenon” doesn’t really occur with the use of T4-containing medicines (which can actually make Wilson’s Temperature Syndrome worse).

Remember, T4 is 4 times less potent, and 3 times longer-acting than T3. So even though it stimulates the thyroid hormone receptor, it does it so much more weakly than T3, that if it occupies the receptor instead of T3, it results in decreased stimulation of the cell.

— If Considering a Therapeutic Trial of Thyroid, Why Not Use T4?, the doctor’s manual

Where he says each belongs

This is not an argument against T4 medicines in general — only against using them to correct a low temperature:

Desiccated thyroid medicine (like Armour) and Synthroid are fine for people with normal temperatures, however, Dr. Wilson does not recommend using them until the patient’s temperature has been restored to normal (until their WTS has been corrected).

— Armour or Synthroid In The Treatment of Wilsons Temperature Syndrome?

And one clarification that trips people up, since “reduce RT3” sounds like “your RT3 must be high”:

Please note, however, that just because we want to deplete T4 and RT3 levels does not mean that RT3 levels have to be elevated on a blood test in order for a patient to have, and recover from Wilsons Temperature Syndrome. Many patients with normal or even low levels of RT3 on the blood tests can still respond well to the WT3 protocol.

— Armour or Synthroid In The Treatment of Wilsons Temperature Syndrome?

The short version

	Contains	Dr. Wilson’s view for a low temperature
Synthroid / levothyroxine	T4 only	Helps for a time, then the 2-3-month relapse cycle; symptoms return when stopped
Armour / desiccated thyroid	T4 plus some T3	Often feels better than Synthroid; “not good for correcting” the syndrome; not T3 therapy
WT3 protocol	T3 only, sustained-release, cycled	The treatment described in the manual; the resetting claim applies to this

Everything in that table is his position, not a consensus one; the American Thyroid Association and others reject the diagnosis outright (the disagreement, in full). A change between any of these medicines is a prescriber’s decision.

More on the site: Still Tired on Synthroid?, Sustained-Release T3 vs Cytomel, and the T3 therapy hub.

This is a reader’s guide compiled from Dr. Wilson’s published writing; every quotation is his and links to its source. It is not medical advice, and no thyroid medication should be changed without the prescriber.