What is the difference between Armour thyroid and the levothyroxine sodium drugs? Primarily, Armour provides BOTH T4 and T3 thyroid hormones, instead of just providing T4, as levothyroxine sodium drugs like Synthroid do.
Current endocrinology practice believes that T4-only drugs are the ONLY appropriate thyroid hormone replacement drugs. The prevailing opinion is that everyone converts all the T4 needed into T3 automatically, and that drugs such as Armour and Thyrolar are outdated and old-fashioned at best. You can find a lot of hotly debated discussions on this topic, even on this site.
Some doctors are even vehement about this, and swear that Armour has consistency problems or is dangerous, despite the fact that is was the primary thyroid replacement hormone drug for years, until Synthroid came on the market. Most people do fine on Synthroid, but NOT everyone. For some patients switching to Armour makes a big difference with side effects. If your doc wont discuss it, find a new doc who will take your side effects seriously.