Identify the root cause rather than focusing on the symptoms! This is a priority (not an option) for true healing and restoration of health to occur. Many underlying health issues can go undetected for years, leaving you feeling frustrated and hopeless.
Diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disorders, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, sickness, and lifestyle diseases do not happen overnight. The process starts much earlier and takes years to develop.
Functional lab testing and comprehensive blood tests are important to help identify the root cause of an autoimmune disease, thyroid dysfunction, digestive complaints, anxiety, and any imbalance or underlying health problems in order to eliminate symptoms.
Recommended Functional Lab Tests
These lab tests will identify root causes of underlying health problems, including nutrient deficiencies, hormone imbalances, absorption, and digestive function, inflammatory markers, immune function, oxidation, toxic load and detoxification problems, underlying infections, and hidden stressors.
Comprehensive Blood Work
A blood test is a blueprint of your health and a glimpse of your future. It can tell you how well your kidneys and liver are functioning, your potential for heart disease and diabetes, thyroid function, the strength of your immune system, the chemical profile of your blood, and many other important facts about your health.
Nutrient deficiencies
Nutrient deficiencies are often overlooked as a root cause of many illnesses. Nutrient deficiencies affect mood, hormones, brain function, the appearance of your skin, hair, and nails, energy, neurotransmitters, and immune function. Nutrient deficiencies are associated with the chronic disease process and the overall condition of one’s health.
Stool Testing.Â
A comprehensive DNA stool test is an advanced stool that is much more sensitive than the conventional stool test because it uses Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technology to amplify DNA.
The Comprehensive DNA stool test measures premier biomarkers of GI function, providing valuable insight into digestive performance, gut inflammation, and the gut microbiome — areas affecting not only GI health but overall health.
The results of the comprehensive DNA stool test provide an extensive look at the health and function of your GI health: evaluates microbiota, levels of healthy gut flora (bacteria balance and imbalances), detects underlying pathogens, dysbiosis, infections (parasites, yeast, fungi, Candida overgrowth, bacterial), maldigestion and malabsorption, inflammation, immune function (sIgA), short chain fatty acid status, and other biomarkers of GI health.
Toxic Metal Test. A provoked urine analysis is an invaluable tool for assessing the body's retention of toxic heavy metals. An Organic Acid Test (OAT) is a reliable means of identifying short-term toxic metal exposure and evaluating intracellular nutrient mineral status. Hair testing is the tissue of choice for detecting recent exposure to elements such as arsenic, aluminum, cadmium, lead, antimony, and mercury, whereas urine assesses retention. Toxic elements may be 200 to 300 times more highly concentrated in hair than in blood or urine. Toxic metals do not have any useful physiological function, adversely affect virtually every organ system, disrupt the balance of nutrient elements, and can be the root cause of many underlying health conditions, including fatigue, hypothyroid, an autoimmune disease, hypertension, dementia, autism, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s. Evaluate exposure to potentially toxic elements such as mercury, cadmium, lead, aluminum, arsenic, and other toxic metals, and wasting of nutrient elements.
Food Sensitivity Testing. An IgG food panel blood test will provide you with a list of foods that your immune system is reacting to. Food sensitivities are associated with inflammation that is linked to chronic health problems. Food sensitivities are much more common than food allergies.
Symptoms include bloating, digestive disorders, migraines, weight loss resistance, chronic fatigue, achy joints, skin disorders, and behavioral issues. It has been estimated that upwards of 70-80% of the U.S. population has food sensitivities. It’s important to realize that food sensitivity testing comes with a high margin of error, making the results invalid.
Additional Lab Tests to consider
NutrEval® FMV W/Nutrient & Toxic Elements
Micronutrient Testing. This test is a comprehensive nutritional analysis of the body’s intracellular function that measures 35 selected vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other essential micronutrients within your white blood cells. This analysis can reveal a person’s functional nutritional status over a much longer period than conventional static serum testing, thus providing you with a more meaningful measurement than all other nutritional testings.
Genetic Testing. An inexpensive test to assess the genetic diagnosis of vulnerabilities to inherited diseases, confirm or rule out a suspected genetic mutation such as MTHFR, APOE4, COMT, BRCA, and many other SNPs, deficiencies or excesses in methylation, and other genetic markers.
Pyrrole Metabolic Panel, Urine. This is a simple urine test to screen for elevated pyrroles. People with mood disorders, anxiety, depression, bipolar, schizophrenia, alcoholism, ADD, ADHD, and OCD should all be screened for pyroluria using this simple urine test. Elevated pyrroles alter brain chemistry, deplete zinc and vitamin B-6, and cause oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction.
Organic Acids and Metabolic Analysis Profile. The Organic Acids Test (OAT) offers a comprehensive metabolic snapshot of a person’s overall health. It’s a simple urine test that looks at biomarkers from various metabolic pathways in order to evaluate four critical areas of metabolism: gastrointestinal function, oxidative stress, cellular and mitochondrial energy production, neurotransmitter processing, short-term toxic metal exposure, and amino acid/organic acid balance as influenced by vitamin and mineral levels. Results can address chronic systemic complaints ranging from chronic fatigue and mood disorders to headache, muscle and joint pain, and digestive problems.
DUTCH Complete to assess hormone function, hormone metabolites, organic acids, and adrenal function
Other helpful and important tests. Depending on the individual, further testing may be required. These may include Lyme disease, neurotransmitter testing, H. Pylori, viral infections, detailed cholesterol profile, mycotoxin/mold panel and other tests.