10 Uncommon Important Blood Work and Lab Tests

10 Uncommon Important Blood Work and Lab Tests

"I'm heading to a physical, and I want blood work done. Dr. Livingood, give me some guidance. What should I be looking for?"

Glad you asked!

Here's a laundry list of what to look for in your blood work: 

1. A Complete Blood Panel Ok this one isn't uncommon but I wanted to be sure you don't stop here, this is the basic. 

2. Vitamin D. This is a must. High Vitamin D levels are tied to the prevention of many diseases like cancer, diabetes, parkinson's, heart disease, and more. ¹

3. Fasting Insulin Levels - Going deeper than blood sugar and A1C levels will help give more understanding of insulin resistance and prevention of diabetes and heart disease. 

4. Ferritin Levels. This is a powerful stroke risk predictor as it helps to measure the "weight" of your blood and how much iron it is carrying. ²

5. Uric Acid is going to measure how your body is breaking down fructose. This is important for autoimmune and toxicity issues. ³

6. C-Reactive Protein (CRP) - A helpful inflammation measurement to predict heart and autoimmune problems. ⁴

7. Hormone Numbers--TSH, T4, T3, all of your Free Thyroid Hormones, Progesterone, Testosterone, Estrogen--any of those that you can get measured will tell you more information about how your hormones are working for you or against you.

8. B Vitamins-- All B Vitamins including B12 and B6 will give insight on any actual deficiencies. 

9. Complete Cholesterol Panels--Total cholesterol is not a very good predictor of an actual problem. The size and makeup of the cholesterol is what matters. Get the particle sizes measured as well. 

10. Leptin Levels--Can give you insight on losing weight. High leptin levels correlate with leptin resistance which can lead to obesity, heart disease, infertility, and more. 

TESTS: What to look out for?

I try to avoid invasive tests like colonoscopies and mammograms. Not that there is not a place for them but there are simple, less expensive ways to get good data for any risks. 

1. Body Fat Percentage and/or BMI - A strong predictor and risk factor for heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. It's not a fun reality but it must be addressed. 

2. Blood Pressure on Both Arms - Be sure to check it on both arms to see the difference and don't get nervous and create a false reading! Learn more here.

3. Fit Test - This is a fecal test that can identify if there's anything going on in the colon or the digestive system before a colonoscopy would be needed. It has a high accuracy, has a higher utilization rate compared to a colonoscopy and costs thousands less! ⁵

4. Thermography - A good alternative for mammograms that involves no radiation and a very strong early detection rate. 

On your next physical take the graphic above to your doctor and dig a little deeper into your health. This will help you get to the cause of the issues and not just settle for general blood work.

UP NEXT: Inflammation

References:

1. https://grassrootshealth.net/document/disease-incidence-prevention-chart-in-ngml/

2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21999175

3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3197219/

4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9892589

5. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1108895