Testing Options for Overall Wellness?

22 years ago

About 6 years ago, a friend of mine went to a CFS Specialist and he ran all sorts of blood, urine, and other tests on her to find out what nutrients she was low, high, or stable with, in order to assess her overall health. He did the whole shebang two or three times over a year or 18 months or so to check on her status. It was very expensive and her insurance only covered about 80% of it, rather than the 100% lab coverage she normally had.

She was given a diet to folow, and various supplements to help her out. It worked, and she saw great improvements in her fatigue levels, overall pain, she became stronger physically and seemed "brighter" intellectually, and her moods actually improved from feeling better, (however, with her diet, I might have suffered a little more in order to eat better foods.. it was a LOT of brown rice and steamed vegetables if I remember correctly).

Since we are all into perimenopause and/or lots of intense and irratic PMS symptoms, it seems to me we might be better prepared to assess and figure out "what is what" if we had a serious set of blood tests and work-ups with dieticians, nutritionists and fitness trainers etc. to become more aware of just how well we can be.. or could be.

I know that my friend was helped by the therapies she was put on, and it has enhanced her quality of life so much!

I've noticed that Menopausal symptoms mask and compete with other physical and emotional diagnosis. It seems even to a degree that puts all of us at risk of more than just the side effects of menopause, like bone density or heart disease. My gosh, for example how would you know if you had an infection and a fever while you were going through a phase of hot flashes and night sweats! How would you know if you didn't have Chronic Fatigue Syndrom or Fibermyalgia? Muscular Sclerois or some other chronic or disabling disease?

Is there a gamut of tests that doctors can run to assess our overall health and needs for vitamins, minerals, etc.? Or was my friend's doctor just billing her a ton of money and could have just as well of put her on a weight reduction diet and a daily vitamin?

Since I started my after Christmas dieting today, (I went up 6 pounds in only about 2-3 weeks of Holiday eating.. boo hisss..), I am wondering if anyone else has sought out or gotten a full scale evaluation. If I am going to put myself in the best shape I can be in.. I would like to know better HOW to do that, what really IS good for me.

Thanks.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

anifani4
22 years ago
What is a CFS specialist? Is it a medical doctor or an alternative medicine practitioner?

I have heard of this approach to wellness. Actually checking blood levels of nutrients (proteins, fats, sugars), vitamins, minerals, various enzymes, etc. Then prescribing diet and supplements to create some optimal balance. How the optimum levels are determined, I don't know. It's wonderful that your friend has a better quality of life and no matter the cost, if she is satisfied, that is all that should count.

Even though some menopause experiences are horrible, I think we would know when a more serious disease is present. If we are paying attention, I believe our own intuition will tell us. Even though I had severe hot flashes, I knew when I was sick with a fever. Anyone having troublesome symptoms that could be menopause as well as a disease, definitely needs to be evaluated by a doctor to rule out serious conditions before chalking it up to menopause. And I happen to believe that a woman with menopausal symtoms so severe and disabling that they are confused with diseases needs hormonal support.

Any person is free to consult a nutritionist, physical trainer, or any other professional in order to figure out what will help them to optimum health. The problem for most of us is following their advice. It is extremely difficult to change a lifetime of eating and exercise habits. People need a strong motivation to continue the initial changes and make more as time goes on. Even people with life threatening illnesses like diabetes and heart disease (which you would think would be a strong motivator) are unable to change the habits that would contribute to a longer and healthier life for themselves. I'm not saying this to discourage people from trying to live a healthier life style. The more a person can do on the side of health the better off they are, even if they can not do it 100% of the time.
MenoGinger
Original Author
22 years ago
CFS is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I almost put that in as a "P.S.".. but with all the "holier than thou" types filling the board recently, I was actually "afraid" of doing anything that would spark their ire or attention!! LOL

So, a CFS Specialist is a doctor who specializes in the care and treatment of patients suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
Related Discussions
which soil test options to choose
Q
Comments (7)
The information you need from that soil test is the soils pH and the balance of the major nutrients, so with a soil pH of 6.5 it is in the 6.2 to 6.8 range most plants, especially foods, find most to their liking and where most all nutrients are most readily available. The major nutrients are in the high optimum range, not toxic, although Potassium is quite high. The recommendations are what researchers at Rutgers have found working with backyard garden plots as well as numerous backyard gardeners through out New Jersey over many years starting with the Victory Gardens of WWI. Some of the extra cost items you can do yourself with these simple soil testes, 1) Soil test for organic matter. From that soil sample put enough of the rest to make a 4 inch level in a clear 1 quart jar, with a tight fitting lid. Fill that jar with water and replace the lid, tightly. Shake the jar vigorously and then let it stand for 24 hours. Your soil will settle out according to soil particle size and weight. For example, a good loam will have about 1-3/4 inch (about 45%) of sand on the bottom. about 1 inch (about 25%) of silt next, about 1 inch (25%) of clay above that, and about 1/4 inch (about 5%) of organic matter on the top. 2) Drainage. Dig a hole 1 foot square and 1 foot deep and fill that with water. After that water drains away refill the hole with more water and time how long it takes that to drain away. Anything less than 2 hours and your soil drainsÃ¢ÂÂ too quickly and needs more organic matter to slow that drainage down. Anything over 6 hours and the soil drains too slowly and needs lots of organic matter to speed it up. 3) Tilth. Take a handful of your slightly damp soil and squeeze it tightly. When the pressure is released the soil should hold together in that clump, but when poked with a finger that clump should fall apart. 4) Smell. What does your soil smell like? A pleasant, rich earthy odor? Putrid, offensive, repugnant odor? The more organic matter in your soil the more active the soil bacteria will be and the nicer your soil will smell. 5) Life. How many earthworms per shovel full were there? 5 or more indicates a pretty healthy soil. Fewer than 5, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicates a soil that is not healthy.
...See More
Viking vs Wolf Grill - Test Kitchen comparison outcome - long
Q
Comments (6)
That is a wonderful write-up. Thanks for taking the time to write it. We have a Viking cooktop and your observatoins match ours in using it for 7+ years. Alas, we don't have a grill so nothing to add here. We do have a portable infra-red grill we bought for our boat. And our experience matches yours. It is great for stakes but everything else will get torched from below, but no heat from above. They should call this steak grills and be done with it. BTW, we don't have the boat and never use it. FYI, we have a cermaic cooker now which we use for slow smoking (e.g. 12-18 hours). I have used it rain and shine including in snow. It will use only one single bag of charcoal for 24 hours. It has an automated controller for temps and I am able to manage it from the PC inside our house (through a program I have written). It is able to maintain its temp within 2% or even better! Not saying you should go that way but it is worth considering what you can do with an outside unit for at least slower cooks. You only have to put up with the weather when you load and unload it. And of course, it will create a BBQ which rivals or betters more restaurants. Again, much appreciate the feedback.
...See More
Failed well water test - Whole House or One Unit RO Machine ?
Q
Comments (69)
Hi Mule Meat What does "lead reduction" mean? I'm not trying to be an ass, but when you are talking about water treatment, there are a ton of claims and you really have to be specific. Particularly when you are talking about lead. I know that there are cartridges out there that make this claim - this filter is not unique. I've tried to tie down those some of those claims to something specific - like NSF 53 or 58 and can't. Here is the list of NSF 53 - 58 filters. There are a few commercial ones listed at 6000 gallons and 2.5 gpm and one listed for just under 6000 gal and 5.6 gpm - which is better than I was able to find a few years ago. The vast majority are under 1 gpm. At 1 gpm and less you are really talking about a drinking water filter or ice maker filter. 2.5 gpm is the flow rate of a shower - those are not at all common. At 6000 gallons, these would require replacing about every 2 months in a "whole house" use based on an average daily water use of 90 gal per day. The filter that you linked to is not on the list either as the complete unit or the cartridge. based on what I'm seeing, it looks like the point-of-use situation has improved for NSF 53 filters - which is what we were talking about. The whole-house situation is not really workable though.
...See More
How long does it take to get well water test results back?
Q
Comments (1)
Ultimately depends on the lab the driller uses and whether they give the option of same day testing. The actual testing is a fairly simple process. Most results are transferred via email at this point. We can get lab results same day for a higher fee, next day for a smaller fee, and standard turn here for the lab we use is 2-3 days.
...See More
LynneC
22 years ago
LOL, good one.
Puterlady48
22 years ago
I believe that if we were more adept at listening to our bodies, we'd have a better idea what to do to make ourselves feel better. My body constantly tells me to exercise and drink more water and get more sleep and stop eating so much sugar, etc. When I ignore the messages it sends me, I suffer the consequences. It's really hard sometimes to tune into our own bodies, but it's necessary for our survival. I wish I'd started listening and heeding the warnings a long time ago. *Sigh*
oztrade_pacific
22 years ago
I wish someone had suggested I do a hormone test when I was normal so I would have something to compare with. I really think all women around 35 should have one done to stash away until they reach our age because what's normal for one woman isn't normal for another. It's all very well doing tests now and having a Dr saying your hormones are down, but I wish I knew exactly what they were before hitting perimenopause. I will certainly make sure my daughter gets hers done when the time comes.
Linda
lablady
22 years ago
I couldn't agree with you more Linda. I think the major problem with HRT is that the dose is not right for the majority of women. Also, I have a major problem with synthetic estrogens that the pharmaceutical industry forces on us. Instead of offering women bioidentical hormones, (which they can't patent) they force synthetic patentable drugs on us. All for the sake of profit, with little or no regard for the welfare of women. These synthetic exogenous substitutes are not metabolized in our bodies like our own endogenous hormones. They cannot interconvert from one form of estrogen to another. And they do not bind to the estrogen receptor with the exact same affinity as endogenous forms of estrogen. For all of these reasons, synthetic hormones can cause major problems. At present, I am only using progesterone cream, and so far this has been enough. But due to the history of osteoporosis in my family, I may consider bioidentical hormone therapy when the time comes. I remain undecided.

Testing Options for Overall Wellness?

Comments (6)

anifani4

MenoGinger
Original Author

Related Discussions

LynneC

Puterlady48

oztrade_pacific

lablady

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Testing Options for Overall Wellness?

Comments (6)

anifani4

MenoGingerOriginal Author

Related Discussions

LynneC

Puterlady48

oztrade_pacific

lablady

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

MenoGinger
Original Author