How To Use The Wonderful World Of Self-Quantification To Take Your Health Into Your Own Hands (& The 11 Best Blood Tests To Get).

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Body, Diet & Nutrition, Health & Wellness, Mental Health, Mind-Spirit, Podcast, Podcast-new, Self-Quantification, Self-Quantification

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I recently had the pleasure to speak at the fabulous and intriguing “Kentucky Castle,” a unique destination hotspot with a full biohacking facility, sauna, farm-to-table restaurant, precision medicine arm, hemp farm, horse facilities, and much more. The castle is owned by one of the physicians who hosts the “Wild Health” podcast, on which I was recently a guest. 

This is part one of a two-part series that addresses the oft-confusing world of “taking your health into your own hands” via genetic testing, blood and biomarker tracking, sleep measurements and other forms of self-quantification. In part two, you'll get to sit in on a very interesting post-talk Q&A with myself and several of the physicians in attendance at the conference. Enjoy!

**Editor's Note: Forgive the extraneous background noises. All effort was made to ensure the clearest possible sound in spite of it :)

In this episode, you'll discover…

-My history as a bodybuilder, triathlete and his transition to his current message…9:00

  • Bodybuilding is a bit of a biohacking sport
  • I began to take lab tests and was shocked at the results
    • Pre-type 2 diabetes; inflammation
    • Healthy on the outside but dying on the inside
    • Inspired his first book Beyond Training
    • Doesn't work primarily with athletes anymore; mainly people who want to feel good and live a long time

-Some guidelines when examining your lab results…16:15

  • Lab results indicate an absence of disease, not necessarily one's potential for health and longevity

The 11 Blood Biomarkers 

-RBC (red blood cell) Magnesium…26:10

-Estradiol…29:23

  • Men need to be concerned with estrogen, not just women
  • Dutch Test

-Testosterone…32:08

  • Women should be concerned, not just men
  • Hormones can be bound up by proteins
  • You want 2% of your testosterone to be free

-High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (hsCRP)…40:22

  • Link between inflammation and heart attack risk
  • Numbers will vary depending on your workout regimen

-Triglyceride HGL Ratio…43:25

  • Is more important in determining your risk for C/V disease than total cholesterol or LDL cholesterol
  • HGL to total cholesterol level: lower is better

-Full lipid panel, and an Omega 3 index…48:15

  • Tells you the size of your cholesterol particles
  • You want the particles to be “large and fluffy”; count should be low
  • You want the Omega 3 index to be higher
  • Highest risk zone (4% and below) = 90% chance of C/V disease

-Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1)…52:10

  • Good for getting bulked up; not so much for longevity
  • View life as a set of press/pull cycles
  • You want to live long and live an enjoyable life too
    • Work hard, eat red meat one day; fast and yoga the next
  • Sweet spot: 80-150

-Insulin…54:37

-Iron…1:00:11

  • Lipid peroxides result when interacting with iron in the production of hydrogen peroxide (rust effect in the body)
  • High iron levels contribute to a number of diseases and conditions

-Food allergies and sensitivities…1:02:41

-And much more…

Click here for the full written transcript of this podcast episode.

Resources from this episode:

-Book: Biochemical Individuality by Roger Williams
-Oura Ring
-Book: Beyond Training
Intracellular Diagnostics
Jigsaw Health
Dutch Test
Dexcom G6
Cyrex Array 10 C
Viome
Onegevity
GI Effects comprehensive stool panel
-Book: 100 Million Years of Food by Dr. Stephen Le
-Book: Dirty Genes by Dr. Ben Lynch
geneticgenie.org
Kion Coffee

Episode sponsors:

Kion: My personal playground for new supplement formulations. Ben Greenfield Fitness listeners receive a 10% discount off your entire order when you use discount code: BGF10.

Organifi Gold: A new take on an ancient secret: Pain-soothing herbs, incredible antioxidants, and phytonutrients all in one delicious, soothing “Golden Milk” nighttime tea! Receive a 20% discount on your entire order when you use discount code: BENG20.

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WHOOP: The performance tool that is changing the way people track their fitness and optimize their training. Save $30 off your order when you use discount code: GREENFIELD

Got a question for me about the 12 blood biomarkers I talked about in today's podcast? Just leave a comment below and I'll reply!

Ask Ben a Podcast Question

18 thoughts on “How To Use The Wonderful World Of Self-Quantification To Take Your Health Into Your Own Hands (& The 11 Best Blood Tests To Get).

  1. Gina says:

    How does Cyrex compare to Alcat and MRT?

  2. Is the DUTCH test effective is you are already using bio-identical hormones?

  3. Alejandro says:

    Ben. Any thoughts on pharmacogenomics? As an anesthesiologist, I use this info when treating my patients for surgery but I’m wondering if it would be helpful for people taking prescription meds as an outpatient.

  4. Kathleen says:

    Are the slides available from this talk?

    1. Alex says:

      I agree please post the slides. :)

      1. Todd says:

        Go to bengreenfieldfitness.com/kentuckycastle19.

  5. Natalie says:

    Thanks so much for sharing with us Ben, I am so grateful for the information you share and your work.

  6. Rog B Fishin says:

    It would be great to see a Transcript, I have been wanting this info to take the next step in a deeper understanding blood tests.

    1. It's available now… Always takes a couple days post release.

  7. Matt Wilson says:

    I took a bunch of notes, feel free to use them at your own risk! (not proofread, nor did i write down all the units of measure)

    TSH 0-2
    RBC Mag 6.0-6.5…
    Estradiol Men: 10-82, women: 50-400 depending on cycle
    Low Testosterone, and high SHBG which makes it much less bioavailable
    Free T : Bound T should be 1:49… 2% should be free
    Free T from 4.6-22.4
    Bio available albumin bound testosterone, 110-575 ng/dl, .02-.05ng/dl,
    Testosterone 0.5-8.5
    DHEA low
    Athro-index, triglycerides to HDL … lower is better; below 1
    HDL:Cholesterol 0.24 or higher!…
    Total LDL less than 1000 ng/ml
    Total small LDL less than 600
    LDL Size greater than 21 nm
    Omega index, 8% or higher…
    IGF1 low for longevity. 80-150
    Insulin below 3
    WBC high= death low = depression.
    Neutrophils 40-60%, higher is viruses
    Limphocyites 25-40%
    Monocities 0-7%
    Eosinophils 0-3%
    Basophils 0-1%
    RBC 4.2-5.4 women, 4.7.6-1 men
    Iron 30-60, ferritin not below 20 or above 80
    GGT- below 16 units/L man, 9 units/L woman

  8. Eduardo says:

    Youtube, please
    I listen on youtube and check the extras here, always

  9. Matt says:

    Triglyceride to HGL ratio? Or did you meal HDL?

  10. Kib says:

    Transcript 😊

  11. Kib says:

    I need a trascipt ?

    Thanks

    1. Thanks says:

      True.
      I’m hearing impaired and the audio on this episode is impossible for me to understand.
      Transcript would be awesome.

      1. Marge says:

        The transcript is available here: https://bengreenfieldfitness.com/transcripts/transcript-best-blood-tests/

        1. Na says:

          Thank you so much. :)

    2. Marge says:

      The transcript is available here: https://bengreenfieldfitness.com/transcripts/transcript-best-blood-tests/

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