TRANSFORM YOUR HEALTH & LIFE YOUR BEST LIFE
what is interative health
Functional medicine is more than just alternative medicine. It is a form of medicine that helps to resolve complex and chronic health issues. It is surging into the mainstream as patients and practitioners seek a better way to approach healthcare.
I came across functional medicine and realized that test results within standard lab ranges may be insufficient information to understand a patient’s condition. Many patients are told that their lab tests are within normal range, yet they still experience symptoms.
My extensive experience has shown me which labs provide the most crucial information and that we don't need to run a hundred of tests; we need a strategic handful that show the clearest path forward and someone to help us understand what optimal labs are.
Standard laboratory ranges are based on statistical averages of the general population – including sick people and they identify diseases. Functional ranges represent optimal cellular function and identify subclinical dysfunction and early intervention opportunities. They can identify dysfunctional patterns before disease manifests.
The difference between normal vs optimal
Understanding Blood Pathology Testing: Your Window into True Wellness
When most people think of blood tests, they picture a routine medical check-up something you do once a year, tick off the list, and forget about unless something’s wrong. But in the world of functional medicine, blood pathology testing is so much more than a diagnostic formality. It’s a powerful lens into how your body is functioning beneath the surface revealing the small imbalances that, if left unchecked, can impact your energy, mood, hormones, and overall vitality.
Why Blood Tests Matter in Functional Medicine
Blood testing provides a simple yet comprehensive way to assess health from the inside out. These results are a starting point a baseline that helps you understand what your body needs to thrive. While conventional medical testing tends to focus on detecting disease, functional and alternative approaches use these same results proactively to optimise health, prevent future issues, and guide personalised treatment plans.
Even if your results appear “normal” by conventional standards, they can still hold clues about underlying imbalances. That’s where deeper interpretation makes all the difference. Functional tests dig deep to uncover imbalances and dysfunctions before they manifest as full-blown illness.
Conventional Medicine vs. Functional: Looking at Blood Tests Through a Different Lens
Both general practitioners (GPs) and functional practitioners rely on blood tests, but their goals differ.
Conventional Doctors (GPs): Medical doctors primarily use blood tests to identify diseases or abnormalities that require immediate attention. If your results sit within the wide “normal” range, you’ll usually be told that everything is fine even if you still feel tired, anxious, or “off.” Their focus is on diagnosing and managing illness, which is vital for acute or serious conditions. Standard laboratory ranges are based on statistical averages of the general population – including sick people.
Naturopaths & Functional Practitioners: Naturopaths interpret results more narrowly, seeking optimal rather than merely “normal” values. We look for subtle trends where your numbers sit within the range, how they relate to your symptoms, and what they reveal about your body’s balance. For example, your iron might be considered “normal” by medical standards, yet if it’s on the lower end, you may still struggle with fatigue or brain fog. Recognising this allows us to take early, holistic steps to restore vitality.
Functional Practitioners: Focus on Optimal Health
- Prevention Over Cure
By spotting early shifts in blood markers, naturopaths can act before small imbalances develop into chronic conditions. It’s about staying one step ahead — addressing the “why” behind symptoms rather than waiting for a diagnosis. - Personalised Care
Every person’s body is unique, and so are their blood results. We interpret these results in the context of your lifestyle, diet, stress levels, and overall wellbeing. This allows for tailored recommendations from nutritional adjustments to targeted supplementation that support your individual health goals. - Beyond Absence of Disease
Good health isn’t just about not being sick; it’s about feeling vibrant. Whether you’re working to boost energy, balance hormones, or improve sleep, blood pathology testing helps fine-tune your body’s systems for optimal performance.
integrative vs traditional medicine
Without the Proper Information You Cannot Heal
Healing your body can often feel very frustrating like an uphill battle with even many alternative practitioners treating symptoms with supplements and not understanding the correct protocols or steps needed before supplementing especially in complex health issues.
Conventional medicine is a system of health care where symptoms and diseases are treated by licensed professionals using evidence-based methods like drugs, radiation, or surgery. Conventional medicine has its benefits but only serves as a temporary band aid with long term side affects. It overlooks the body as a whole and patients do not get the care they need. It is also known as allopathic, biomedicine, or Western medicine and relies on scientific research and clinical trials to validate treatments. Examples include using chemotherapy to treat cancer, antibiotics for infections, or surgery to correct a physical ailments. Conventional medicine focuses on diagnosing and treating disease symptoms with standardized protocols, while functional medicine identifies and addresses the root causes of illness to restore overall health through a personalized and holistic approach. Conventional medicine excels at managing acute conditions and crisis intervention, whereas functional medicine aims to prevent disease and improve long-term wellness by examining factors like diet, lifestyle, and genetics. A hybrid approach combining both methods can often provide the best outcomes, using conventional medicine for immediate needs and functional medicine for addressing deeper, systemic issues.
FOUNDATIONAL TESTING
1. Blood Work
2.Organic Oats Test
2.Organic Oats Test
Advanced Bloodwork Functional vs standard
Your blood tells a story not just of disease, but of wellness, balance, and potential. Understanding that story is one of the most empowering things you can do for your health. By looking beyond the conventional “normal” ranges and focusing on what’s truly optimal, holistic medicine helps you unlock your body’s natural ability to thrive. So next time you get your blood test results, don’t just file them away.
Let them be the roadmap to your best health yet.
Common Blood Tests
Complete metabolic panel- fasting glucose, electrolytes, liver function, Kidney function
Complete blood count (CBC) red blood cells, white blood cells, Hct, Hemoglobin & associated markers
Full Thyroid panel (TSH, T3, T4, Reverse T3, Thyroid antibodies)
Vitamins, Nutrients and Minerals - D, B12, Folate, Zinc, Magnesium, Copper
Full iron panel (Iron, TIBC, Iron saturation, ferritin)
Blood Glucose Markers - Fasting Insulin HbA1c
Lipid panel
Homocysteine
CRP
Haemoglobin A1C
HNK1 (CD57) panel
Hormones - free testosterone, DHEA-S, estradiol, progesterone, SHBG
2.Organic Oats Test
2.Organic Oats Test
2.Organic Oats Test
Organic Acids (OAT)
Organic acid testing is a diagnostic tool used to measure the levels of various organic acids in the urine. These acids are by products of metabolism, and their concentrations can provide insights into metabolic processes, nutritional deficiencies, gut health, and the presence of infections or imbalances in the body. This type of testing is often used in functional medicine to assess issues like oxidative stress, yeast overgrowth, or mitochondrial dysfunction. The results can help guide treatment strategies, such as dietary changes, supplements or lifestyle adjustments. We use the organic acids tests from Mosaic Diagnostics
Mosaic Diagnostics Sample
https://mosaicdx.com/resource/organic-acids-test-oat-sample-tes
Candida, Yeast, Fungal, and Bacterial Markers: Helping us identify overgrowths.
Oxalate Markers: Crucial for understanding inflammation.
Mitochondrial Function: How your cellular energy factories are performing.
Neurotransmitter Metabolites: Not just levels, but how your brain is breaking down neurotransmitters.
Detoxification Markers: Insights into your body's ability to process toxins.
Nutrient Deficiencies: Reveals a wide range of deficiencies.
Protein Absorption: How well you're breaking down and absorbing protein. This test gives us so much actionable data, making it indispensable
3. Genetic Testing
2.Organic Oats Test
3. Genetic Testing
Genetic Testing
While many associate genetics with disease predisposition, my focus is different.
Brain Function & Neurotransmitter Breakdown: Understand how your body processes dopamine, serotonin, and GABA – whether quickly or slowly – which, combined with the OAT, gives us a full picture of brain support needs.
In-Depth Detoxification Pathways: It reveals all of your Phase One CYP enzymes and provides deep insights into your methylation cycle (much more than just MTHFR!).
Why I Avoid Disease Predisposition Markers:
I personally do not look at markers that indicate a predisposition to disease. This often creates anxiety, putting the body into a "fight or flight" state, which hinders healing. We believe in epigenetics – that we can turn genes on and off through our environment and healing practices. Our goal is to promote a calm, parasympathetic state for optimal healing. If you know this will cause you anxiety, work with a practitioner to interpret your results.
COMT- enzyme that breaks down dopamine
MAOA - mutations slow the breakdown of serotonin
GAD - speed at which glutamine is converted to GABA
VDR TAQ- affects Vitamin D receptors
MTHFR- C677T conversion of folic acid to methyl folate
MTHFR - A1298C mutation causing higher ammonia levels
BHMT - enzyme that converts homocysteine back to methionine
CSB - upregulate the CBS enzyme
MTR & MTRR - mutations affect how much methyl B12 is needed and how Vitamin B12 is regenerated
CYP-mutations affect phase one detoxification enzymes
hormones
Dutch Test
Pharmacogenomic Test
Pharmacogenomic Test
DUTCH test offers the most extensive profile of sex and adrenal hormones along with their metabolites. Rather than blood work, which only shows a couple of hormone numbers at the moment of collection, the DUTCH shows many hormones over a period of time.
What it looks at:
- Progesterone
- Oestrogens: estrone, oestradiol, estriol and their metabolites
- Testosterone and it’s metabolites
- Adrenals free & metabolized cortisol and cortisol curve
- Circadian rhythm
- DHEA and DHEAs
- Estrogen detoxification
- Sulfation detoxification
- Oxidative stress
- Organic acid markers
- Melatonin markers
https://dutchtest.com/api/files/file/Dutch-Complete-Provider-Info-Sheet-Ref032720.pdf
Pharmacogenomic Test
Pharmacogenomic Test
Pharmacogenomic Test
The Multiple Category Medication Test looks at how your body processes over 100 medications. It gives you insights into which medications will work best for you. The test will also indicate if you are at risk of unwanted side effects, based on your genetic profile.
3. gut balance
Parasite Test
Parasite testing is a specialised diagnostic tool used to detect a wide range of parasitic organisms that may be living in the digestive system. Unlike general stool tests, which focus mainly on bacteria, yeast, and digestion markers, dedicated parasite testing is designed to identify protozoa, worms (helminths), and other organisms that are often missed by routine panels.
This form of testing is particularly useful for individuals with chronic digestive symptoms, constipation, bloating, skin issues, histamine reactions, food sensitivities, or unexplained inflammation. Parasites can shed inconsistently, which means they frequently go undetected through standard testing methods. A targeted parasitology assessment increases the likelihood of identifying hidden infections so we can make clearer, more effective treatment decisions.
What this test helps us identify:
Protozoa and Helminths: Detects a wide range of parasites not typically included in standard stool tests.
Chronic and Low-Level Infections: Useful when symptoms persist despite previous “negative” results.
Hidden Contributors to Gut Symptoms: Helps uncover overlooked causes of bloating, constipation, fatigue, skin conditions, and immune reactivity.
Treatment Direction: Provides targeted information that guides parasite-focused treatment strategies. This test is an essential tool when assessing clients with ongoing gut dysfunction, especially when other microbiome and functional markers have already been completed.
PARAWELLNESS RESEARCH
GI Mapping
The GI-MAP detects microbes that may be disturbing normal microbial balance or contributing to illness. It’s also an indicator of digestion, absorption, inflammation, and immune function.
The Complete Microbiome Mapping Test was designed to assess a patient’s microbiome from a single stool sample, with particular attention to microbes that cause disease or that disrupt normal microbial balance and contribute to perturbations in the GI flora and contribute to illness.
The panel is a comprehensive collection of microbial targets as well as immune and digestive markers. It screens for pathogenic bacteria, commensal bacteria, opportunistic pathogens, fungi, viruses, and parasites.
What it looks at;
Pathogens bacterial, parasitic & viral
H. pylori
Opportunistic bacteria, fungi, yeasts & viruses
Parasite, protozoa & worms
Digestion
Immune response to gluten
Estrogen detoxification
Immune response in the gut
Inflammation
https://nutripath.com.au/product/complete-microbiome-mapping-2206/
Sibo Test
Sibo Test