It never fails, most of the people we work with start out having no clue why it is so hard for them to look, perform, and feel better.

 

Having trouble losing fat? ~ check your hormones
Feeling tired and run down? ~ check your hormones
Memory loss and irritability? ~ check your hormones
Not “feeling like a man?” ~ check your hormones


Notice a theme here?

The first step towards figuring out what is going on with your body is to complete a through blood panel so we can have a detailed look at what your lab work says about your hormones and overall health!  

 

A big mistake that most men make when getting tested is to only be concerned about their testosterone levels.  While testosterone is a very powerful hormone, the trick to maximizing your health and performance is to understand how all your key hormones interact with one another (we use these results to personalize your plan).  A complete blood panel is like having all the answers to the test, not just to one question.

 

The RenewLifeRx Blood Panel Test™ is a collection of 12 of the most important health and hormonal markers that our doctors have combined together into one lab request.  We have a national partnership with LabCorp, the world’s leading health care diagnostics company to safely perform and analyze each blood panel request.

 

Once you have purchased your blood panel test, we will email you a lab requisition form that you are then able to take to the closest LabCorp location so you can have your testing performed (we will send out further details on how to use their location finder and schedule your LabCorp appointment).  After approximately 5 days, your results are available for our Doctors to review and from there, we will reach out to schedule a consultation with you to review your results and begin discussing a treatment plan.

 

Here are the markers we test for and some general thoughts we have about each one:

CBC With Differential/Platelet

This measures the levels of red/white blood cells, platelet levels, hemoglobin and hematocrit.  With this test, we want to understand the general health of your blood while also ruling out any anemia issues (basically your blood not having enough of the good stuff) prior to recommending any treatments.  For our clients that have received treatment from other centers in the past, this is one area that we generally find a couple of higher risk issues that could have been prevented with a more comprehensive program.  

Lipid Panel w/ Cholesterol/HDL Ratio

This test is especially important to gauge how at risk you are for heart disease.  We have found the easiest way to have healthy cholesterol levels is to understand why they get out of wack in the first place.  By taking a preventative approach, we have established a great track record of helping clients get their cholesterol in order, generally without needing any medications.  Also, for clients that are on testosterone replacement therapies, keeping a preventative eye on both good and bad cholesterol is very important because those medications can negatively affect cholesterol if unchecked.  

DHEA

DHEA is a hormone found in the adrenal glands and is one of the most over looked hormones by athletes and medical professionals.  While this hormone isn’t directly related to building muscle and generally not part of “routine check-ups”, it is a very important hormone to pay attention to because it can be used to help evaluate overall adrenal health and is considered an “anti-aging” hormone.  Healthy levels of DHEA are critical in order for the body to manage the modern world of stress, anxiety, and overstimulation we live in without the negative effects of excessive cortisol and potential issues like adrenal fatigue.

Testosterone

This is the one hormone we all have heard about, but there is still lots of confusion.  What is “normal”? What is “optimal”? What is actually best for me? Who should I talk to about this?  General practitioner? Endocrinologist? Urologist?

 

If you have made it to this point, you’ve probably read enough online to be really confused.  A big difference with our approach is that we believe that you personally have a testosterone level “sweet spot” where you feel the best physically and mentally.  This is not a one size fits all approach here. Too much testosterone can be just as much of a problem as not enough. Most clients we manage float around 1,000-1,200 nanograms per deciliter (ng/dL), which is the higher end of normal.  We also have clients that feel the best in between 600-700 ng/dL. Our Doctors work with you to find what works best for you and is also able to help keep the rest of your blood panel results in the healthy range.

TSH

TSH stands for Thyroid-stimulating hormone.  This test allows us to uncover any initial issues with your thyroid function.  Unfortunately, over 10 million American have thyroid issues and even worse, 8 million of those do not even know it.  Everything from unexplained weight gain, stubborn fat, excessive fatigue, depression, and even hair loss can be associated with poor TSH levels!  Additionally, we see a lot of issues with clients over treating/medicating mild thyroid issues when a more conservative, longer term approach would generally be better followed.

IGF-1

Often promoted as the hormone responsible for “reversing the aging process,” increasing IGF-1 (Insulin-like Growth Factor 1) levels have been shown to improve cognitive function, increase antioxidants, decrease inflammation, build lean muscle and reduce muscle wasting.  While the list of benefits from increasing IGF-1 levels is pretty long, it is also important to make sure IGF-1 levels are not too low as many negative issues can arise. As part of an anti-aging protocol, we can help clients achieve optimal levels of IGF-1 through growth hormone and growth hormone precursors that actually can help your body produce more IGF-1 on its own.

FSH/LH

Measuring Follicle-Stimulating Hormone (FSH) and Luteinizing Hormone (LH) helps us take a look your natural production of testosterone as well as how well your pituitary gland is able to communicate with the testes so that they can to do their job.  Paying attention to managing healthy levels of FSH and LH is also very important to maintain fertility.

PSA

This test measures the amount of Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) in your blood.  As we get older and specifically for those on testosterone replacement therapy, it is wise to pay attention to this indicator because elevated levels are often found in men with prostate cancer.  As part of our program, we help monitor PSA regularly for you and in the rare event we see a spike or concern, we can refer you to a specialist to rule out any concerns or to get early treatment. While we specialize in HRT, helping you to keep an eye on your overall health is always #1.

Estrogen

The enemy…well, not really, but estrogen can definitely cause some serious health issues if not monitored.  Once you become a client, we like to start by seeing where your estrogen levels are at so we can help make sure they are not too low or too high based on what the rest of your blood work tells us.  With some of the clients we work with, we have found high estrogen levels caused by lifestyle issues like the foods they eat on a regular basis. With others, especially those on a testosterone replacement therapy program, we have found that most are not even monitoring their estrogen levels at all…..bad idea.  The key with a comprehensive hormone replacement program is to understand and monitor the effects of your therapy across all of your key hormonal indicators, which is exactly what our program does.

SHBG

This test measures the level of Sex Hormone Binding Globulin in your blood.  If your levels are too high or low you may still have many of the symptoms of low testosterone even when you are on testosterone replacement therapy!  This is a very important marker to check prior to testosterone replacement therapy and during the process to make sure your body has the ability to distribute the hormones like estrogen and testosterone effectively.



Here is a list of the specific tests included in our panel:  CBC With Differential/Platelet; Comp. Metabolic Panel; Lipid Panel w/ Chol/HDL Ratio; Testosterone, Serum; FSH and LH; DHEA-Sulfate; TSH; Prostate-Specific Ag, Serum; IGF-1; Vitamin B-12; Estrogens, Total; Sex Hormone Binding Glob, Serum.