The office of Forum Health Las Colinas is pleased to announce that we are now offering food sensitivity, gut health, and nutritional testing to new patients wanting to exclusively explore further aspects of overall wellness, and what may be contributing to chronic health conditions.
Previously, these services were only offered to our existing patient base, however, more and more research shows that food sensitivities and gut dysbiosis and/or infections affect almost every physiological process in the human body. Our providers understand how important this is to whole-body health and wellness, and we are now offering testing to new patients as well!
Have Questions?
Contact our New Patient Coordinator at 972-960-4800
The importance of a healthy, fully functioning gastrointestinal system cannot be underestimated. With new information and research being done in this important area of health and wellness, scientific literature has associated gut microbiome or gut flora with many diseases and conditions, including:
* Celiac and Other Malabsorption Disorders
* Autoimmune diseases
* Irritable Bowel Syndrome or IBS
* Inflammatory Bowel Disease or IBD
* Acid Reflux and Heartburn
* Blood Sugar Issues and Diabetes
* Excessive Weight Gain and Obesity
* Cardiovascular Disease
* Depression and Mood Disorders
Importance of Healthy Gut Microbiome
Basically, your gut is the frontline of the defense of your immune system, which is constantly being exposed to toxins, chemicals, pesticide residues, bacteria, and more. The processes that take place in your gut can affect your central nervous system, brain, and even your moods. The microbiota is the various collections of microbes that live in and on your body and significantly influence how your body operates. There are almost 1,000 species of microbial organisms called microbiome in the human gastrointestinal tract which are greater than the number of cells in our bodies. The microbiome is directly involved in most of our daily metabolic functions. Everything you consume can influence the composition of your microbiota. Stress, age, gender, health status, geography, and many other factors can as well.
Your microbiome also affects your metabolic rate (which is the rate at which metabolism occurs in a living organism). Metabolism is a biochemical process that governs how quickly you turn calories into energy. The rate at which you burn fat when you are resting is called your basal metabolic rate. What you eat and drink, accumulation of toxins in your body, under-active thyroid, adrenal fatigue, stress, and even not getting enough sleep will affect your metabolic rate. These are all tied to your overall gut health. To learn more about how gut health affects the endocrine system, click here.
The Microbiome’s role in our body’s operation is so important that it acts as an organ– impacting mood, cognitive function, aging, digestion, and our immune system.
The Enteric Nervous System
Your Enteric Nervous system, or ENS, is hidden in the walls of your digestive system and is the link between your digestion, mood, and health. Its main job is controlling digestion and releasing enzymes that break down food and control blood flow, which helps with nutrient absorption and elimination. The ENS triggers can create big emotional shifts in patients suffering from IBS, constipation, diarrhea, bloating, pain, and an upset stomach, and researchers are learning that irritation in the gastrointestinal system may send signals to the central nervous system and create mood swings and changes. Currently, a higher percentage of people with IBS and GI tract diseases develop anxiety and depression, and it is estimated that approximately 30 to 40 percent of the population suffers from functional bowel problems at some point in their lives.
GI Effects Testing
The Genoma GI Effects Test is an innovative stool test measuring premier biomarkers of gastrointestinal function, providing valuable clinical insight into digestive performance, gut inflammation, and the gut microbiome — areas affecting not only GI health but overall health as well. GI testing and normalizing GI function help to pinpoint imbalances in your gut to better treat your overall health.
The GI Effects Comprehensive Stool Profile is an important clinical tool in the management of symptoms and illnesses associated with a compromised GI tract. The GI Effects test is a stool test that measures premiere biomarkers of gastrointestinal function. It measures how your digestive system is performing if there is inflammation, the general gut microbiome, and how your GI health is affecting not only your gut health but your overall health as well. The test will also show if there are specific pathogens present that may be causing illness, the balance of commensal and beneficial bacteria that may be contributing to symptoms, and risk factors relating to the microbiome.
GI Effects assesses three critical areas of gut health:
- digestive function
- gut inflammation
- the gut microbiome—areas affecting not only GI health but overall health as well. For patients with symptoms that may have gastrointestinal dysfunction as their root cause, comprehensive stool diagnostics provide an effective tool for gaining clinical insight into the next steps. When a patient is experiencing digestive issues or abnormalities or other autoimmune conditions, GI Effects Testing may help to open the door to recovery.
Assessing and normalizing GI function can have profound effects on overall health, leading to improvement in these and other conditions. The GI Effects® Comprehensive Stool Profile is a critical clinical tool used by our providers in the treatment of patients presenting with symptoms that can be associated with compromised gut health.
Have Questions?
Contact our New Patient Coordinator at 972-960-4800
Differences Between Food Allergies and Food Sensitivities
A serious allergic reaction to foods like shellfish or peanuts can trigger antibodies that are released, resulting in immediate symptoms affecting multiple organs, which can be severe or even life-threatening, but this is not the same thing as food sensitivity.
However, there are other phenomena that can occur and that is when someone has reactions to certain foods that are not a full-blown allergic reaction. We refer to these as food sensitivities or food intolerances.
Food sensitivity is usually a delayed reaction that can lead to gastrointestinal problems and chronic inflammation issues. Most people are unaware of these sensitivities. Even though they may be experiencing symptoms, they may not know what is causing them.
The following symptoms have been linked to food sensitivities:
- Fatigue
- Cognitive impairment
- Headaches
- Achy joints
- Upset stomach
- Gas, IBS, and other bowel issues
- Metabolic disorders such as obesity, diabetes, and inability to lose weight
- Inflammatory conditions such as psoriasis, eczema, arthritis, Hashimoto’s Disease, and other autoimmune disorders
The ALCAT Food Sensitivity Test
The food sensitivity test that we use here at our office is the ALCAT Platinum Plus test (we offer a significant discount), which includes testing of:
- 250 different foods
- 50 functional foods and medicinal herbs
- 30 food additives, colorings, and preservatives
- 20 molds
- 20 antibiotics and anti-inflammatory agents
The test measures cellular reactions and is designed to assess sensitivities to a wide array of foods, chemicals, and environmental substances. These sensitivities have been shown to be associated with both acute and chronic conditions. Someone with unknown food sensitivities can definitely benefit from knowing how food plays a role in your body. The ALCAT Test allows you to take advantage of leading technology to create a personalized nutrition plan resulting in benefits that can be seen and felt.
Results of the Food Sensitivity Testing
The results from the ALCAT Test can help determine which foods and other substances may trigger unwanted inflammation. This information is compiled into a personalized nutrition plan based on your immune response, which can assist with food choices that are better for your health. By cutting out those foods that you have intolerances to, you can desensitize them over time. As a result, many clinical symptoms associated with food sensitivity may be substantially improved or possibly prevented altogether. The ALCAT Test may help uncover which foods and other substances trigger chronic inflammation and its related health issues.
Medical studies using the ALCAT Test to guide diet have shown significant improvement in many common symptoms. To date, this food sensitivity testing has helped over half a million people improve their health.
Included with the ALCAT Test results is an individualized nutrition plan based on your immune system that enables you to make food choices that are better suited for your health and well-being. With the ALCAT Test, many clinical symptoms associated with food and chemical sensitivities can be substantially improved or possibly prevented altogether.
The test results include:
- An easy-to-understand color-coded test report
- Foods to avoid list
- A comprehensive “Understanding your ALCAT Test Results” guidebook
- A personalized rotation plan
- A practical shopping guide and restaurant card
Nutrition
Our office offers nutritional testing in order to determine if you are absorbing nutrients and to make sure that you have adequate levels of key nutrients to function optimally. Not only do the foods you eat affect your health, but the things you don’t consume that your body needs can also have an adverse impact. Your body needs a wide array of nutrients – vitamins, minerals, trace minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, enzymes, and more. Based on genetics, long-term eating habits, exposure to toxins, addictions, and many other factors, every individual’s makeup is different and unique. What some may be lacking in, others may be abundant in. It is important to understand which supplements are right for your body, your lifestyle, and your circumstances, thus ensuring your unique needs are met without wasting money and effort on items that could be unnecessary or even harmful.
Certain elements of healthy nutrition are considered “essential” and must be obtained from the diet. Imbalanced or deficient levels of these essential nutrients have been related to a number of health conditions, including inflammation, cardiovascular issues, hormonal imbalances and deficiencies, mood disorders, and more.
For example, nutrient minerals are regulators of body processes and must be obtained from the diet or supplementation. Inadequate levels of beneficial minerals, such as magnesium, calcium, and zinc, can contribute to many disorders, including mood instability, constipation, painful joints and muscles, and muscle cramps. At the same time, increased levels of some mineral elements, such as mercury, lead, or other heavy metals, can be harmful and are related to a wide range of chronic health conditions.
Amino Acids are vital to a healthy body. They are a basic building block for all protein structures in your body. Imbalances of amino acids have been related to a wide range of health issues, such as fatigue, increased cardiovascular risk, or impaired mood, or cognitive dysfunction. Organic acids are compounds produced during daily metabolism. Organic acid testing is a way to measure whether your body is getting and using the nutrients needed for key metabolic processes.
Many patients experience chronic illnesses because of nutritional deficiencies. NutrEval testing offers nutritional recommendations based on a patient’s individual test results. Our providers often use such testing to determine the nutritional deficiencies that are at the root of chronic conditions such as:
- Fatigue
- Mood disorder, depression, anxiety
- Sleep problems
- Inflammation and pain
- Optimized health and sports fitness
NutrEval Testing delivers very exact insights about the way nutrition and the environment impact your body’s needs. Your provider will tell you how you could benefit from such nutritional testing to achieve optimal health.
NutrEval is a very thorough nutritional testing by Genova Diagnostics. It is used by the Forum Health office to give a better understanding of patients’ nutritional deficiencies. These deficiencies could be worsening or, in some cases, causing unwanted physical conditions.
More Information about NutrEval
Genova designed the NutrEval® profile to give physicians a better understanding of patients’ nutritional deficiencies. By combining testing in 5 key areas of core nutrients, physicians are offered a depth of insight into a patient’s overall nutritional status unrivaled in the laboratory industry. Genova Diagnostics has created an enhanced report that synthesizes the results of more than 100 individual biomarkers into one easy-to-interpret overview, as well as a personalized patient supplementation schedule.
The NutrEval Profile includes:
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Metabolic Analysis ProfileMetabolic Analysis assessment provides information on 45 key organic acids. These biomarkers are grouped into easy-to-understand categories and provide insight for functional support in the areas of malabsorption & dysbiosis, cellular energy & mitochondrial metabolism, neurotransmitter metabolism, vitamin deficiencies, and toxin exposure & detoxification needs.
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Amino Acids Analysis
Amino Acids analysis features either plasma (37 total) or urine (41 total) amino acids. This assesses nutritionally essential and non-essential amino acids, as well as intermediary metabolites that augment an understanding of B vitamin need and the need for support of protein digestion & absorption. -
Essential & Metabolic Fatty Acids Analysis
Essential and Metabolic Fatty Acids Analysis provides a high-level overview of the balance of various families of fatty acids in relation to each other: Omega 3, 6, and 9 Fatty Acids; Saturated Fatty Acids; and Monounsaturated Omega 7 and Trans Fats. It also provides key ratios for understanding cardiovascular risk, including the Omega 3 Index. - Elemental Analysis
Elemental Profiles provide information in two categories: Nutrient Elements, which evaluate intracellular nutrient status, and Toxic Elements, which evaluate short-term toxic element exposure. - Oxidative Stress
Oxidative Stress biomarkers highlight the body’s current state of oxidative stress and reserve capacity. Markers of oxidative injury assess cell membrane (lipid peroxides) and DNA (8-hydroxydeguanosine/8-OHdG) damage, while direct measurement of glutathione and CoQ10 provide insight into antioxidant reserve available to counter the free-radical impact. Additional markers are available in our Oxidative Stress 2.0 profile.
Nutrition affects many aspects of your health. Some of the diseases and conditions affected by nutrition are:
- Mood/memory/behavioral changes
- Fatigue and/or sleep disturbances
- Stress-related chronic pain disorders
- Gastrointestinal and digestive problems
- Malnutrition
- Weight issues
- Immune dysfunction
- Joint and skin disorders
- Reproductive issues
- General Health
- Fitness levels
Protocols for Testing
If you are interested in having any of the above tests completed by one of our providers, please give us a call! We will have you complete a health questionnaire and schedule a 30-minute phone consultation with your provider to go over all of your symptoms and concerns. We will then order the appropriate testing and have it sent to you.
Once you have your test completed and the results are in, we will then get you scheduled for a 30-60-minute (depending on the test) consultation to go over your results with you, along with recommendations on how your specific issues can be addressed.
The human body is a miraculous thing, and once steps are taken to restore you back to health, you will start to feel better quickly and will be on your way to a better quality of life filled with vitality and greatly improved health and wellness!
Our Providers Are Excited to Help You!
Contact our New Patient Coordinator for a Free Phone Consultation. They can explain our protocols and fees in more detail so that you can enjoy a more vibrant and healthy life!
Contact our New Patient Coordinator at 972-960-4800
Or complete the form below, and they will contact you. There is no obligation to this consultation. If you feel we are a good fit for you, our New Patient Coordinator can also get you booked for your first appointment.
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