Functional Testing
Functional testing is a cornerstone of functional medicine, providing valuable insights into an individual's health and well-being. Unlike traditional medicine, which often focuses on symptom management, functional medicine seeks to identify and address the underlying root causes of health issues. Through comprehensive testing, practitioners can assess unique biochemical imbalances, hormone levels, gut health, nutrient status, and more, leading to personalised treatment plans tailored to each patient's specific needs. Functional testing not only helps with early detection and preventive care but also empowers patients to take an active role in their health journey. By pinpointing imbalances and dysfunctions, functional testing allows for proactive interventions and monitoring of progress over time, leading to more effective and targeted interventions for improved overall health and vitality. Below are just a handful of tests we offer.
Wellness Health Check
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Oprimal DX blood testing and health reports go beyond traditional blood analysis to reveal more about your health picture. Up to 120 blood markers are tested and are then run via a sophisticated AI reporting algorithm in order to analyse 13 body systems, 7 accessory systems, 7 macro systems and the status of 14 nutrients to provide the most advanced, comprehensive reporting on the market today. I consider it like a yearly MOT everyone should be doing to stay on top of their health and be proactive in preventative medicine. You will need to get a blood draw for this test. I will assist you in finding the best option for this based on your location.
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Click here to view a sample report.
OAT Test for Metabolic Health
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The Organic Acid Test (OAT) offers a comprehensive metabolic snapshot of a patient’s overall health with 76 markers. It provides an accurate evaluation of intestinal yeast and bacteria. Abnormally high levels of these microorganisms can cause or worsen behaviour disorders, hyperactivity, movement disorders, fatigue and immune function. Many people with chronic illnesses and neurological disorders often excrete several abnormal organic acids in their urine. The cause of these high levels could include oral antibiotic use, high sugar diets, immune deficiencies, acquired infections, as well as genetic factors. Although useful for both adult and child, its the preferred method of screening for children as all that’s required is a urine sample taken in your own home.
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Click here to view a sample test report.
DUTCH Hormones
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The DUTCH (Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones ) is considered the gold standard for both male and female reproductive hormones as well as stress hormones. It looks not just at your hormones, but how your body processes and metabolises them. Additionally, it measures melatonin and some organic acids – markers for mood and nutritional balance in the body. This test is useful for understanding root causes of hormone imbalances in both men and women, like PCOS, perimenopause symptoms, sleep issues, and problems with libido, energy, mood, weight and more. As the name suggest, it’s dried urine, and the test kit is delivered to you to do at home.
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Click here to view sample test report
Food Intolerance Testing
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Measures the following 132 foods colouring and additives including Candida.
Food sensitivities affect more than 100 million people worldwide. Food sensitivities cause a range of illness and symptoms, including skin rashes and chronic intestinal diseases.
The FIT Test is a patented, multi-pathway delayed food sensitivity test. The test uses new technology that measures both IgG and Immune Complexes, the most common food-related pathways in the body.
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Click here to view a sample report.
Comprehensive Stool Analysis
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Millions of people are affected by gastrointestinal (GI) issues, such as bloating, gas, abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, heartburn, and unexplained weight changes. These symptoms can be debilitating, causing emotional distress and interfering with daily activities. The underlying causes of these issues can be difficult to identify, as they may stem from poor diet, stress, or an imbalance in the gut microbiome.
Common signs of an imbalanced gut microbiome, or dysbiosis, include digestive issues, fatigue, mood swings, skin problems, and food sensitivities. Nurturing your gut health can provide numerous benefits, such as improved digestion, enhanced immune function, better mood and cognitive function, healthier skin, and more effective weight management.
The gut microbiome plays a vital role in various aspects of overall health, such as digestion, immunity, mental health, metabolism, and inflammation. If you're struggling with persistent digestive problems, a comprehensive stool analysis can help identify the root cause and guide you towards the most effective treatment plan.
Comprehensive stool analysis evaluates multiple aspects of the digestive system, such as digestive function, inflammation, gut microbiome balance, and intestinal health. By assessing these factors, it can help pinpoint the root cause of your GI issues and guide you towards personalized solutions, such as dietary adjustments, probiotics and prebiotics, stress management techniques, and targeted supplements or medications.
Specialty lab testing can provide specificity for any infections and offer non-pharmacologic intervention for treatment, giving you the power to choose whether an anti-biotic or other natural agent is the best choice for you. Recent or prior infections may be undetected and untreated, contributing to various common ailments such as IBS, IBD, inflammatory arthritis, skin conditions, headaches, fatigue, and fibromyalgia.
The stool test is performed in the comfort of your home and sent directly to the lab for analysis. The evaluation is resulted in 2-3 weeks, providing you with valuable insights into your gut health and unlocking the door to optimal wellness.
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Comprehensive Thyroid Screen
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Thyroid health can be a complex topic to grasp. The medical community has traditionally emphasised the importance of the TSH test for evaluating thyroid health. While TSH is indeed a crucial marker for thyroid function, a comprehensive understanding of the downstream hormonal cascade can offer valuable insights into an individual's overall health and wellbeing.
Research suggests that relying solely on TSH screening may overlook approximately 7% of individuals with apparent thyroid dysfunction. Functional medicine practitioners typically take a more comprehensive approach by ordering a panel of tests, including TSH, Free T4, Free T3, and Reverse T3, to assess thyroid hormone levels in the bloodstream. These tests can be performed through either a blood draw or blood spot analysis.
TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) is the hormonal signal sent from the pituitary gland to the thyroid to tell the thyroid how much hormone to synthesize and release. TSH is part of a sensitive hormonal feedback loop and is the most common thyroid test ordered by physicians. TSH functions like a thermostat and can give you a general sense of whether or not the body thinks there is too much, not enough or just the right amount of thyroid hormone floating around.
TSH also functions as an early warning system and is often abnormal before other thyroid tests fall out of range. When TSH is elevated, the body is signaling that an increase in the production and release of thyroid hormone is necessary. If TSH is very low, the body is scaling back on any further production because there is adequate or excess thyroid hormone in the periphery.
The ideal TSH can vary widely based upon a person’s age, gender and stage of life. The typical reference range provided by most labs is around 0.45-4.12 mlU/L. There is growing consensus that a narrower TSH range of 0.5 to 2.5 mlU/L may be more appropriate for most healthy adults. The National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry released data indicated that more than 95% of normal individuals have a TSH level below 2.5 mlU/L.
Many Functional Medicine practitioners target an optimal TSH of 0.5-2.5 in most of their adult clients.
Active vs Inactive Thyroid Hormone
Once the thyroid gets the TSH production memo, it produces a blend of active and inactive thyroid hormone. Of the thyroid hormone that is made and released at the level of the thyroid, 90% is inactive hormone, T4, and 10% is the active hormone T3. The T4 hormone makes its way around the body, where it is then converted to either the bioactive T3 or the less active Reverse T3 (rT3) in the cells of the liver, kidney, brain and skeletal muscle.
T3 is the power horse of the thyroid hormones and is responsible for entering the nucleus of the cells and executing the thyroid hormone’s downstream effects. T3 thyroid hormone has profound physiological effects in the body and affects everything from our blood vessels to our bones. Without adequate function of T3, we see the hallmark symptoms of fatigue, hair loss, constipation, and weight gain.
Shutting Down Production of T3
With great power comes fine tuned control and the body has numerous ways of shutting down the production of T3 in response to stress or other physiologic changes. The main way to rapidly decrease production of T3, is to flip the conversion from T4 from T3 to its largely inactive counterpart, Revere T3 (rT3). Reverse T3 (rT3) looks structurally similar to T3 but with different placement of the iodine atoms preventing it from exerting the usual binding functions of T3.
Although long thought to be completely biologically inactive, there is growing evidence that the rT3 does exert some of its own biological effects on the brain and may also competitively inhibit T3 from binding to its target receptor site.
T4 and T3 Conversion Process
The T4 to T3 conversion process is highly regulated and sensitive to environmental factors and nutrient availability. Physiologic and emotional stress, chronic infections, and nutrient deficiencies all increase the amount of T4 that gets converted to rT3. Diets that have adequate zinc and selenium as well as certain herbs such as Ashwagandha, can increase the conversion of T4 to the bioactive T3.
By collecting values for TSH, Free T4, Free T3 and Reverse T3 you get a full picture of this complex physiologic process. If you are searching for a root cause of thyroid dysfunction, you can quickly get a sense of whether problems are arising in the production of thyroid hormone, the conversion of thyroid hormone or a combination of both.
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Click here to view sample test report