[Closed] Mail order blood testing e.g. Thriva.co.uk

I had a health check thing through Vitality which was subbed to Blue Crest Health. The suite of tests inc blood tests.

Where it went a bit awry was you get a large booklet back with all your results and the expected ranges and what to do if something is outside the range.

So, something was 'of concern' (can't recall) and I made a GP appointment (years ago), she just took one look and laughed saying "if the value was 10x that, I might be a bit worried".

NB I had sort of expected that as doing tests without a proper reason just shows up the amazing genetic and environmental variety of our species rather than flagging anything really useful.

Although the thresholds / bounds in the Blue Crest booklet could do with being adjusted to reflect real world GP practice rather than text book thresholds.

Having just said all that, I've not been feeling 100% for months so was thinking of repeating the above to see if anything has changed. Poss exceptionally mild long Covid or I'm just old or I've over trained....

I think the issue is that the law of averages says that if you have 20 blood parameters then the statistical likelihood is that one of yours won’t be be within ‘the norm’ (norm defined as 95% of population) and then you suddenly start panicking something is wrong. Ie I once had a high liver enzyme count. My brother who is a gp took one look and said (as above) if that was ten times higher I may be slightly concerned.

Context is also important. I have low neutrophils. Technically I have a condition called neutropenia. But I’ve had it for years apparently and touch wood it causes me no issues whatsoever. But first time it was diagnosed i assumed all kind of things were wrong

I’d personally recommend against doing them unless you think something is actually wrong

Also, good luck getting enough blood out your finger to fill the vial they send. It’s bloody impossible

Numan.com etc. although I’m put off by the Numan advertising (it’s free if we don’t find anything??)

As above they will find something very slightly out of range + also depends on what they class as their 'range'

I just recently had a full range of blood tests as feeling similar to OP via GP. I had to fight for it. The results showed some stuff boarder line and some out of range. The GP wouldnt do anything.

Ok thanks gents.

Thrive seems useful as it is sort of targeted, e.g. I identified reasons for testing as 'mood' and 'energy' and the suite of tests they suggest are testosterone, vit B12, Vit D, and a couple of others.

Good point also about the samples, you can pay a small amount extra to have a nurse do it although there is a longer wait and no doubt I would need to drive somewhere. Maybe worth looking into.

Also, good luck getting enough blood out your finger to fill the vial they send. It’s bloody impossible

If you did one of the Covid blood tests it came with a set of instructions to maximise blood flow - hydrate, do some exercise (star jumps), can't recall what else. Anyway, I had no problem filling the vial after following them.....

hydrate, do some exercise (star jumps), can’t recall what else

Just been re-reading some customer reviews, they all mention trepidation re: taking samples but finding it easy after hydration and exercise, so will try my luck!

Interested to know how it goes.

I'm in a similar situation with low energy and mood and when I've asked for testosterone and thyroid (mother and brother both have clinically low thyroid) tests they've been less than willing.

In the past they've come back borderline low, but not low enough for them to prescribe. A request to try the medication to see if it helps anyway was met with a no. Have been tempted to see if I could, and could afford to try private.

Take control of your own health!

Your GP should be following the "tired all the time" protocol which would include those blood tests. If they haven't then change GP

I have / had excessive fatigue - full range of bloods from my GP and very low vit d found. vit d now taken - I feel better

I'd bet you a pint you are low vit d unless you supplement

Take control of your own health!

Meaning?

I'm generally pretty pro-active, my diet is reasonable (not perfect...) and I supplement with multi-vits just on general principles. I exercise as best injury and family life allow (currently can't run, cycle OR walk due to injuries ganging up on me) but the periods of low mood/despondency are getting more regular/intense.

Maybe that's just being 40 but if I can afford some outside assistance, at least to help me focus my efforts, then why not.

I’d bet you a pint you are low vit d unless you supplement

I do, ish.

Mediterranean ancestry so Vit D deficiency was already suggested. Happy to pay for tests to corroborate that although I take supplements most mornings (allowing for lapses and forgetfulness). Either 1000iu or 400iu depending on which tablets I have (general multi-vits are 400iu but the Vitabiotics stuff is 1000iu).

IMO these companies are leaches who prey on the "worried well" and then waste gp time with their pointless blood tests when you go in and try to get an explanation from the GP. I know my GP mate hates them for this reason.

GPs have protocols to follow for testing and thats for a good reason. Pointless blood testing leads to unnneeded gp visit

Meaning?

Apologies for sounding flippant, that wasn't the intention.

tj makes a very good point re vit D. Do bear in mind that the NHS ranges are very wide. I think you're in Scotland so it's pretty essential. If you haven't had any recent tests done then worth checking, for example, ferritin, vit B12 as well as vit D. It's also important when and how you take supplements ie take well away from tea or coffee and check whether they can be taken with any others. You could try eating liver regularly, lambs is fairly mild imo.

GPs have protocols to follow for testing and thats for a good reason.

Yes, although perhaps it's those 'protocols' that are sending folk to private service providers?

I don't blame GPs, maybe they're overworked or under instruction NOT to send new patients for testing etc. to reduce strain on clinics, but despite being pretty frank about symptoms with my GP he has basically just found reasons NOT to pursue any particular course of action whilst leaving me with no clear path forward. I always go away resolving to fix it myself and then everything comes crumbling down again.

10 minute telephone appointments leave a lot to be desired as well...

If you haven’t had any recent tests done then worth checking, for example, ferritin, vit B12 as well as vit D. It’s also important when and how you take supplements ie take well away from tea or coffee and check whether they can be taken with any others.

Ah OK. To be honest by considering getting tests done I thought I WAS taking control 😉

Vits D and B12 are on the radar. Good point about timing of supplements though, I usually take at breakfast, and within half an hour either way of a cup of strong coffee...

Yes, although perhaps it’s those ‘protocols’ that are sending folk to private service providers?

to have unneeded testing done. If testing was needed and your GP not totally incompetent then they would have been done. The protocols are there to prevent unneeded testing and to make sure needed testing is done. There is no point in doing testing without a reason for it

sounds to me its workplace stress and lack of exercise that is your issue. How much do you drink?

I had a kit from Monitor My Health, you can choose from a number of tests and they send you the corresponding test kit. On their website it mentions they are run by the NHS and it’s just a paid service. I thought it was quite reasonable and the results were quite fast.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamin-b12-or-folate-deficiency-anaemia/

Eat meat
https://revero.com/

I don't know what your social bubble is like but, living in Aviemore, mine is all folk that ride, run, swim, walk etc. Almost everyone has been commenting on how low they are currently feeling and we've all put it down to the miserable weather over the past few months. That has a direct affect on mood and the reduced exercise affects both mood and fitness.

I would be more worried about who else gets to see the results. Do they have a separate business that sells data to insurance companies

GPs have protocols to follow for testing and thats for a good reason

One of these reasons is resource constraints. Our GP stopped taking bloods years ago - it's off to a hospital phlebotomist now three miles away. If Theranos had worked then it really would have been a game changer.

If you have 20 measurements, with 5% chance of one falling outside normal range, then there is a 64% chance of at least one test falling outside the normal range (prob = 1-0.95^20). So those are very good odds on their part. I personally don't see much of an issue in proactive health management. The NHS gives you a blood test at 50. It will tell you that you are low on Vit D and high on cholesterol.

Almost everyone has been commenting on how low they are currently feeling and we’ve all put it down to the miserable weather over the past few months.

Am relieved it's not just me! Am dealing with a triple whammy of hip pain, forearm tendonitis and upper back pain, all of which pretty much preclude any sort of vigorous walking, running or grinding about into Auchterarder's seemingly constant wind tunnel conditions. Turbo seeing a bit of use but still can't take enough weight off arms.

Looking at my bloods would just be a first step into deciding what course of action to take, if anything maybe being a bit more mentally resilient so I could deal with inevitable set-backs would be great!

Was discussing off-line with TJ about needing some sort of life coach/physio/nutritionist just to help with these things, guesswork and plaguing MTB forums can only get you so far 🙄

Might just work on vitamin intake and reducing alcohol and caffeine a bit, try and get into a better routine with daily exercise...

So i find it odd your GP isn't running a simple set of blood tests.
(Though most labs have stopped testing vti D, on the principle that most people ARE low, so just take supplements).

I wouldn't do ANY non-apecific testing for symptoms under 4-6 weeks... Coa most people at some time just get 'run down'... then pick up again.

After that, TBH most people have completely normal blood tests.
Don't forget, the blood tests WON'T show stress/depression / un happy relationship/ work stress / lack of sleep / poor diet.. which is probably the leading cause of non Specific fatigue.

I've been run down and knackered for the past month... house move stress, poor sleep, prob too much booze... 🤷‍♂️

DrP