In essence, metabolic and functional testing simply means looking at how the body is functioning and metabolising stuff, how the systems are working. The labs look at amino and organic acids and use complicated analysis to work out from their complex relationships which systems of the body might need more support. This is a different way from testing actual cellular levels of nutrients for example.

The one thing to bear in mind here is that these are complex tests to interpret. So, make sure you have a good nutritionist to help. There are lots of choices here – as usual! – but here’s my simplified version for you – the GPL OAT is the industry leader and the one most people ask for. Note that GPL (Great Plains Lab is now called Mosaic Dx). You can order it direct from the lab with that link or on the shop here.

The OAT includes 76 urinary metabolites that provide a comprehensive snapshot of a patient’s overall health as the initial screening test and is useful for discovering underlying causes for chronic illness. You can read a handout about it here.

Includes biomarkers for:

• Intestinal Microbial Overgrowth

• Oxalate Metabolites

• Glycolytic Cycle Metabolites

• Mitochondrial Markers (Kreb Cycle)

• Neurotransmitter Metabolites

• Folate Metabolism

• Ketone and Fatty Acid Oxidation

• Nutritional Markers

• Indicators of Detoxification

• Amino Acid Metabolites