Functional Medicine,
DUTCH & Hormone Testing
We often hear in our clinic that your GP will not undertake certain tests that you are asking for. We are certified practitioners in DUTCH testing and hormone testing. Along with over 200 tests we provide from allergies and mycotoxins through gut biome, we strive to understand what is the root cause of your condition.
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For symptoms like painful periods, chronic fatigue, low libido, or just feeling “off,” traditional medical tests may not provide answers. It can be even more frustrating to suffer from symptoms and receive no diagnosis because traditional bloodwork results appear “normal.” This is one of the many reasons why many healthcare practitioners and their patients are switching to DUTCH testing. The DUTCH Test provides actionable results they can use to get to the root cause of complex symptoms.
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DUTCH testing is unique because it helps identify symptoms of hormonal imbalances by providing a complete picture of a patient’s hormone levels which cannot be seen in testing serum (blood) or saliva alone. One of the top questions we are asked is “which DUTCH test is right for me?” The DUTCH hormone testing and reporting methods deliver actionable results for healthcare providers to better treat patients who struggle with hormone issues.
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DUTCH offers three primary test kits to test hormones:
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DUTCH Complete™
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DUTCH Plus®
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DUTCH Cycle Mapping™
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Each testing panel offers a unique combination of analytes to best fit the needs of each patient. That’s why it’s important to understand which DUTCH panel will best help you and your patients achieve health goals. Check out the guide below to compare the different DUTCH Test options and choose the one that will work best for you!
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DUTCH COMPLETE
The DUTCH Complete is the flagship DUTCH Test and gives a comprehensive assessment of sex hormone metabolites (progesterone, estrogens, and androgens), adrenal hormone metabolites (cortisol, cortisone, creatinine, and DHEA-S), organic acids, 8-OHdG, and melatonin metabolites. The DUTCH Complete also includes neuro-markers and gut-health indicators.
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If you are feeling not quite right, consider testing with DUTCH.
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DUTCH PLUS
Some patient cases may warrant additional evaluation of stress response and the HPA axis. That’s where the DUTCH Plus shines. The DUTCH Plus includes all the biomarkers of the DUTCH Complete and adds the cortisol awakening response (CAR). The CAR assessment utilizes salivary samples to bring an important piece of the HPA axis into focus.
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The DUTCH Plus is a comprehensive dried urine and saliva test that maximizes the available information from sex and adrenal hormone production and metabolism. With easy, at-home sample collection over the course of one day, providers can gain insights into the overall diurnal pattern of free cortisol and cortisone, along with the total distribution of cortisol metabolites. This test offers further insight by including organic acid testing, which evaluates potential nutritional deficiencies, oxidative stress, gut dysbiosis, melatonin levels, and neuroinflammation.
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Even though other lab tests may report “normal” free cortisol levels throughout the day, that does not always mean everything is functioning properly. By collecting saliva samples immediately after waking and in the minutes and hours following you can evaluate the CAR and HPA axis in a way that cannot be assessed through urine alone. The DUTCH Plus combines the detailed analysis of a DUTCH Complete with the CAR results to give an expanded view of patient health.
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The DUTCH Cycle Mapping Plus is best suited for:
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Women struggling with infertility
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Women with cycling hormones and no menses
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Partial hysterectomy (ovaries intact but no uterus)
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Ablations
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Women with irregular cycles
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PCOS
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Women whose hormonal symptoms tend to fluctuate throughout the cycle
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PMS, mid-cycle spotting, migraines, etc.
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DUTCH CYCLE MAPPING
DUTCH Cycle Mapping analyzes the full picture of progesterone and estrogen patterns throughout the menstrual cycle. We use the results to potentially answer important questions for patients with month-long symptoms, fertility concerns, or even issues related to polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).
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This test collects nine targeted estrogen and progesterone measurements from urine throughout the cycle to plot out a woman’s follicular, ovulatory, and luteal phases. These convenient, first-morning urine collections are based on the actual length of the cycle to allow for better characterization of both the ovulatory and luteal peaks.
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Often, you can face challenges with irregular cycles, fertility problems, or clients who have had an ablation. The DUTCH Cycle Mapping test gives a complete picture of the patient’s cycle and allows for a more accurate, comprehensive, and customized treatment program. This test is helpful for patients and providers to see if/when a woman is ovulating as well as to determine the reasons behind mid-cycle spotting, hormonal migraines, fertility issues, and more.
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For some women, testing reproductive hormones (progesterone, estrogen, etc.) on a single day is sufficient. In other scenarios, the clinical picture cannot be properly captured without “mapping” out the hormonal pattern throughout their menstrual cycle.
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The expected pattern of hormones shows relatively low estrogen levels early in the cycle, a surge around ovulation and modest levels in the latter third of the cycle (the luteal phase). Progesterone levels, on the other hand, stay relatively low until after ovulation. After ovulation, levels ideally increase (>10-fold) and then drop back down at the end of the cycle. A disruption in this cycle can lead to infertility or hormonal imbalance.
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WHEN IS DUTCH CYCLE MAPPING™ RECOMMENDED?
• Women struggling with infertility
• Women with cycling hormones and no menses
• Partial hysterectomy (ovaries intact but no uterus)
• Ablations
• Women with irregular cycles
• PCOS
• If the luteal phase shifts from month-to-month
• Not sure when to test due to long or short cycles
• Women whose hormonal symptoms tend to fluctuate throughout the cycle
• PMS, mid-cycle spotting, migraines, etc.
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WHEN IS DUTCH CYCLE MAPPING™ NOT NEEDED? (DUTCH COMPLETE™ IS SUFFICIENT)
• Postmenopausal women
• Women on birth control
• Women with cycles that follow the expected pattern
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