What a Complete Metabolic Panel Can Reveal to You

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While there are several ways for health professionals to get a look into the body’s functionality, one of the most efficient and telling tests comes directly from the blood. A comprehensive, metabolic panel – or hormone blood panel – can tell physicians a great deal about your overall health. A hormone panel test will ultimately provide a very detailed picture of the chemicals inside the body and metabolism.

Those who decide to have a hormone panel blood test done will get a detailed report of the chemicals in the body, the range, and what an abnormal range of this chemical can mean for the individual.

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How Is a Complete Metabolic Panel Conducted?

A physician or an individual may seek out a metabolic panel for many reasons. Traditionally, a hormone panel is ordered to check for diabetes, liver, or kidney disease as well as pinpoint other health conditions. A small sample of drawn blood can address several health concerns and questions.

The entire hormone panel blood test takes less than 10 minutes as the blood draw does not require any fancy equipment or testing metrics. Before the blood draw, you will not be able to eat or drink anything for at least eight hours before the test. This allows for the most accurate results.

A technician will place a needle directly into a vein to draw samples of blood. For the most part, these types of blood draws are quick and easy, but some patients complain of minimal discomfort following the draw. The blood sample will then be sent to a lab where more tests will be conducted to determine a complete chemical breakdown of the blood.

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What Does a Hormone Panel Tell You?

The results of a metabolic panel will determine what exactly is going on in the body. It will show just how much of a certain chemical is flowing inside of the blood. An abnormal reading of a certain chemical can point to an illness or condition you may not have known about. Chemicals that are tested in a hormone panel blood test include:

• Albumin – A protein that moves molecules, such as calcium and medicine, through your blood and keeps blood from leaking into the tissue
• Alkaline Phosphatase – A protein in all body tissues, with higher concentrations in your liver, bile ducts, and bone
• Alanine Transaminase – An enzyme (a protein that causes chemical changes in your body) that’s in higher concentrations in your liver
• Aspartate Aminotransferase – An enzyme that’s in higher concentrations in your liver, heart, and muscles
• Blood Urea Nitrogen – The result of protein being broken down in your blood by your kidneys
• Calcium – A mineral that helps all of the cells in your body work properly, which is also important for strong bones, teeth, and heart function
• Chloride – ​​An electrolyte that helps maintain your body fluids
• Carbon Dioxide – A chemical that is a result of your metabolism (processes that break down energy)
• Creatinine – A chemical that is a waste product of creatine, which supplies energy to your muscles
• Glucose – A major source of energy for the cells in your body, such as your brain cells
• Potassium – A mineral that helps your nerves communicate with your muscles and moves nutrients and waste products to and from the cells in your body
• Sodium – A substance that helps maintain the amount of water in your body
• Total Bilirubin – Old red blood cells that have been replaced by new ones, which are removed from the body in the stool
• Total Protein – Part of your cells that keep important fluid in your blood vessels and help your immune system

If a chemical is revealed to not be within normal range following a hormone blood test, it is not always a cause for concern. Just because one chemical is off doesn’t always indicate a health problem. It is important to go over results with a trained professional or physician. Elevated Health, with locations in Huntington Beach and Redding California, conducts comprehensive, metabolic panels and will go over all results with each individual to determine what treatment, if any, needs to be implemented moving forward.