Functional Lab Testing & Supplements
The world of functional lab testing and supplements is overwhelming. It can feel like you need countless tests to get all the information you need, and could benefit from taking every supplement created.
Good news!
Functional lab testing doesn’t need to be overwhelming, and you don’t need to take 15 different supplements every day to feel optimal. True health is mostly built into our day-to-day decisions around personalized nutrition, lifestyle and many other inputs that we explore throughout the process.
However, having deeper insights to your health through targeted, functional lab testing (especially when interpreted in the context of “optimal health” vs. conventional ranges) can be extremely valuable.
Intentional supplement recommendations can also help restore harmony in the body, especially in a world where diet and lifestyle have created glaring nutrient gaps that are difficult to overcome.
Prior to your first session, you will perform functional lab testing. Every client starts with a comprehensive bloodwork panel and microbiome testing through the GI MAP. Depending on your goals, symptoms and history, additional functional lab testing beyond these two panels may be suggested.
I aim to keep lab testing and supplement recommendations intentional, conservative, and as cost-effective as possible. The goal of functional lab testing should be to empower you with information and identify healing opportunities, never to create overwhelm or make you feel like you are “broken”- because you are not!
Functional Lab Testing Recommendations
Comprehensive Functional Blood Panel
Every client begins the process with this panel. This goes far beyond the blood testing that is run in conventional medical settings- typically just a CBC/CMP- and is interpreted in the context of optimal reference ranges vs standard ranges (which are largely based on unhealthy populations). This provides an overview of physiological health and identification of major imbalances and issues, especially around key nutrient status, metabolic health, thyroid and hormone health, inflammation and more.
Download a sample report
Continuous Glucose Monitor
A Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) provides an on-demand snapshot of your glucose level, so you can see in real time how your body responds to the foods you are eating. This information is invaluable as you aim to balance your blood sugar (a pillar of health you will learn about in the process), and can help instill supportive habits around food. When your blood sugar is balanced, many other physiological processes find a natural balance as well.
GI Microbial Assay Plus (GI-MAP)
This stool test utilizes quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) technology to get a reliable snapshot of your gut health and microbiome, which is irrefutably linked to overall well-being. The GI MAP provides a comprehensive assessment of beneficial and consequential bacteria species, detects overgrowths of parasites, fungi and microbes, and provides valuable insights on intestinal health and gut barrier integrity (aka, “leaky gut”).
Download a sample report
Metabolomics Panel
Metabolomic analysis assesses the function of specific metabolic pathways, and can be considered a snapshot of how your genes, environment and and nutritional intake are interacting. Specifically, this test provides insights around mitochondrial function, micronutrient and amino acid status, neurotransmitter metabolism, detoxification, gut health, oxidative stress and much more. This assessment offers more precise and personalized support, allowing for targeted interventions to enhance well-being.
Download a sample report
Food Sensitivity, Micronutrient, Toxicity and Genetic Panels may also be
considered, but starting with any of the functional lab testing options above provides
an abundance of actionable information for us to work with and avoids
the overwhelm that often comes with “over testing”.
Clinical-Grade Supplements
“What supplements should I take?” is a question many women ask. Through thorough intake and data-driven feedback from functional lab testing, we identify the supplements that are supportive for your unique body.
Supplements are extremely nuanced, and the goal should be supporting harmony in the body, and bridging nutritional gaps that may exist from diet, genetics, stress, and other variables.
Supplements are just that- a supplement to a healthy lifestyle. No magic supplement will override an unhealthy lifestyle.
Having worked in the field of functional wellness since 2016, I am deeply aware that not all supplements are created equal.
There are a handful of supplement companies that exist exclusively in the clinical space, leveraging science, data and rigorous quality control methods to create their formulas (not just marketing trends). These companies achieve cGMP/NSF status and employ third party testing, finished product/sustained viability testing and bioavailability measures.
These higher standards allow for
pure, efficacious, and trusted
supplements.
I work with Designs for Health and a handful of other professional-grade brands which can be purchased below.
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