The state of your blood work can help you gain clarity on the underlying aspects of your overall health. But as useful as it can perform your blood work at your primary doctor, these visits don’t allow you to perform the comprehensive tests to show you everything you need to know.
At Forum Health, we can utilize our specialty labs in Rochester, MI, to test for certain aspects of your health that aren’t normally identifiable through routine lab work that you would get from your Primary Care Provider. At our four locations across Michigan we draw labs for our patients in-office.
Because of our partnerships with specialty labs across the country, we can run a wide variety of panels to help educate and support our patients. Whereas your PCP will generally test for the more common issues, specialty labs can test for a wide variety of autoimmune conditions, allergies, the micronutrients in your body, your DNA age, and much more! Learn about our specialty labs by reading below.
What can Specialty Labs in Rochester, MI test for?
With our specialty lab capabilities at Forum Health, we can test for a wide array of different issues. Though all of these tests can prove vital for your overall health, we tend to see that patients get the highest benefits from the information provided in the following:
Food allergy testing
It’s no exaggeration to say that knowing all your food allergies can mean the difference between life and death. Though you may be aware of your current food allergies based on past experience, there may be a food, spice, or ingredient that you’re not even aware that you’re allergic to. According to research, as many as 26 million adults in the U.S. have a food allergy, and over half of them don’t even realize it!
Food allergies occur when your body mistakenly identifies the proteins in that specific food as a harmful substance. Theoretically, any food can trigger an allergic reaction, but the most common food allergies are the following:
- Eggs
- Milk
- Peanuts
- Fish & shellfish
- Certain fruits and vegetables
- Wheat
- Soy
- And tree nuts (like walnuts and pecans)
It’s currently unknown why people develop food allergies, but you’re more likely to develop them in your younger years or if you have a family history of food allergies. Our specialty labs in Rochester, MI, and other locations allow our providers to detect and diagnose various food allergies. Our comprehensive list of food allergy testing includes:
- Wheat/Gluten Proteome Reactivity & Autoimmunity
- Gluten-Associated Cross-Reactive Foods and Foods Sensitivity
- Multiple Food Immune Reactivity Screen
- Chemical Immune Reactivity Screen
- And more!
Micronutrient Testing (Vitamins/Minerals)
One of our favorite treatments, both at our Forum Health facilities across Michigan is our micronutrient testing.
The vitamins and minerals are what we consider to be the building blocks of your body, and identifying any potential deficiencies affords our providers with critical information. Using this information, we can formulate a plan that helps patients slow the aging process, repair cellular function, and even prevent future diseases.
Our micronutrient test provides the most comprehensive nutritional analysis available by measuring functional deficiencies at the cellular level. With this assessment, we can determine how well the body utilizes 31 vitamins, minerals, amino/fatty acids, antioxidants, and metabolites.
Additionally, we can convey the body’s need for these micronutrients that enable the body to produce enzymes, hormones, and other substances essential for proper growth, development, and good health.
Mold testing
Mold is common both indoors and outdoors, meaning that people are at risk of exposure whether they work indoors or outdoors. Given that most people tend to spend their time indoors, you may be at risk of mold exposure if you spend time in an indoor environment that has a lot of moisture. These can include homes or buildings with leaks in the roof, windows, pipes, or any sort of flooding.
Once mold is in your home or building, it can grow anywhere. Most of the time, mold enters through doorways, heating and cooling systems, windows, and vents. And if you’re in an environment with mold spores, the excessive moisture can cause them to grow and multiply, leading to potentially harmful effects.
The most common reaction to mold is an allergic one, which can include symptoms such as:
- Fever
- Runny nose
- Watery eyes
- Sneezing
- Skin rash
- And more
In more severe cases, mold can cause asthma attacks in those who are allergic. Mold can also grow within the lungs and cause further irritation and health problems. With our specialty lab testing, we can evaluate your level of mold exposure and determine whether or not you have an allergy to mold.
DNA Testing for Longevity
One of the primary benefits of our DNA testing is its ability to reveal your true biological age through epigenetics. Though your chronological age is set in stone and isn’t reversible, your biological age depends largely on your environment and daily habits to this point in your life. This can effectively show our providers how close your biological age reflects your chronological age.
Using the myDNAge® test, the most accurate biological age test on the market, we can determine your biological age through several different markers (primarily the current conditions of your cells, tissues, and blood).
Ultimately, your epigenetic patterns can change based on your environment, your exposure, or your everyday decisions. Your epigenetic patterns will influence your risk of developing chronic conditions such as heart disease or diabetes. By measuring the current state of your epigenetic patterns and making potential changes based on our findings, we can develop a personalized plan that improves your quality of life and slows your aging process.
Other Available Specialty Labs in Rochester, MI
Outside of the previously mentioned specialty labs, the providers at Forum Health can provide a number of additional tests as well.
Advanced Lipid Testing
Advanced Lipid Testing allows our team to assess additional risk factors that a standard panel can’t. Whereas a Standard Lipid Panel may only provide cholesterol and triglyceride measurements, an advanced test can allow our team to fully reveal your risk for developing heart problems and other issues. Our full testing capabilities include:
- HDL Function Panel with HDLfx pCAD Score (HDLfx Test)
- LipoFraction NMR (and LipoFraction NMR with Lipids)
- Apolipoprotein B (ApoB) and A1 (ApoA1)
- Small-Dense LDL (sdLDL)
- Lipoprotein (a) (Lp(a))
Heart Testing
Using our Cleveland HeartLab specialty labs in Rochester, MI, West Bloomfield, Shelby, Novi, and Clarkston, we can gain insight into a patient’s cardiovascular risk beyond cholesterol testing alone.
Our inflammation testing consists of simple blood and urine biomarkers, which help to identify your inflammatory risk across a spectrum. With this information, our providers can develop a treatment plan with the specific goal of gradually reducing your risk for heart issues over your lifetime.
This group of tests covers a patient’s biomarker profile which may result from lifestyle concerns (F2-IsoPs, OxLDL) to the development of metabolic or cardiovascular disease (ADMA/SDMA, Microalbumin, hsCRP) and formation of vulnerable plaque and increased risk for an adverse event (Lp-PLA2 Activity, MPO).
Sex-Specific Testing
Finally, we also offer comprehensive testing to determine the hormone levels of both men and women. The tests are largely similar to one another, with the primary difference being the additional Progesterone in women and Prostate-Specific Antigen testing in men. Based on your test results, we can provide a treatment plan to target any hormone deficiencies with the use of Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement Therapy.
Our hormone testing panel includes:
- CBC
- CMP
- Lipid Panel
- TSH
- Free T3
- Free T4
- Total Testosterone
- Free Testosterone
- SHBG
- DHEA-S
- IGF-1
Learn More About Specialty Labs in Rochester, MI — Visit Forum Health Today!
More than just a weight loss clinic in Michigan, Forum Health is at the forefront of the latest specialty labs and technology. We offer a dedicated staff of medical professionals who care about your health and wellness and will work tirelessly to assist you in finding long-term solutions. We are highly trained, highly experienced, and we want to help you!
If you’re struggling with your overall health and wellness, please reach out to us today. Our team will happily go over all of your options and answer any questions you may have about your health and potential treatments.
Contact us to schedule an appointment or let us know more about your concerns using our virtual consultation tool!
