FOR NATURAL HEALTH | Chorley, Lancashire
HAIR MINERAL TISSUE ANALYSIS (HMTA)
Hair tissue mineral analysis (HTMA) is a soft tissue mineral biopsy, hair is used as the sampling tissue. Hair mineral testing is measuring the mineral and toxic metal content of hair which gives an indication of storage levels within body tissue. The test measures 15 nutrient minerals, 14 additional minerals and 8 toxic metals. A hair mineral test also measures 7 significant ratios, 9 toxic ratios and 11 additional ratios.
Hair Mineral Tissue analysis is one of the simplest ways to find out as many aspects of your body and the deficiencies and toxicity that is held within your cells. It can be taken very simply by providing 1.5 inches of a hair sample, roughly a tablespoon, which is then sent to our lab via post.
Hair analysis can indicate:
Mineral deficiencies/Excess
Metal Toxicity
Body Vitality
Immune system function
Digestive function
Adrenal and Thyroid activity
Stress levels
Stress tolerance
Energy Production
Metabolic rate
Body’s eliminatory function
What can hair mineral testing reveal?
A picture of mineral chemistry of the last 3 months.
Toxic metal detection - toxic metals are unavoidable in the environment we live in, but we also consume toxic metals through certain food and drink sources. Frequent stress and adrenal insufficiency also makes us more susceptible to toxic metal build up and impairs the detoxification process of toxic metals.
Copper toxicity (direct or hidden) - copper is the most common mineral to be in excess because of the way it builds up in the body from chronic stress. Copper is an essential mineral, but because it is a heavy nutrient metal, it is toxic when there are excessive amounts in the body. This mineral imbalance is associated with many mental health symptoms and conditions. Copper toxicity is a big hidden problem in the world today.
Mineral deficiencies/excesses in body tissue - mineral excesses can be just as bad as having a deficiency. Mineral excesses mainly happen from frequent mental and physical stress on the body, certain minerals such as copper and calcium rise in body tissue when the body is put under stress for long enough. Repetitive stress can also cause minerals to deplete from the body such as magnesium and zinc.
Adrenal fatigue - adrenal fatigue is a huge problem that affects people without them knowing. The adrenals are the stress response organs and modern day humans experience a lot of repetitive daily stress which has a big impact on the adrenals.
Additional mineral levels
Significant mineral ratios (if mineral relationships are balanced or unbalanced).
Additional mineral ratios
Toxic ratios (the relationship between certain minerals and certain toxic metals).
Suggestive markers of - thyroid function,glucose metabolism and sensitivity, immune system activity, liver and kidney stress,autonomic state (sympathetic dominant or unhealthy parasympathetic dominant),protein synthesis, digestion ability and inflammation/inflammatory responses.
Body stress stage - alarm, resistance or exhaustion.
Oxidation rate (rate at which the body burns food).
Mineral levels and patterns which are associated with different mental health issues and physical health issues.
Why test for minerals?
Trace minerals are essential in countless metabolic functions in all phases of the life process.
Zinc is involved in the production, storage and secretion of insulin and is necessary for growth hormones.
Magnesium is required for at least 500 different enzyme reactions ,regulates normal muscular function, especially the heart.
Potassium is critical for normal nutrient transport into the cell,helps maintain fluid balance and pH level of the body.
Excess sodium is associated with hypertension, helps to maintain fluid balance and maintains pH.
What can cause a mineral imbalance?
There are many factors to take into consideration, such as:
Diet - Improper diet through high intake of refined and processed foods, alcohol and fad diets can all lead to a chemical imbalance. Even the nutrient content of a "healthy" diet can be inadequate, depending upon the soil in which the food was grown or the method in which it was prepared.
Stress - Physical or emotional stress can deplete the body of many nutrients while also reducing the capability to absorb and utilize many nutrients.
Medications - Both prescription and over-the-counter medications can deplete the body stores of nutrient minerals and/or increase the levels of toxic metals. These medications include diuretics, antacids, aspirin and oral contraceptives.
Pollution - From adolescence through adulthood the average person is continually exposed to a variety of toxic metal sources such as cigarette smoke (cadmium), hair dyes (lead), hydrogenated oils (nickel), anti-perspirants (aluminium), dental amalgams (mercury and cadmium), copper and aluminium cookware and lead-based cosmetics. These are just a few of the hundreds of sources which can contribute to nutrient imbalances and adverse metabolic effects.
Nutritional Supplements - Taking incorrect supplements or improper amounts of supplements can produce many vitamin and mineral excesses and/or deficiencies, contributing to an overall biochemical imbalance.
Inherited Patterns - A predisposition toward certain mineral imbalances, deficiencies and excesses can be inherited from parents.
Why undergo a hair mineral test?
- The test can reveal toxic metal levels and mineral imbalances/relationships in body tissue which is very important information when it comes to your mental and physical health.
- The test can potentially reveal the underlying cause of your current mental and physical health symptoms and conditions.
- Mineral imbalances and toxic metals can have a profound effect on brain chemistry and can have a big impact on the body physically resulting in a lot of symptoms.
- Hair mineral testing can play a key role in the correction of body chemistry because the test is serving as a mineral blueprint of one’s biochemistry.
- Hair mineral testing is measuring mineral storage levels over a long period of time which is a powerful tool for mineral level representation in body tissue.
- A hair mineral test is more stable and reliable than a blood test. Blood tests are subject to variations on a daily and sometimes hourly basis. Hair provides an average reading of the past three months.
What are toxic metals?
Toxic metals comprise a group of minerals that have no known function in the body and are harmful/toxic for human and animal life. Toxic metals can either be man- made or naturally occurring. All toxic metals are heavy metals and are all toxic in large amounts and should not be inside the body, toxic metals can be found in eg:-
How do they enter the body?
Toxic metals are present in everyday life and even if you follow a balanced nutritious diet and live in a safe clean environment, they can still find their way of getting into the body. There are different ways toxic metals can enter - ingestion, inhalation, and absorption through the skin and mucous membranes.
What are the causes of toxic metal accumulation in the body?
Toxic metals can build up in a person's organs and body tissue and even though the body is capable of protecting the brain from toxins and substances, toxic metals can still find their way into the brain especially when it comes to excessive amounts. A person's susceptibility to toxic metal build up depends on their diet, lifestyle, working environment and general day to day contact, another factor is stress. Stress can have a big impact on mental and physical health and it can increase the likelihood of toxicity.
If the elminatory/drainage pathways in your body are not functioning very well, colon, liver, bile ducts, skin, kidneys, lungs, sinuses and lymphatic function, then you will be unable to detoxify from the metals and this will cause a build up in the cells and tissues, with different health conditions. Metals are heavy metals (higher atomic toxic metals are heavy. There are different types of toxic metals which can accumulate in the body, the most common ones are aluminium, mercury, lead, arsenic and cadmium, these toxic metals are regularly found in our environment and day to day life. Most people will have at least one of these toxic metals in their system even if it is a minuscule amount.
What symptoms can occur with the inability to detox metals?
Hormonal problems
Constipation
Skin problems
Fatigue
Depression
Cancer
Heart Problems
Diabetes
Digestive problems
Allergies
Thyroid problems
Arthritis
Osteoporosis
Kidney Problems
Stress, anger, hopelessness, burnout
What is included?
Results
Results will be emailed to you and the turnaround time once it has reached the location in the UK (not from when it reaches the USA) is 10 - 12 working days.
Below you will see an example of what a hair mineral test graph looks like. This is the graph that is produced by Trace Elements Inc from the hair that you submit. The graph shows 15 nutrient minerals, 14 additional minerals, 8 toxic metals, 7 significant mineral ratios, 9 toxic ratios and 11 additional mineral ratios.
How accurate is Hair Mineral Analysis?
Mineral analysis by spectroscopy is a very standard laboratory procedure. The technology has been known for at least 75 years or more, and has improved greatly with the advent of computer-controlled mass spectrometers and induction-coupled plasma (ICP) instruments that are used today at all the hair testing laboratories in America, and probably around the world.
All commercial hair testing laboratories in the United States are licensed and inspected annually by the federal government, as part of the CLIA act. They are given blind samples to run. If they do not meet stringent criteria for accuracy, they are not allowed to operate.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency published a 300-page review of hair analysis in 1979 which they reviewed 400 studies of hair analysis. Based on this review, they concluded that hair analysis is a "meaningful and representative tissue for biological monitoring for most of the toxic metals". ("Toxic Trace Metals in Human and Mammalian Hair and Nails", EPA-600 4.79-049, August 1979, US Environmental Protection Agency, Research and Development.)
A hair tissue mineral analysis is considered a standard test used around the world for the biological monitoring of trace elements and toxic metals in humans and animals species. The same technology is used for soil testing and testing of rock samples to detect mineral levels.
Hair, like all other body tissues, contains minerals that are deposited as the hair grows. Although the hair is dead, the minerals remain as the hair continues to grow out. A sample of hair cut close to the scalp provides information about the mineral activity in the hair that took place over the past three to four months, depending on the rate of hair growth.