Labs Without A Doctor

(KM) #1

I actually have decent health insurance. I’m about at my 1 year ketovore anniversary and I’d like to have some baseline numbers to work with, but I haven’t had a GP in 10 years, and I’m loathe to go down the road of seeking one out and the almost inevitable pushback about my diet that’s bound to occur when the numbers don’t line up with what they expect. I sat in on my husband’s GP consult and was nonplussed with the usual zombie advice he was given, that guy / clinic just reinforced my resistance.

Sooo, two questions. If you wanted to spend less than about $500, what lab tests would you order independently, and, if you’re in the US, where would you get them done?

ETA: as far as I know, I’m in excellent health, it’s not that I have specific concerns. I’d just like to have some markers to work with.

(Joey) #2

We’ve had great success (here in the US) with “https://requestatest.com” - where you can pick labs at either Quest or LabCorp near you. Their pricing is decent and they often run various “sales” on certain tests.

We get annual complete blood and metabolic panels done. And then we get “NMR Lipid” panels (available @ LabCorp only). Also a few others of interest on occasion (Vit D, thyroid, etc.) These all together run us around $250’ish each (my wife and I go together).

We instruct them to also send results to our own family internist in advance of our wellness visit and review them together.

I haven’t used it yet, but I understand David Feldman is behind getting this unique platform up and running:

It’s supposed to be far cheaper, and supports his research efforts by your agreeing to participate with your data (I think?) … not entirely sure but worth checking out further. We will likely explore this alternative next time we get our annual bloodwork done. (I believe they exclusively use LabCorp locations and are priced well below request-a-test for NMR Lipid, for example.)

Happy hunting! :test_tube: :syringe:

(Bob) #3

I would definitely go with OwnYourLabs.com and if you are just concerned with general health with a view to weight loss, I would only get…

  • Hemoglobin A1C
  • Comprehensive Metabolic Panel
  • Lipid Panel
  • Fasting Insulin
  • Vitamin D

Their tests are very affordable, and believe it or not, he keeps lowering his prices as he gets more and more business.

#4

Private MD Labs is typically the best deals I’ve found, and you’ll have your lab req within an hour in most cases. I run a lot of labs on my own, docs are useless when it comes to labs that matter. There’s no shortage of re-sold LabCorp and Quest tests, but they’re typically the best deal. Dicounted Labs is my #2, and sometimes Life Extention’s sales make it worth it.

My most run lab is a CBC/CMP w/Hormones. Gets you (most) of everything you’d want, and the major hormone breakdown. If I were to add to that I’d run Thyroid as well, which I do sometimes. Those together woulldn’t even be $200, gotta tailor them to what you’ve got going on, symptoms etc.