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Blood Tests: Have You Had One Recently?

By Barbara Morris, R.Ph.

Republish: EasyPublish™
Published: 09Mar2007
Word count: 676
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People who care about their health often overlook the importance of having regular blood tests.

The most comprehensive blood test is known as the CBC/Chemistry Profile. It's inexpensive and measures 35 different blood parameters that can have a powerful impact on the state of your health.

For example, one of the many serious disorders that are detectable by the CBC/Chemistry Profile is calcium overload. Does the term "calcium overload" surprise you? After all, we hear so much about the importance of having enough calcium.

Calcium overload occurs when too much calcium is removed from bones and deposited into the vascular system. Unless detected by a blood test, you often don't find out about calcium imbalance until after suffering a devastating bone fracture, a painful kidney stone or heart valve failure. These diseases begin years after the calcium imbalance starts, yet a simple CBC/Chemistry Profile enables early detection. The problem can be corrected with targeted nutrition. It's vital to correct the calcium imbalance before it becomes a full blown disease condition.

As a pharmacist, one of my pet peeves is drug induced toxicity. It's not a secret that FDA approved drugs have side effects and interactions that kill over 125,000 people each year. We shouldn't be surprised – if you listen to the side effects quickly rattled off during TV commercials for "wonder drugs" it's no wonder there are so many drug casualties.

But people continue to trust their physicians not to prescribe medications that may harm them. The reality is, that doctors usually only know what the drug manufacturers tell them. Doctors, no matter how much your love and respect what they know, do not know everything they should or could know. There aren't enough hours in a day to know everything about every drug that's on the market.

Doctors are supposed to monitor patients to prevent drug induced deaths, but many do not. Worse, HMO's, eager to save money, are not recommending CBC/Chemistry Profiles, which would help detect drug induced liver and kidney damage.

It's not just prescription drug damage that needs to be monitored. Other things like excessive alcohol consumption, OTC medications such as ibuprofen, naproxen, and too much niacin can make a person susceptible to liver or kidney damage. Some people are not as vulnerable as others are to these substances, but you won't know if damage is occurring unless you have regular CBC/Chemistry Profiles.

If you have high cholesterol, the problem may be high homocysteine and or C-Reactive Protein, both of which are detected by a blood test and are correctable with folic acid, dietary measures or supplements. When there is high homosycteine or C Reactive Protein, blood vessel walls become inflamed and cholesterol sticks to the irritated walls, clogging the arteries. It is very disconcerting that doctors are so ready to prescribe damaging statin drugs for high cholesterol without first ordering tests for high homocysteine or C Reactive Protein.

One other thing that is disturbing is the way doctors still routinely prescribe "one size fits all" hormone replacement for menopausal women. This is a tragedy. Every woman's chemistry is different. A CBC/Chemistry Profile can pinpoint specific needs, allowing a well-informed physician to prescribe proper hormone replacement (bioidentical, please!).

And speaking of hormone replacement, men need it too. If a man has regular blood tests for hormone levels beginning at least by his forties, he can be started on appropriate hormone replacement. His reward will by that when he reaches 60 and beyond, he will still be young and vital, mentally and physically.

If your doctor won't order a CBC/Chemistry Profile, or tries to make you feel like a pest for asking for one, then ask another doctor or get it done on your own. It will cost you, but it will be money well spent.

Be your own best friend. Don't depend on your physician or anyone else to look after your best interests. It's your body, your health and your life. Take charge!

Barbara Morris is a pharmacist and author of Put Old on Hold. Subscribe to her newsletter at http://www.PutOldonHold.com and receive a free copy of "Twelve Diva Tested Tips for Fabulous Skin."

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