Every week I have this discussion with probably 5-7 women. It’s usually in conjunction with her having energy issues, fatigue, digestive issues, headaches during menstruation, or pain related issues. All these problems are common and can be solved by a simple routine blood panel from your OBGYN. A typical GYN visit will only order blood work if there are clear signs of a problem, or you ask for it. So these are the items you need to ask for every year you go for your annual checkup symptomatic or not.
Vitamin D – Nutritionally you want this number to be over 56 and optimally between 80-100
Complete Blood Count with differential (CBC w diff) – This is a window to your red blood cell health (RBC), white blood cell health (wbc).
TIBC – total iron binding capacity – This lets you know your need for iron in the body. If its high your need iron and vice versa if low.
Serum Iron – This informs you of the 1% of your iron available. This is usually what is in your blood stream. Your number needs to be around 90-110
Serum Ferritin – This is your 99% of your iron, it’s what is stored away for when needed by the body. This number also needs to be around 100.
Reticulocyte Count – These are immature red blood cells this tells the story of what your body is asking for in the demand for oxygen.
If you are having hormone related issues, hot flashes, brain fog, achy joints, reoccurring injury, migraines, or other intense symptoms other blood work is needed. You will likely need a more extensive visit with the doctor.
At Archetype Health its recommended that bloodwork is done routinely to proactively maximize your health. It typically is what we recommend to all our patients over 25 years old no matter if you’re male or female. It typically takes a disease process 15-20 years to form into a disease. Your body usually gives many signals to let you know its struggling but in modern America these symptoms are either “pushed through” or covered up by medication. At archetype we want you to live as naturally as possible for as long as possible, this is only possible if you routinely eat clean, check your blood work, get adjusted, and exercise. The basic panel you will ask for is called a panel 1, for more extensive problems you need what we call a panel 2. Our staff can help here if you're interested in one of our nutritional consults and blood work.
This is a basic amount of information but very powerful. You have ultimate control over your health. No one will be a bigger advocate for your health except you absolutely not your doctor, trainer, etc. It’s your responsibility to encourage health to exist in your body, OR you can ignore your health and it will go away. You have power over the direction it will go. Hopefully your goal is to be as little to no dependence on any healthcare system. This may seem farfetched but it absolutely is not.
Dr John Palmer
Your Chiropractor in Birmingham
