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Thyroid Support in Ottawa
NutriChem’s clinic on Carling Avenue provides naturopathic thyroid testing and support to patients across Ottawa. The thyroid sets the pace for almost everything, meaning metabolism, body temperature, energy, mood, cycles, and weight. When it slows, all of those slow with it, and the change is gradual enough that most people blame themselves before they blame the gland.
A thyroid naturopath works on the full picture around a thyroid, meaning the testing that gets skipped, the nutrient status that affects how well the gland and the medication work, and the autoimmune process that drives most thyroid disease in this country.
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Signs Your Thyroid Is Involved
Exhaustion that sleep does not fix. Weight that climbed without a change in diet. Feeling cold when nobody else is. Dry skin, brittle nails, and hair that is thinning or falling. Constipation. Heavy or irregular periods. Brain fog. Low mood or anxiety that arrived alongside the rest.
An overactive thyroid runs the other way, with weight loss, a racing heart, heat intolerance, tremor, anxiety, and sleep that will not come. That one is a medical matter and needs a physician promptly rather than a supplement plan.
Why A TSH-Only Test Misses Things
Most thyroid testing in Canada begins and ends with TSH. It is a reasonable screening test, but not a complete one.
TSH is a pituitary signal rather than a thyroid measurement. It tells you what the brain is asking the thyroid to do, not what the thyroid is actually delivering, and not whether your immune system is attacking it. A TSH sitting in the upper half of the reference range with symptoms to match is the case that gets waved through year after year.
Thyroid antibodies are the ones most often never ordered at all. They matter because Hashimoto’s is the leading cause of hypothyroidism in a country like Canada, where iodine intake is adequate. Knowing whether an autoimmune process is running changes what you do next.
Thyroid Testing We Use
A full panel includes TSH, free T4, free T3, and thyroid antibodies (both TPO and thyroglobulin).
This sits within the wider hormone testing the clinic runs.
Ferritin, B12, folate, and vitamin D are checked alongside it, since deficiencies in any of them can produce symptoms that look exactly like an underactive thyroid, and because low iron affects thyroid function in its own right.
Screening for celiac disease is worth considering because autoimmune thyroid disease and celiac disease travel together more often than chance would explain.
Our digestive health page covers that ground.
We read the results you already have rather than repeat them, and testing is ordered where it will change the plan.
What Support Can Look Like
If you have hypothyroidism, you need thyroid hormone replacement, and that is a medical prescription rather than something naturopathic care substitutes for. What naturopathic care does is work on everything around it, and there is more of that than most patients are told.
Nutrient repletion comes first when testing shows a deficit, particularly in iron, vitamin D, and vitamin B12. Correcting those often accounts for a good share of what a patient was blaming on the thyroid, and formulas can be made to your own results through made-for-you vitamin formulas rather than bought off a shelf.
Selenium is used for autoimmune thyroid disease, and there is reasonable evidence that it lowers thyroid antibodies, though whether that changes how a person feels is less well established. Your practitioner will be straight with you about that distinction rather than overselling it.
Gut health matters here more than it might seem, since absorption affects both nutrient status and medication, and dietary guidance is part of the naturopathic consultation itself.
Where thyroid symptoms sit alongside exhaustion, weight that will not shift, anxiety and low mood, our fatigue and burnout, weight loss and metabolic health, and stress and nervous system, our pages cover the overlap.
Two Things We Will Not Do
We will not tell you to stop or reduce thyroid medication. Dose changes belong to your prescriber, and stopping replacement therapy on your own can be harmful.
And we will not hand you high-dose iodine. It is sold everywhere for thyroid support, and in a country where iodine intake is already adequate, most hypothyroidism is autoimmune rather than deficiency-driven. Excess iodine can worsen autoimmune thyroid disease rather than help it. Where iodine is genuinely low, that is a testable question with a measured answer, not a bottle bought on a hunch.
The NutriChem Difference
At NutriChem, your practitioner and pharmacist work under one roof. Custom-compounded prescriptions and made-for-you vitamin formulas, not off-the-shelf supplements.
On this page, that is not a convenience; it is the whole point. Levothyroxine is one of the fussiest medications there is to absorb. It needs an empty stomach. Calcium and iron block it, and they need at least 4 hours of separation. Coffee cuts absorption substantially. So do fiber, soy, and acid-reducing medication, and estrogen raises the dose you need.
Now consider that iron and vitamin D are two of the things a naturopathic clinic most commonly prescribes. Given carelessly to someone on thyroid medication, they can push a TSH in the wrong direction and undo the very thing the patient came in for. A pharmacist who reviews your prescription and supplement plan together is what stops that from happening.
NutriChem’s naturopathic doctors hold prescribing authority for thyroid medication, which means they can prescribe and manage hypothyroidism directly, including with natural desiccated thyroid where it suits the patient. Desiccated thyroid contains both T4 and T3, and it is an option some people are offered when they do not feel fully well on standard levothyroxine alone. It is one choice among several rather than a levothyroxine replacement, and which one fits is a clinical decision made with you. Where a desiccated or compounded preparation is called for, whether a dose that is not commercially made or a formula without a filler you react to, it can be prepared in our own compounding lab.
The compounding side matters too. Standard thyroid tablets carry fillers and dyes, and where a patient reacts to one, a preparation can be made without it. Compounded thyroid medication is prescriber-led and is used where a commercial product does not fit, rather than as a default alternative to one.
Meet Your Practitioner
Dr. Emma Pollon-MacLeod, B.Sc., N.D.
CEO, Naturopathic Doctor, Menopause Society Certified Practitioner
Dr. Emma Pollon-MacLeod, ND, is a Menopause Society Certified Practitioner (MSCP) specializing in perimenopause and menopause care. She addresses both symptoms and long-term health risks like osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, and cognitive decline. Her treatment plans combine hormone therapy, nutraceuticals, and lifestyle strategies, grounded in a whole-body, personalized approach. With a background in biochemistry and naturopathic medicine, Dr. Emma empowers women with evidence-based care tailored to their needs and values.
Dr. Sophie Pollon-MacLeod, B.Sc., N.D.
Naturopathic Doctor, Menopause Society Certified Practitioner
Dr. Sophie Pollon-MacLeod, ND, takes the time to explain the “why” behind your symptoms, helping you feel informed and empowered in your care. With a background in kinesiology and certification as a personal trainer, she offers a unique perspective on how hormonal changes impact metabolism, body composition, and overall health. She specializes in supporting women through perimenopause, menopause, and thyroid conditions, addressing shifts in energy, weight, cardiovascular health, and bone density. Her care is holistic, personalized, and grounded in the belief that women deserve to feel strong, vibrant, and well at every stage of life.
Dr. Laeticia Domagalski, N.D.
Naturopathic Doctor, Menopause Society Certified Practitioner
Dr. Laeticia Domagalski, ND, is known for offering a clear, evidence-based approach to care. With a B.Sc. in Nutrition and culinary training from Le Cordon Bleu, she brings a unique blend of science and food expertise to her naturopathic practice—particularly valuable for women navigating hormonal transitions like perimenopause and menopause. She focuses on supporting metabolic health, digestive function, and skin integrity during these shifts, addressing concerns like bloating, constipation, and skin conditions such as eczema and acne. Certified in facial rejuvenation acupuncture, Dr. Laeticia also offers a holistic approach to skin health that supports both internal balance and external radiance
Dr. Holly Paraschuk, N.D.
Naturopathic Doctor, Menopause Society Certified Practitioner
Dr. Holly Paraschuk’s practice focuses on integrative care for women through key life transitions, including perinatal and postnatal care. She has a special interest in hormonal and menstrual health, supporting women with conditions like PCOS, irregular cycles, painful periods, and PMS. Her goal is to help patients understand their cycle as a vital sign and use it as a tool for deeper health insight. With additional focus on digestive health, Dr. Holly blends clinical expertise with personalized strategies to help women feel balanced, informed, and empowered in their care.
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Common Questions
A naturopathic doctor can test more thoroughly than a TSH-only screen, correct nutrient deficiencies that mimic or worsen thyroid symptoms, and address the autoimmune component. At NutriChem, our naturopathic doctors also hold prescribing authority for thyroid medication, so where hypothyroidism needs treating, they can prescribe and manage it, including with natural desiccated thyroid for patients suited to it. They will also make sure your supplements are not working against your medication.
No. Not without your prescriber, and not on the strength of anything you read here. Naturopathic care runs alongside your medication rather than instead of it.
Not by default, and not in high doses. Most hypothyroidism in Canada is autoimmune rather than caused by iodine deficiency, and excess iodine can make autoimmune thyroid disease worse. Test before supplementing.
That is one of the most common reasons people come in. The next questions are what your free T4, free T3, and thyroid antibodies are doing, and whether ferritin, B12, or vitamin D is low, because any of those can produce the same symptoms.
No. You can book directly, and the free 15-minute discovery call lets you ask questions first.
Book A Free 15-Minute Discovery Call
The discovery call is free, takes 15 minutes, and requires no referral. It is the quickest way to find out what testing would be worth doing and whether naturopathic support fits alongside the care you already have.
NutriChem Clinic, 2599 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, ON K2B 7H7. We see patients from Carlingwood, Westboro, Nepean, Kanata, and across Ottawa. Explore the rest of our naturopathic clinic services.
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