What are Food sensitivities?
Food sensitivities include many different types of sensitivities to food which may arise for a wide variety of reasons making it a complex, oftentimes confusing and not easily defined area of study.
How common are food sensitivities?
There is increasing evidence that food sensitivities are more common and have a wider and more varied impact on our health than previously realized.
Why is diagnosis difficult?
Diagnosis can also be difficult because symptoms may be delayed for up to two days after a food has been consumed. In general, food sensitivities are the result of toxic responses to food and are divided into two categories: allergic responses; and food intolerances.
What is the difference between Food Allergies and Food Sensitivities?
Allergies and sensitivities are different, and they require different types of testing. In most cases, conditions like IBS, migraine, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid athritis, etc are not caused by allergic reactions, but rather by delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions.
What is LEAP/MRT and how does this help in patients suffering from the above medical conditions?
LEAP stands for Lifestyle, Eating, And Performance. It is a unique, innovative and extremely effective patient-specific anti-inflammatory eating protocol. It combines the Mediator Release Test (MRT) with the skills of a Certified LEAP Therapist to produce a patient-specific anti-inflammatory diet designed to lower inflammation and by doing so, reduce or eliminate your symptoms.
The patented Mediator Release Test (MRT) is a blood test that measures your immune reaction to 120 foods and 30 chemicals. The results from the test are used to identify a safe list of foods to eat that will not trigger inflammation and helps your symptoms improve.
Since the introduction of the patented Mediator Release Test (MRT®) and proprietary LEAP anti-inflammatory eating plans, Oxford has performed over 4.5 million food sensitivity tests, helping improve the lives of tens of thousands of IBS, migraine, fibromyalgia, and other patients suffering the negative effects of food sensitivities. MRT® is the foundation for fully addressing food sensitivities and achieving the maximum outcomes in the shortest period of time.
Micronutrient Testing
Are you taking too many supplements? Not enough? Nutritional status is a vital foundation of health and performance. SpectraCell’s micronutrient testing is an innovative assessment of nutritional status. Unlike traditional serum, hair and urine tests, SpectraCell’s tests evaluate how an individual’s white blood cells respond to varied environments of over 32 vitamins, minerals, amino acids and antioxidants. As a result, individual differences in metabolism, age, genetics, health, prescription drug usage, absorption rate or other factors are taken into consideration.
CardioMetabolic Testing
Standard cholesterol Testing Is Not Enough
Poor blood sugar regulation and unhealthy triglyceride and lipoprotein levels often present long before the diagnosis of type 2 Diabetes. SpectraCell’s CardioMetabolic and Pre-Diabetes panels offer definitive diagnostic and clinically relevant evaluation to help define risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and progression toward type 2 diabetes. These check points along with an overall pre-diabetes risk score, help patients understand that not just one factor, but rather a constellation of risk factors, contribute to the genesis and progression toward poor blood sugar control and/or ASCVD. Results of testing allow doctors to know when guidance, educational referral, or treatment is necessary.
Hormone & Thyroid Testing
SpectraCell Laboratories offers comprehensive male and female hormone panels that reveal the overall state of hormonal balance in a patient. Like nutrients, hormones influence all aspects of health and disease – mood, sleep, metabolism, immunity, heart health and appearance. An imbalance of one hormone can initiate cascade of events that alters other hormones, so a comprehensive look at hormone status is key.
Thyroid hormones directly regulate every cell in our body as most basic functions like metabolism, emotions and thinking. We also test several proteins that affect thyroid function as well as antibodies to thyroid which can detect autoimmunity (when the immune system attacks healthy tissue) and your levels of cortisol, the stress hormone.
Telomere Testing
SpectraCell’s Telomere Test is the window to your true cellular age. This advanced test measures the length of your telomeres – the end caps of your DNA. Studies have shown a direct link to telomere length, cardiovascular health and the aging process.
ApoE Genotyping
Is your cardiovascular treatment strategy best for your specific genetic composition? This test determines an individual’s genetic risk associated with the Apolipoprotein E gene. The results of the genotyping of Apolipoprotein E have important implications in the treatment strategies for individual patients in reducing cardiovascular disease risk.
MTHFR Genotyping
Determines an individual’s genetic risk associated with the Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (MTHFR) gene.
Factor V Leiden & Prothrombin
Genotyping indicate whether a person has an increased likelihood of forming blood clots (thrombosis). Presence of either gene increases the chance of deep vein thrombosis, and may also provide useful information on heart attack risk.
