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Based on more than 20 years of research, salivary hormone assessments have become a preferred method of measuring hormonal health. In addition to being less expensive and more practical than blood testing, salivary assessments measure the active (bioavailable) levels of hormones rather than the inactive (total or bound) levels of hormones.
Did you know?
- Low testosterone and DHT levels can greatly affect energy, mood, physical strength and sexual function.
- Modern lifestyle along with chemical pollution can cause elevated levels of male estrogen which can reduce libido, increase body fat and enhance your risk of cardiovascular disease and prostate disease.
- The proper balance of DHEA and cortisol make up the bodies inner defense against the pressures of stress, helping your body adapt in a healthy manner.
- How is your testosterone health?
- Are you over the age of 35?
- Are you under a lot of stress?
- Do you feel fatigued?
- Are your muscles sore for a long time after a workout?
- Have you noticed a waning sex drive?
- Have you gained weight, particularly around your mid-section?
- Do you feel depressed, irritable or unmotivated?
- If you answered yes to two or more of these questions, you could be suffering from male hormonal imbalance.
Materials in Box:
1 collection tube with time label for saliva, 1 parafilm square to aid in saliva collection, 1 specimen time/date label, 1 resealable plastic bag, 1 absorbent pad, 1 USPS mailing label, 1 priority mail sticker, 1 return shipping box, 1 hormone assessment request form.
When to Collect Sample: Collect your saliva sample within one hour after rising between 6 AM and 9 AM. Prior to collection, it is imperative that you keep anything out of your mouth other than water. Do not eat, drink, brush teeth, use mouthwash or take medication or supplements!
Collection Instructions:
- Drink at least 16 ounces of water. Rinse and swish 3 times for 5 seconds with cold water. Wait 5 minutes before collecting. Do NOT drink once you've started.
- In the tube provided, collect your saliva until 3/4 full of liquid, not foam. Most people take about 15 minutes to complete. In order to remove any foam, tap the covered tube on a hard surface to eliminate bubbles. If you find that you are having difficulty producing enough saliva, chew the clear parafilm while collecting. Discard the parafilm when done.
- Tightly replace the cap to prevent leakage. On the specimen label, write your name, circle saliva and record the date and time of collection. Wrap the tube in the absorbent pad and place inside the enclosed resealable bag. Freeze the sample for at least 3 hours.
- Please the sealed bag along with your completed Hormone Assessment Request Form along and any addition funds in the box provided. Check saliva on the pre-paid USPS label and use it to seal the box. Apply the mailing sticker to the box. If you desire faster results, please ship sample via expedited carrier to the address on the label.
Results: The results of you assessment will be mailed to you by the lab within 5 days of receipt.
About Salivary Testing
The knowledge that there are steroid hormones in saliva, and that they can be measured, has been around for more than 30 years. But it is only recently that technology has caught up with that information making it possible to accurately determine levels of salivary hormones. Steroid hormone levels have and still are most commonly carried out on blood samples. But blood collection has its limitations. It is invasive, expensive and difficult to time precisely.
Perhaps more importantly, blood hormone levels represent the body's total hormone content. Since most blood hormones (about 95%) are bound to specific proteins which carry them through the bloodstream they can be considered the hormone 'storage' fraction. The other 5% represent the free hormones - those available to move easily into the target organs and fulfill their functions. Saliva contains these free hormones which can be easily measured to give an accurate picture of those hormones that are readily available to the tissues.
Many studies in the scientific literature have shown that there is a strong correlation between the levels of steroid hormones in saliva and the bio-available (free) levels of steroids in the bloodstream. The amount of steroid hormone that enters the salivary ducts and then saliva, is representative of the fraction of steroids in the bloodstream that are bio-available to other tissues in the body.
The Advantages of Saliva Testing
Saliva collection is easy, can be done anywhere, any time and very inexpensive. Serum hormone testing can be stressful and inconvenient. Blood testing must be scheduled and it is more difficult to obtain samples at the desired times (e.g. early am) and multiple times through the day or late evening. There is also an extra cost involved in drawing blood, independent of the cost for the test itself.
Hormones in saliva are exceptionally stable, allowing wide latitude in collection and shipment. Samples can be stored at room temperature for at least a week without loss of activity, so samples can be shipped to the testing facility by regular mail. Blood, on the other hand, must be kept cool on ice packs, increasing costs for shipping as well as the likelihood of error due to improper handling.
Collection and Processing
Five milliliters of saliva is requested. Following collection, saliva should be either frozen or shipped to the lab within one day of collection. Saliva is stable at ambient temperature for at least three weeks and a specimen received within that time is acceptable.
Test results are then generated and mailed within five to seven working days from date of receipt of the specimen to the laboratory, often sooner.
Why Test for Hormones?
- To establish a baseline before entering into a program of hormone supplementation
- To establish if there is a deficiency of hormones or an imbalance of hormones
- Confirmation that hormone supplementation is working
- To help confirm a medical diagnosis that may be hormone related
Advantage of Saliva vs. Serum Testing
- Closely Represents Physiological Levels
- Saliva reflects the biologically active (free) fraction of hormones in the blood stream (unlike blood or urine, which measures the total levels)
- Saliva testing allows for practical collection of multiple samples to assess the circadian (cyclical) rhythm of hormones such as testosterone and cortisol.
- Patient Friendly
- Saliva testing is non-invasive, simple, stress free and painless. No needles!
- Saliva can be convenient collected in the privacy and comfort of home.
- Saliva testing is less expensive than blood testing.
- Because hormones are stable in saliva for two weeks or more samples can be sent to the laboratory by regular mail without special handling
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