Are private health tests worth your money?
- verajacksonnutriti
- Mar 20
- 3 min read
What are private tests about and how are they different from free tests doctors offer? What can you test with a private test? And ultimately, are private tests really worth your money and your time?
Let's answer these questions
Private tests (or functional tests) are the tests often offered by specialists to look deep into your health. The test kits are safe and supplied by legislation compliant labs, samples analysis are done by trained specialists. You can get the results of your test from the lab directly or from a nutritional therapist / functional doctor, depending on how you have ordered your test.
How are these functional test different from free tests doctors offer?
Functional test very often has more touch points (or biomarkers) than a standard free test. This means functional test gives you a bigger picture and more information about your area of concern and chance to get improvements fast.
Imagine you have a 60 inch TV. You want to watch a movie on it. But when you start watching you can only see half of the screen. You have no idea what's happening on the other half of the screen. Will you really know what will happen in the movie if you can only see half of the picture?
Private test gives you the opportunity to uncover the missing half of the picture, see all the data and understand better what's going on. When you see clearly what's happening, you will:
start acting instead of hanging in a limbo, guessing and googling your symptoms
get clear direction and see your health improvements faster = time saving
save money on the supplements and extra appointments you may not need
What can you test with a functional test?
Really, almost anything. A key vitamin or mineral level to see if you have enough (like vitamin D, zinc or vitamin B12), a function of an organ (like your thyroid or liver), a bigger picture of a body function, like your digestion, your sex or stress hormones behavior or how well your insulin processes glucose from food. Or your genetic data, shedding light on the question "why am I doing things right but my symptoms are not improving?" Functional tests can sometimes be tailored for your specific needs, meaning you can create your own test, unique for your health needs.
Do you need a blood draw with every test?
Some tests do need a blood draw from your vein. This is normally done by qualified, experienced specialist (phlebotomist), who can also help you to post your sample correctly to the lab. If is difficult for you to travel, you can find a mobile phlebotomist, who can come to your house.
And the good news, not all functional tests need a blood draw from your vein. In fact, many tests will NOT need a venous blood draw, and can be done via finger prick at home, or collecting your saliva, urine or stool sample. Some tests can be done with pain-free blood collection kits.
So, the ultimate question, are private tests worth your money?
My answer is: absolutely yes.
Why?
private tests are convenient and can be done at your own home (including specialist travelling to you to collect your blood)
test samples are accurately analyzed by qualified specialists in compliant labs
you can test anything: from a single vitamin level to a full body function
private test with a big range of markers gives you bigger picture of your health, saving you time on guessing and money on supplements you may not need
So, if you have been thinking about testing and not sure if it's worth your money and time, or if you have a health concern you want to check - get in touch!
I'm qualified practitioner, working with leading private laboratories. I can help you to choose a right test, get the test kit and walk you through collecting and posting samples back to the lab. And when your results are ready, I will explain these to you in non-confusing language - you will see clearly what each point means and why is it important. We will create a health support plan based on your test results, to help you see your health improvements.
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