Thymosin alpha 1 (Tα1)

Thymosin sounds like…actually, what does it sound like? Something in your spice cabinet? An ingredient in your eye cream? Good guesses, but thymosin is actually a category of naturally circulating hormones produced by the thymus gland, which sits behind your sternum. The thymus gland has special significance to people with autoimmune diseases. This humble organ has many responsibilities, but its big job is regulating your immune system and being home base to T cells as they grow up to tackle foreign invaders, like bacteria, viruses, or parasites. If these cells make a mistake and attack healthy rather than harmful substances, that can trigger widespread autoimmunity. In other words, even if you have an autoimmune condition located elsewhere in your body—say your joints, GI, or pancreas—it might have started in the thymus. Thymosins work together to keep your thymus happy and functioning properly. One type, thymosin alpha 1 (Tα1), seems especially capable of regulating your body’s inflammatory and autoimmune responses to diseases. Good stuff, right? No wonder there’s so much interest in Tα1 in the invisible illness community! How Tα1 works is not quite clear, but it seems to help the immune system with job 1: responding appropriately to viruses and other invaders. People with chronic conditions, including multiple sclerosis and psoriatic arthritis, seem to have significantly lower blood levels of Tα1 than healthy people. Tα1 is being studied for a number of conditions where immune system support is needed, like Lyme, HIV/AIDS, and chronic inflammatory conditions. Here’s the catch: There’s a lot of interest in Tα1, but the synthetic version of Tα1 is not available by prescription in the United States or Europe. You might see it available online, but read the fine print—those products are for research purposes only! How do people in the invisible illness community get access? Those who are using it probably worked through an integrative practitioner and a reputable compounding pharmacy or ordered it through an online biomedical supply source. Tα1 can be prohibitively expensive, and you have to be prepared to give yourself subcutaneous injections. More importantly, it’s never, ever a good idea to order medications online or self-dose without clearance from an experienced provider. Look, we get it. If you’re exploring Tα1, you’re probably feeling kinda crappy and ready to try anything…and spend just about anything. Please don’t. Because revving up your immune system could have no benefit, or it could make your symptoms worse.