By Channing King
Is your body getting the right nutrients? If not, it won’t function at its greatest potential. So many Americans are deficient in vital nutrients and have no idea how to get on the right track. If you feel lost when it comes to supplementation, keep reading. I hope to shed some light on a few more tests that can be done to help people find what supplements are right for them. No more guessing games. You can find out what supplements are right for you based on your age, health and gender.
The Ragland’s Test is the first test I want to highlight. This tests consists of taking a patient’s blood pressure in sitting, laying and standing positions. We monitor the rise or fall of blood pressure in these three positions in order to understand adrenal gland health. Many people have adrenal dysfunction without even knowing it. This can lead to issues like chronic fatigue, inflammation, and hormonal issues, just to name a few. When we see a negative Ragland’s Test, we suggest the patient lower their sugar intake, work on ways to lower stress and advise nutritional supplementation for the adrenal gland. Once the adrenal gland is healthy, it helps other glands like the thyroid gland to work properly.
The Zinc Test is another one I want to share. This test checks the vital mineral zinc. The test is administered by putting a solution of zinc sulfate in the patient’s mouth. This solution is safe and can be swallowed, but we want the patient to keep the solution in his or her mouth for 10 seconds. After the 10 seconds, we check to see if the patient can taste anything. If zinc levels are normal, the patient will have a metallic-type taste in his or her mouth. Many people that are deficient in zinc don’t taste anything or have only a slight metallic taste in their mouths. Zinc helps with memory, blood sugar, healing and for prostate health in men. If a patient has a negative result on the Zinc Test, we recommend eating more nuts, such as walnuts, and/or some seeds, such as pumpkin seeds. We also steer them away from consuming too much wheat, soy or stress because they are zinc level depleters. In addition to changing these health patterns, we also recommend specific supplements to help increase their zinc.
The final test I want to mention is the pH Test, which evaluates pH levels in the body. It’s administered by placing a tiny piece of pH paper in the mouth for approximately 10 seconds, or a better way is submerging the pH paper for a few seconds in your first morning urine. The pH paper changes color to indicate whether or not the patient’s body is acidic or alkalinic. This knowledge is important because if someone is too acidic, they are more prone to cancer, and if someone is too alkalinic, they are prone to pain syndromes. The goal is be slightly alkalinic. If a patient that has a pH that is out of balance, we try to help them clean up their diet by suggesting they steer clear of processed foods, add green, leafy vegetables to their diets, and propose particular whole food, organic supplements to combat their situation.
I hope you have enjoyed learning some tests that can be used to determine what supplements your body needs.