Micronutrient Health Blog | SpectraCell Laboratories - micronutrient deficiency

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Category: micronutrient deficiency

Does SpectraCell Measure Vitamin Toxicity in Blood?

SpectraCell’s MicroNutrient Test reports your nutrient deficiencies, but can it tell you if you are at risk for taking too much of a supplement?  The short answer here is YES and NO, but it deserves elaboration.      There is a difference between taking too much of a supplement and vitamin toxicity.   SpectraCell does not report vitamin toxicity, at least not directly.   SpectraCell measures vitamin deficiency.   That said, people should... Read More
at Monday, March 27, 2023

Is Methylation Good or Bad?

Is Methylation Good or Bad?  Hint: like nutrients, it's all about balance. This is actually a trick question - the answer is NEITHER.  It depends on what is being methylated.  Biochemically speaking, methylation is the process of adding or removing a methyl group – which is a single carbon attached to three hydrogens – to a molecule.  It is a simple chemical reaction that can totally alter the biology of a person – for better or worse – depe... Read More
at Friday, March 10, 2023

I Got My Telomere Test, Now What?

I Got My Telomere Test, Now What? Here’s a primer on what you can do to understand your telomere test results This is the most common question about telomere testing that Spectracell receives:  What do I do with the results?   It is often followed up by the second most common question:  Why isn’t biological age on the report.   Here we’ll answer both.But first, a little background on telomeres… Telomeres are the protective cap on the... Read More
Posted by Nichole Herms at Friday, February 3, 2023

Sex Hormones 101

Hormones 101 An Overview of the Three Most Commonly Known Sex Hormones That Affect Health:  Estrogen, Testosterone and Progesterone Hormones and nutrients work together to create balance in the body.  One cannot exist without the other. Micronutrients regulate, synthesize and detoxify hormones. Like nutrients, hormones work in balance and affect each other profoundly. Following is a primer on basic hormones that affect our health: Estrogen Estrogen actually exists in three main f... Read More
Posted by Nichole Herms at Friday, January 20, 2023

Diabetes is More Than Just Blood Sugar Problems

Learn how micronutrients also affect insulin receptors, fructose metabolism and much more November is National Diabetes Month, which is particularly appropriate after Halloween and the sugar binges that accompany it. Below are a few reasons the dangers of sugar extend beyond a few extra pounds – blood sugar problems deteriorates cells throughout the entire body from the inside out. The good news is that nutrient status can mitigate much of this damage.  Here are a few example... Read More
Posted by Nichole Herms at Wednesday, November 9, 2022

Targeted repletion may be the competitive edge every serious athlete needs

: From baseball to bodybuilding – targeted repletion may be the competitive edge every serious athlete needs.   The key word being “targeted.”  We all know athletes, particularly college and professional athletes, will push their bodies and skill to the edges of potential, and beyond.  The physical discipline and mental focus in elite athletes can be extreme.  Every improvement in physiology can potentially move the athlete into new realms of performance.... Read More
Posted by Nichole Herms at Tuesday, August 16, 2022

Methylation 101

What is methylation? Biochemically speaking, methylation is the process of adding or removing a methyl group – which is a single carbon attached to three hydrogens – to a molecule.  It is a simple chemical reaction that can totally alter the biology of a person – for better or worse – depending on where the methylation occurs. Methyl groups are chemically inert, but adding them to a protein (the process of methylation) changes how that protein behaves in major wa... Read More
Posted by Nichole Herms at Wednesday, July 6, 2022

Want to Maintain a Healthy Weight? What You Need to Know About Micronutrients and Fat Metabolism

If you are like most people, you are probably aware of how various diets emphasize different macronutrients.   Low fat or low carb?  That is a macronutrient question.   Only three macronutrients exist – fats, carbohydrates and protein.  Some consider water a macronutrient, which is debatable.    Spectracell goes deeper.  Much deeper.   Spectracell’s focus is micronutrients, of which there are dozens.   Examples of ... Read More
at Thursday, June 2, 2022

Could Vitamin K Deficiency Increase COVID-19 Complications?

  Consider this—over 8000 medical papers on COVID-19 have been published in 2020 alone—the majority of which have been published just in March and April. As the amount of clinical data grows, we will learn more nuanced aspects of this novel pandemic—one of which will be how micronutrient status may impact COVID-19.  In a recently e-published paper, a team from the Netherlands studied the level of vitamin K in over a hundred people admitted to the hospital wi... Read More
Posted by Nichole Herms at Monday, May 4, 2020