Functional medicine tests help practitioners understand what's going on in the body by looking at the root cause of symptoms and paint a larger picture rather than assigning "good" or "bad" levels in isolation. Some of the most commonly ordered lab tests in functional medicine include comprehensive stool tests, hormone testing, inflammatory markers, food sensitivity, chronic occult infections, or allergy testing, genetic tests, nutrient deficiency testing, and gut function analysis.

The most commonly ordered functional medicine lab tests include:

Comprehensive Stool Analysis

Food Allergy and Sensitivity Testing

Micronutrient Testing ( antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fatty acids)

Hormonal Testing Testing

Organic Acid Testing

Mycotoxin Testing

Heavy Metal Testing

Tickborne Disease Panel

Methylation

Companies Used: Genova Diagnostics, Precision Analytical (DUTCH), Self Decode, Great Plains Laboratory, Doctors Data

Comprehensive Stool Analysis (CSA) is a series of tests done on a stool sample to evaluate the presence of pathogenic microorganisms such as yeast, parasites, and bacteria that contribute to chronic illness and neurological dysfunction. It also evaluates the status of beneficial and imbalanced commensal bacteria, and detects poor nutrient absorption, infection (such as from parasites, viruses, or bacteria), and cancer affecting the digestive tract. The test is non-invasive and can be performed by collecting a stool sample in a clean container and then sending it to a laboratory for analysis

DUTCH Hormonal Testing stands for Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones. It is a proprietary test that can measure hormone metabolites using dried urine samples. This test is one of the most comprehensive hormone tests because it is a complete test of sex and adrenal hormones. It evaluates not only hormone metabolites and reproductive hormones but also shows your status for vitamin B12, melatonin, progesterone, cortisol, cortisone, and testosterone.

Organic acid testing (OAT) is a urine test that evaluates the organic acids or metabolites excreted in urine to get a metabolic picture of overall health. Organic acids are produced during metabolism, which is a process that breaks down food to give energy, and the test measures most of the intermediates in the citric acid cycle, making it one of the best ways to test for mitochondrial dysfunction. Urinary organic acids tested include alpha-ketoglutarate, cis-aconitate, citrate, and fumarate, among others. Organic acid testing was originally developed to assess inborn errors of metabolism and genetic disorders but can now be used to assess many aspects of health. "Organic Acids" test, which provides insights into cellular metabolism and can be used to identify imbalances that may be contributing to chronic health issues.

FOOD ALLERGY: and sensitivity testing are medical tests that help determine if a person has an allergic or sensitive reaction to specific foods. Food allergy is an immune system reaction that occurs soon after eating a certain food and can cause severe symptoms, including a life-threatening reaction known as anaphylaxis. A food allergy test detects the presence of antibodies in the blood that react against specific food allergens. A food sensitivity test detects the presence of IgG antibodies in the blood that react against specific foods. However, the accuracy and usefulness of food sensitivity tests have not been established, and many medical professionals do not recommend using these tests to diagnose food sensitivities

TICKBORNE DISEASEs: The Vibrant Tickborne Disease Panel is the first of its sort to be run on a silicon micro-array platform, giving the most utmost level of specificity and sensitivity in identifying tickborne illnesses. Patients frequently present with a scope of vague side effects that might be Lyme, or different circumstances that have side effect cross-over. Recurrences of symptoms in Lyme-diagnosed individuals may also indicate co-infections. Co-infections are complicated and should be considered as part of a first screening for Lyme and related diseases. For the purpose of detecting Lyme and co-infections, Vibrant offers the most comprehensive antibody (direct) and DNA (direct) tests that, in most instances, can assist a physician in evaluating these circumstances and leading to the correct diagnosis.

MYCOTOXINs: People who work or live in older buildings, those who have compromised immune systems or higher levels of oxidative stress, and those who have a history of exposure to water-damaged buildings are at risk for mycotoxin exposure. Mycotoxins have a variety of negative effects on human health, and having them in the body increases the risk of autoimmune disorders and cancer. Additionally, patients with mycotoxin toxicity have a higher prevalence of autoimmune or neurological symptoms. Some of the most pervasive toxins in the environment are mycotoxins, which are toxins produced by mold. A urine-based assay targeted at 40 species of mold and 11 mycotoxins is called the MycoTOX test by Mosaic Diagnostics. A thorough mycotoxin test is the MycoTOX Profile. The MycoTOX Profile by Great Plains Laboratory is a comprehensive mycotoxin test that applies advanced mass spectrometry combined with liquid chromatography (LC/MS/MS) to test urine samples for very low levels of toxins.

HEAVY METAL TOXICITY: While there are occasionally very obvious signs of heavy metal toxicity, such as lead poisoning in children, the majority of these signs are misdiagnosed as other potential issues. It is not unusual for patients to discover that heavy metal overload is the real cause of their persistent headaches/migraines, anxiety, depression, chronic fatigue, skin problems, and sore muscles/joints. Many people experience lasting, challenging to diagnose, and even serious health conditions for decades before they are ready to think about a heavy metal detox. Finding heavy metal toxicity and providing successful treatment are specialties of our functional medicine team. The procedures used to screen for heavy metals and to detoxify metals can frequently be both ineffective at getting rid of the problematic metals and harmful to the health of other body systems.

METHYALATION: if you're interested in boosting health at the cellular or molecular level. Methylation is a crucial biochemical and epigenetic process that has a variety of important functions in the body. The recycling of the amino acid homocysteine to maintain its levels in a healthy, ideal range is one of these important roles. Methylation is a common biochemical process in the body that plays a crucial role in regulating the function of our cardiovascular, nervous, reproductive, and detoxification systems. According to functional medicine, methylation occurs roughly one billion times every second and has an impact on almost all vital bodily functions. By assisting in the proper breakdown and removal5 of numerous hormones and toxins by converting them into a form that is simpler to excrete, methylation aids the body's natural detoxification pathways. Additionally, methylation aids in the production of the potent antioxidant glutathione, which binds to toxins like heavy metals and aids in their secure removal. Furthermore, methylation is necessary for the synthesis of certain bioactive vitamins (such as folate and vitamin B12), amino acids, neurotransmitters, hormones, red blood cells, DNA, RNA, and anti-oxidants that have a direct effect on reproductive, neurological, cardiovascular, and other health conditions.

ALZHEIMER's RISK TEST makes a ample analysis of your genetics, evaluating over 100,000 genetic variations that are connected with, or protective against, the growth of Alzheimer’s disease. The test will furnish a Polygenic Risk gain – as said by your original genetics. The test will additionally record on APOE status – a known risk factor in Alzheimer’s. APOE status is a main genetic part of risk in Alzheimer’s disease, mainly carriers of the APOE4 allele. The Alzheimer’s Risk Test offers extra details over the genetic risk of APOE alone, offering better insight into the APOE4 heterozygote and APOE3 homozygote groups.For further information please visit the website www.alzheimers-risk-test.com