Have you been told by your doctor that everything "looks normal" or is within "normal range" only to find yourself still experiencing unwanted symptoms? Having "normal" levels in allopathic medicine, unfortunately means nothing. "Normal" labs do not equal optimal health nor do they give us a full picture of what is going on inside your body.
There are two main types of ranges in the field of blood chemistry. A pathological range and a functional range. The pathological range is used to diagnose disease. The sicker the population gets the wider the lab reference ranges become. Most health care providers believe that care should only be provided when disease is present. If pathology or disease are not present according to the labs, the person is considered " healthy" and labs are considered "normal". This is why a lot of people are told their blood work is normal but they still feel really terrible.
The functional range is much more narrow (this is what I use) and it is used to assess risk BEFORE disease develops. I am asking WHY is something out of balance and causing symptoms and digging deep into potential root causes so we can work towards optimal health.
In my practice, I utilize functional blood chemistry panels to uncover patterns, identify imbalances, deficiencies, and potential dysfunction to prevent disease. I believe that blood can be seen as the window into the body.
Functional Blood Chemistry Panel includes the following markers:
CRP
CBC with differential (complete blood count panel)
CMP (comprehensive metabolic panel)
GGT
Hemoglobin A1c
Iron panel with ferritin
Lipid panel
Magnesium
Phosphorus
Uric acid
Vitamin D
Specialty markers (gut health and inflammation): Gastrin, homocysteine, ESR
Full thyroid panel with antibodies (FTI, TSH, T3, Free T3, Reverse T3, T3 Uptake, T4, Free T4)
Urinalysis