Four Major Testing Categories
There are four main types of tests used to evaluate ill health so as to restore health and vitality. These are testing for…
- Nutritional status (looking for nutritional deficiencies)
- Immune system reactions including allergic responses, food sensitivities such as gluten, and other types of immune reactions (identifying what the immune system is reacting to)
- Toxins such as heavy metals, pesticides, organic chemicals
- Gut Flora to see what types of healthy and unhealthy microbes are living in the gut
While there are many labs and tests available, some stand out in terms of their reliability and usefulness. Over a number of years of using different labs and tests in each of these four areas I have identified a few tests that excel in their ability to provide accurate, useful and actionable information. That is to say, lab tests that allow me to identify what is out of balance and what to do to restore a patient’s health.
Nutritional Status
For testing nutritional status and identifying nutritional deficiencies I most often use the NutrEval test by Genova Diagnostics. This test can be done with a blood or urine sample and is consequently easier to do with children too.
Immune System Reactions
For testing immune system reactions I prefer a test by Elisa Act Biotechnology. In spite of the advances in medical testing conventional medical testing of the immune system for reactivity still falls short. The Elisa Act Biotechnology testing was devised by a Russel Jaffe, MD and is the best way to identify a large number of immune reactions that are not identified by traditional allergy testing. Here is information on this testing.
Toxicity
Toxins plague our health today. Heavy metals, plastics, pesticides, mold toxins in our food are all taking a toll on our health. In addition to adopting a regular detoxification protocol it is sometimes helpful to identify specific toxins. This allows more targeted detoxification strategies for the specific toxin. Many labs provide tests for toxins. I favor a few tests by Genova Diagnostics, particularly the Toxic Element Clearance Profile.
Digestive Function and Gut Flora
The best test that I have found for testing the gut is the Comprehensive Digestive Stool Analysis. This test just requires a stool sample. This test looks at how well you digest and absorb the nutrients in your food, the make up of the flora in your gut, whether there is inflammation in your gut, whether you are reacting to gluten and much more.