Kris Insight started out of a desire to keep my writing alive and real for me and evolved in to a health blog with an emphasis on thyroid disease. I publish a new article every Monday morning having worked for several hours over the weekend to present you with some new idea or recipe.
I will warn the reader that if you are one of those people who diligently follow your doctor’s advice, who never looks for answers yourself and you trust what the television news has to say about the latest health news this blog is not for you.
I feel improperly diagnosed thyroid disease is perhaps the number one cause of poor health in the United States and perhaps the world. Very few people understand how important your thyroid gland is, how many systems it regulates and even its importance to preventing cancers in the body. My goal is to help my readers research their own issues and hopefully point them in a new and helpful direction.
Keep in mind, I am not a doctor, I am a dental hygienist having graduated from the University of Minnsota in 1977. Nothing you find at my site is medically prescribed or to be considered anything but a sharing of knowledge gained by countless hours of my own reading and experience.
I am open to questions and dialogue, so feel free to tell me what is on your mind. I know what I present is controversial sometimes and bears being debated. With discussion we all learn and even dissension forces us to consider a point of view we never knew existed, so I welcome your views and will publish any comments (with the exception of those deemed as *spam* by WordPress) and try to answer every one.
Kris InSight 
Posted by Brian on 6:50 at Wednesday, October 27, 2021
Did you ever find a Wiley Protocol prescribing doctor in MN?
Posted by Kris on 11:59 at Thursday, October 28, 2021
I did not. I have been most unsatisfied by the medical care in MN BUT I did find a gifted homeopathic MD. She did retire about three years ago and she is not easily replaced.
Posted by Kate on 2:13 at Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Kris, I am grateful I came across your insights on hypothyroidism and dosaging on T3 which is a challenge for me to figure out. May I know your weight and height when 50mcg of T3 was working for you? I know everyone has a different dosage threshold but that weight and size of individual also plays a part on ideal dosaging.
Posted by Kris on 14:21 at Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Hi Kate, I agree with you, so let me think. I believe I was around 150 pounds at that time and I am five feet five. I have since lost about 30 pounds but my dose has stayed about the same. Trouble is I have changed to liquid T3 and I quite honestly believe the liquid strength changes some each time I get a new batch.
I am not, as you can tell, doing much with my blog at the moment. I have found myself in a pretty easy to maintain state. I usually know if I am taking too little or too much T3. I have lost weight and can exercise with Jillian Michaels every day and even impress my 45 year old daughter with my fitness.
On the down side, my sleep could be better. I am a little colder than I used to be and the last time I checked my FT3 it was lower than it should have been. I am probably slightly hypo but since I feel about as normal as I have felt in a decade (knock on wood) I am going to keep doing what I’m doing.
I welcome questions (so ask away) and may eventually get back to blog entries. Sometimes life just gets in the way.
Posted by Kate on 20:40 at Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Thanks for your kind reply and congrats for the weight loss and improvement in health! I hope to get to the same place as you soon (although I am still tweaking my dosages and wondering if it’s better to take my T3 in one-go or to spread them out; I honestly can’t feel any difference!)
Posted by Kris on 9:42 at Thursday, December 21, 2017
Hi Kate,
I would try taking it all at once and see how your temperatures and energy react. If it creates a rapid heartbeat or discomfort then that’s not going to work.
If taking a full dose drops your temperatures, it isn’t working because it is too hard on your adrenals. I found Paul Robinson’s book the most useful when my adrenals were struggling and taking a dose of T3 around 3 in the morning really helped. Your adrenals need T3 early in the morning, approximately two to three hours before you get up.
I, to this day, take three doses of T3. I take the first one when I get up. The second one around noon and the last one around 4 or 5 in the evening. Sometimes I feel like the one early in the morning is a bit hard on my adrenals because I will go all cold but that doesn’t always happen and it is winter in MN right now. Brr.
Posted by Kate on 21:45 at Thursday, December 21, 2017
Great pointers! Thanks for sharing! I currently take 25mcg 2-3 hours before waking up and another 25mcg at noon… works ok (no heart palpitations and no hyper symptoms) but my hands and feet are still always cold regardless of timing of dosage and I live in the tropics!!! so maybe my dosage is still not enough? I am 5 ft 3 inches and weigh 120 pounds and mildly hypo. Seems anything less than 50mcg has no effect on me and doesn’t give me the energy for the day. I may try pushing up to 62.5mg to see if it helps or gives me jitters and keep tweaking! Anyway, Merry Christmas Kris and living life to the fullest!
Posted by Kris on 7:34 at Friday, December 22, 2017
Merry Christmas to you too Kate. We are lucky we feel healthy enough to make the most of life.
Posted by dreamlandboutique on 17:21 at Thursday, October 22, 2015
Could you recommend some other great books on herbs and tinctures
Posted by Kris on 10:44 at Friday, October 23, 2015
Good morning, I can list a few that I have in my library:
The Holistic Herbal by David Hoffman
Susun Weed-any book she has written and she has written several. I have Healing Wise in my kitchen cupboard and several more in my library.
The Book of Herbal Wisdom-Matthew Wood
I love Susun Weed’s approach to herbs. She often gives them names and has stories for each one that involve tincturing, making tisanes or infusions and other uses for each herb she describes. I read and re-read her books because they are entertaining as well as informative. You can also follow her on Facebook where she shares her herbal wisdom in posts.
I don’t use the other two as much, they are more scientific and thus a bit boring for me to read. I don’t refer to Matthew Wood’s book very often but I think finding an herbalist from your state or general area is really important. Matthew Wood is local for me. He owns Sunnyfield Herb Farm in Minnetrista, MN and is an herbalist and homeopathic doctor. Minnesota being in Zones 5a-3a is a “special” state.
Let me know if you find any of these or if you find some you would like to share, please do.
Posted by dreamlandboutique on 18:09 at Wednesday, October 7, 2015
I already have a black walnut tincture made for about 3 weeks steeping, how can I add the wormwood and other stuff to it? Sorry but I new to this and just learning
Posted by Kris on 18:47 at Wednesday, October 7, 2015
No need to apologize, we all start somewhere and I am not an expert. I learned from an herbalist but never became an herbalist. I always let them steep for 6 weeks and then drain the liquid from the solids. I kept each one in a separate bottle of dark glass and when ready to use I had a shot glass that measured the liquid of each element of the parasite cleanse. It seems to me the shot glass measures 1 1/2 ounce amounts. Depending on your dropper bottle you can measure, say, 1 1/2 ounce of black walnut tincture, 1/2 ounce tansy and 1/2 ounce wormwood. If you have room you can add some turmeric tincture for the anti-inflammatory properties. Every time I need more parasite cleanse I repeat the procedure.
If you want to use a set pattern for cleansing Hulda Clark’s method is the one most people use. What I was doing was loosely based on her prescribed regimen. She did not use tansy and did use clove but in capsules.
Posted by Tina Clark on 15:08 at Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Hi Kris, I would love to know how you make your parasite cleanse tincture, do you do them all together and if so what portions? Any information would be appreciated. Thanks
Posted by Kris on 15:30 at Wednesday, October 7, 2015
I do mix them together but in different proportions. I use more black walnut tincture, approximately 2 parts to 1/2 or 1 part of all the others, so tansy, clove and wormwood. I actually stopped adding the clove tincture to my parasite cleanse. Also I now make a tansy elixir every autumn and take a small amount of that for 10 days and then take a rest from it altogether. The recipe for the tansy elixir can be found in a book titled Wild Medicinal Plants. The author’s name is Anny Schneider.
This year I am only taking the elixir of tansy because I recently had a food sensitivity test and I was slightly sensitive to black walnut, so for now I am taking the tansy elixir in water and occasionally have a few days of human grade diatomaceous earth (rich in silica and good for getting rid of parasites).
Posted by Josiah Page on 19:14 at Thursday, August 15, 2013
Kris,
Regarding your comment about your family’s history of heart disease, You should look at the Track Your Plaque forum. http://www.trackyourplaque.com/
Josiah
Posted by Kris on 19:26 at Thursday, August 15, 2013
Thanks I will. I looked briefly and will continue to check it out. My CRP has been really good thus far and, of course, no one else in my family has bothered to check CRP nor homocysteine nor uric acid but so far mine are good. My BP is below average when I am not on enough T3 and about average when I am, so that is another way to keep track. I can also tell how things are doing by my pulse, when it is low my T3 needs increasing and when it is high normal I am probably on a bit too much (at least for my adrenals).
Posted by Mary on 12:17 at Thursday, January 17, 2013
I would like for you to write something about hyperparathyroidism. I hardly hear anything about it. I have 2 bad glands and would like some information on it.
Posted by Kris on 19:50 at Thursday, January 17, 2013
I will ask my Facebook group and do some research and see what I can find on the subject of hyperparathyroidism. I know the parathyroid is an important part of the system and, I too would like to know more. Watch this space!
Posted by Kris on 15:21 at Saturday, January 19, 2013
Mary, I found this on Earth Clinic:http://www.earthclinic.com/CURES/hyperparathyroidism.html . I will add the caveat that CAM treatments should not be the only thing you do to treat hyperparathyroidism but I am guessing you are already seeing a medical doctor. I would also check all your hormone levels as I noticed in another article that sometimes sex hormones get really out of whack with hyperparathyroidism, particularly progesterone levels. Maintaining healthy Calcium levels is a big problem for people who have your issue and checking those levels should be done regularly otherwise bone can be harmed.
Our endocrine system is so important to a well running body that I hope you can effectively treat this issue. I will continue to research possibilities but let me know what you think of Earth Clinic’s suggestions and what you are doing at the moment to treat the problem.
Posted by Tara Stepan on 9:18 at Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Kris,
You did a fantastic blog post on SpectraCell. Would it be okay if SpectraCell reposts your blog entry onto their blog? We would, of course, give you credit and link back to your blog. Please let us know. Thank you.
Posted by Kris on 13:30 at Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Of course you can, and thank you. The Spectracell test was the most useful test I have done and I have done a lot of blood testing. I recommend your test to anyone with health issues or without them as it has the potential to catch something before it ruins your life.
Posted by katerina on 9:14 at Monday, December 19, 2011
thanks, Kris. I will continue to look for information and let you know if I hear anything more!
-katerina
Posted by katerina on 16:19 at Sunday, December 18, 2011
hiya kris!
I have been reading through your website and enjoying it very much..
I wanted to ask you a question about taking astaxanthin for hashimotos.. I see from some of your entries that you take it as a supplement. have you noticed a difference in your health from taking it? I am pretty intrigued but worried that since it stimulates an immune response, that it might ‘stimulate’ more of the antibodies attacking my thyroid.. I haven’t been able to find any research about it either way. If you have any information, I’d be very grateful!
Thanks,
Katerina
Posted by Kris on 16:35 at Sunday, December 18, 2011
Hi Katerina,
I have been taking Vital Choice Astaxanthin and I haven’t noticed my Hashimoto’s flaring up but I don’t have any proof of improvements from it either. I did recently catch a cold from my grandson and within two days I was over it as was my husband. I tend to credit Vitamin D for that immune response rather than Astaxanthin but I still take it.
I will do some research as well and see what I can find. If you find anything would you check back in and let me know. Information like that is important to share and if I need to I will test my antibody response and see what is happening. unfortunately, it is one of the more expensive tests and thus my reluctance to check it out.
Thanks for the comment,
Kris
Posted by Kris on 9:09 at Monday, December 19, 2011
Morning Katerina, I have found several sites that state that Astaxanthin is helpful in cases of autoimmune diseases in addition to being a natural sunscreen, good for your vessel walls and one of the best anti-oxidants. This link has a fairly concise explanation of its benefits and you may already have found it: http://asta-x.com/advantage.html
Here is my conclusion: Just like raising children we need to pick our battles. My family has a history of heart disease, so in addition to battling thyroid issues I must be watchful of supplements that will keep my heart healthy.
I know if I treat my thyroid condition optimally that is my best defense but increasing the health of my immune system is equally important.
Posted by Olivia on 8:51 at Monday, November 21, 2011
Love your blog.
Posted by Kris on 9:14 at Monday, November 21, 2011
Thanks Olivia I appreciate your readership.
Posted by Mike Burlingame on 7:38 at Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Feedback on Kris InSight
I visited your blog, Kris InSight located at https://krisinsight.wordpress.com/ recently. I must say, I’m quite impressed by the blog’s content. In particular, I really liked https://krisinsight.wordpress.com/2009/01/12/cyanocobalamin-and-your-liver/.
Good job!
Mike Burlingame