It is hard if not impossible for me to talk about health and wellness without mentioning the importance and value of using science and technology - specifically nutritional and other diagnostic testing to get and stay well. We have used a variety of companies as directed by physicians to get nutritional testing done for my daughter. We did one of the first nutritional profiles on Anne back in 2005. The most common question I get on this subject is what items are included in a nutritional profile. Let me answer that by giving you a list of some of the items that have been included in the variety of testing we have used over the last seven years.
Nutritional items that can be tested:
1. Essential Amino Acids: arginine, histidine,isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methioine, phenylalanine, theonine, typtophan, valine.
2. Essential Amino Acid Derivatives (Neuroendocrine metabolism): glycine, serine, taurine, tyrosine.
3. Ammonia/Energy Metabolism: asparagine, aspartic acid, citrulline, glutamic acid, glutamine, ornithine.
4. Homocysteine Plasma: homocysteine.
5. Primarily Intracellular Elements Related to Nutritional status: chromium, copper, magnesium, manganese, potassium, selenium, vanadium, zinc.
6. Primarily Extracellular Element Not Related to Nutritional Status: calcium.
7. Toxic Elements: aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, mercury.
8. CoEnzyme Q10 Plus Vitamin Panel - Serum: coenzyme Q10, vitamin E, vitamin A, beta-carotene.
9. Lipid Peroxides
10. Fatty Acids: polyunsaturated Omega-3, polyunsaturated omega-6, polyunsaturated omega-9, monounsaturated, saturated, odd chain, trans.
11. Nutrient Markers: fatty acid metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, energy production (citric acid cycle), B-complex vitamin markers, methylation cofactor markers.
12. Cell Regulation Markers: neurotransmitter metabolism markers, oxidative damage and antioxidant markers.
13. Toxicants and Detoxification: detoxification indicators (Arg, NAC, Met, and antioxidants).
14. Compounds of Bacterial or Yeast/Fungal Origin: bacterial (general), L. acidophilus/general bacterial, clostridial species, yeast/fungal.
15. Secretory IgA: the importance of this item merits it's own blog post and I will do that very soon. If you don't know about Secretory IgA, this is one item that you will want to know about. Yes, it is that important.
Some of the companies marketing these types of diagnostic tests will include a percentile ranking by quintile so you know where your results fall as well as a 95% reference interval. In some instances, these types of nutritional profiles will include a summary of what is low, high or out of range and the body systems that will be impacted by the results. What does this mean to you the average consumer? What this means is that we have the medical technology to tell what you have in your body and what you don't have in your body.
I have used a car analogy for as many years, so I'll use it here. If your car does not have oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid, brake fluid, or spark plugs it will most likely not operate properly. You can drive for a while with low oil before you encounter a problem, but if you don't eventually add and/or change the oil in your car - you will definitely have a major car problem. Likewise, your body requires certain vitamins, minerals, essential amino acids, and essential fatty acids. If you don't have enough of what your body requires, or if you have too many toxins in your body or if the ratios are out of balance, likewise you will end up with a health problem.
The negative component to this type of advanced testing is that it is sometimes or often not covered by health insurance. That is a shame since most health insurance programs will cover much more expensive testing that yields less conclusive or less helpful results. The types of physicians who even know about this type of technology - yes this is scientific technology - are often referred to as integrative, natural or holistic physicians. These practitioners attend medical conferences where they are trained in nutrition. How does YOUR body run? Whether you like it or not what fuels your body is nutrition. With nutrition you can recover and get well from a variety of medical conditions. Without nutrition, you are sentenced (eventually) to a host of illnesses, physical symptoms and likely a drain in your energy and well being.
Just because a test is not covered by your health insurance program does not mean that it is not scientifically sound, helpful or in some cases life-changing. Doing the nutritional testing that we began in 2005 has helped us get our daughter to full health. Not something that was likely or predictable in 2003. Upcoming posts will be on Secretory IgA and even dental testing and how that can help you avoid health issues in dental work. I hope that this is helpful information to you. Let me know what questions you have about this and how this type of testing can begin to help you get well and stay well!
Love,
Lisa
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