Why has blood testing become so popular in today’s world?

There are several reasons to get regular blood testing beyond your annual primary care doctor visit. Doctors can run blood glucose tests to assess diabetes risk, use lipid panels to check cholesterol levels, or perform a Comprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP) that includes 14 tests to evaluate liver and kidney health.

The importance of regular blood tests lies in gaining insight into better prevention and early detection of potential issues. For example, according to the American Diabetes Association, over 40 million Americans have diabetes, with over 115 million being prediabetic. However, staying on top of blood glucose level checks, which you can do at home, can indicate pre-diabetes risk, so you can make lifestyle and diet changes to prevent it.

Learn how testing specific components of your blood, ranging from chemicals to enzymes to hormones, can supercharge your health through monitoring, diagnosis, and prevention.

What Types of Blood Tests Are Available?

There are tests for measuring blood cell counts, sugar levels, specific disease or infection risks, hormones, and more. 

Your options include:

Blood Enzyme: Enzymes are proteins that aid various chemical processes, and elevated levels can indicate anything from inflammation to cancer to a previous heart attack.

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Blood Glucose: Glucose is another word for sugar in the blood, so this test can measure diabetes risk.

Thyroid Panel: This test evaluates your metabolic function by measuring thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH).

Lipid Panel: Check for the amount of cholesterol and triglycerides that can clog arteries and put you at greater risk of heart disease.

Coagulation Panel: Blood clotting is vital for stopping you from bleeding out after a cut, but it’s deadly when a clot happens within the artery/vein system. This test measures how well and how timely your blood can clot.

Basic Metabolic Panel (BMP): This test checks compounds such as potassium, sodium, calcium, creatinine, and electrolytes.

Complete Blood Count (CBC): Measures the amount of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets in the body. A low white blood cell count can warn patients of viral infection risk.

Comprehensive Metabolic Panel (CMP): This series of 14 tests checks liver and kidney health, along with glucose and electrolyte amounts.

DHEA-sulfate Serum Test: Your adrenal glands produce DHEA hormones, and these tests check if those levels are too high or low. Low levels in men may indicate kidney disease or Type 2 diabetes, whereas high levels in women may cause excess body hair.

How Can I Benefit from Regular Blood Testing?

The numerous health benefits of blood testing include screening and prevention, particularly with high cholesterol, blood glucose, and elevated hormone levels. By analyzing your blood test results, doctors can pinpoint the cause of symptoms like fatigue. 

Certain blood tests diagnose cancer and measure how various treatments are effective to see what adjustments may be necessary. A blood test can also ensure that your organs are functioning correctly, which makes them a safety net when using medication.

With so many organic elements in your blood, one test alone isn’t enough to screen for every condition.

When Should I Get These Tests?

Get blood screenings annually as part of your regular primary care. However, you may need to get blood work every 3 to 6 months to manage chronic conditions. You should also seek out more blood screenings if you’re experiencing symptoms like unexplained weight changes and unusual fatigue. 

Choose Health at-home tests for easy monitoring you can do anytime from the comfort of your home. These kits provide fast and simple insights into your endocrine, liver, metabolic, and hormonal health.

What Are Some Blood Test Preparation Tips?

Interpreting blood test results can be affected by what you consume, so many blood tests advise fasting for several hours beforehand. Otherwise, food consumption may cause temporary spikes in triglycerides and blood sugar, thus creating inaccurate results.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the 8 Benefits of Donating Blood?

Blood donation may help the donor as much as the recipient. From being revived with fresh blood production to burning calories, the pros include:

1. Donating blood acts as a free health screening for the donor. 
2. Reducing excess blood can lower certain cancer risks. 
3. You can lower your blood pressure and cholesterol when you donate blood, which helps your cardiovascular health.
4. Managing excess iron production matters as an overload can damage the heart and liver.
5. Your body must replenish donated blood, so it stimulates fresh production. 
6. You may burn as many as 650 cal by donating 1 pint.
7. This element provides a life-saving element for accident victims, patients receiving treatment, and those in surgery.
8. Enjoy peace of mind knowing that you’re helping to possibly save a life.

What Are 5 Facts About Blood?

Blood isn’t boring. This element contains a precious metal and isn’t always the same color. Facts you should know include:

1. It’s made of mostly liquid, not cells, as it contains over 50% plasma, which is actually a yellowish liquid. 
2. Blood contains actual gold, amounting to about 0.2 mg. 
3. All blood isn’t red; it’s blue in spiders and octopi, whereas worms have green blood. 
4. A single blood cell moves as fast as lightning, as it can travel from the heart through the body and back between 20 and 60 seconds. 
5. The human body produces as many as 2 million red blood cells per second.

What Are the Benefits of Blood in the Human Body?

Your blood vessels are a transportation network delivering essential elements, such as oxygen and nutrients, and hormones around the body. Blood also helps to carry waste products out, like carbon dioxide. 

When you eat, your digested nutrients are absorbed into the blood through capillaries in the small intestine. From there, they move into the cells around the body where they are needed. Additionally, when secreted hormones seep into the blood, your blood carries these hormones to target organs.

Optimize Health with Regular Blood Testing 

Blood is essential for life and contains various components that indicate different things going on in your body. From elevated white blood cells, which may indicate infection, to high glucose levels, which may be a precursor to diabetes, understanding how well your blood is balanced can be essential for early detection, diagnosis, and prevention.

Stay on top of your blood work by regularly visiting your local medical practitioner, as well as taking charge by doing your own blood testing at home.

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