Better Sleep Month

There’s nothing better than a good night’s sleep. It helps restore the body so it’s physically and mentally functioning at its best.  But when we don’t get the zzzz’s we need, it results in feeling mentally foggy, emotionally cranky, and physically exhausted.

That’s why Better Sleep Month, dedicated to addressing concerns about how chronic lack of sleep can be detrimental to overall health, is important. If you are having sleep issues, you’re not alone. The Cleveland Clinic says about 70 million adults in the United States suffer from sleep disorders.

Bedtime Stories Are Important

Historically, parents have always insisted that their children have bedtimes, to provide ample quality sleep to maintain good health and well-being. Reading a bedtime story to children is a great way to help kids unwind and slow down for a good night’s sleep, something we should all do to decompress after being stimulated with activities all day long. According to the CDC, children need the most sleep, especially newborns and infants. Once kids are school-aged, they need 9 to 12 hours of sleep per night. Teenagers require 8 to 10 hours, and adults from 18 years old to 65+ ideally need at least 7 hours. These are consecutive hours of sleep, not chopped up into little naps throughout the day, because that won’t provide the restorative sleep cycles the body needs.

Grown-Ups Need Their 40 Winks

Here’s the problem. If you’re an adult contending with insomnia or sleep deprivation and you’re not getting the restful hours of sleep you need, it can prompt a number of health issues. Sleep affects your heart and circulatory system, metabolism, respiratory system, and immune system.

The National Institutes of Health reports that sleep is a necessary restorative time for your body. You’ve probably heard about sleep cycles, which include the initial drowsy stage when you begin to fall asleep. This is when your body’s parasympathetic system takes control and slows your blood pressure and heart rate, allowing it to relax and not work as hard. Next comes stage 2, the light sleep, followed by the deepest sleep, in stages 3 and 4. In these stages, your heartbeat and brain waves are at their lowest levels, and the body is healing and restoring cellular energy. The last cycle is sometimes referred to as the 5th stage, or the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) cycle. It’s in the REM cycle that your heart rate and blood pressure return to normal.

The body needs rest. Otherwise, it has no way of healing or growing or providing the immunity you need. If you’re not getting enough sleep or you have insomnia, your body is not able to get its restoration completed, leaving you with a higher risk of:

• Coronary heart disease
• High blood pressure
• Obesity
• Stroke
• Type 2 diabetes

Lack of Sleep? Could Be a Hormonal Issue

Your hormones play a vital role in maintaining a healthy sleep pattern. As the Mayo Clinic reports, when the body’s circadian rhythm or the body’s sleep clock is off, it throws the whole body into imbalance. For example, there are two basic hormones needed for sleep — the stress hormone called cortisol and the sleep hormone called melatonin. If the body is operating efficiently, these two hormones will work together in a kind of crisscross pattern. Melatonin should go up as the sun goes down — to help you sleep. Conversely, cortisol should be higher in the morning to help rev your engines and get you moving but should decrease at night to help you sleep.

If something is wrong with this rhythm because of an imbalance of melatonin or cortisol, it could be the reason you are having trouble either falling asleep, staying asleep, or both.

• High cortisol results in insomnia, anxiety, sugar cravings, feeling tired but wired, and increased belly fat
• Low melatonin results in excessive fatigue, depression, anxiety, and insomnia

Our Sleep Kit Provides Answers

Any Lab Test Now® can help. We have a very effective and accurate test to help determine if your sleep struggles are due to a hormonal issue. The Sleep Balance Take Home Hormone Kit is a simple test that measures melatonin and cortisol levels via urine collection on test strips four times throughout the day. It’s available in-store or online. After turning in your kit, results will be available within 3 to 5 days.

How to Handle Your Test Results

The lab tests we provide are confidential, affordable, and convenient. You own the results, and you choose how to proceed with them. However, we do encourage you to consult with your provider for further details to make the best decisions about your health. If you do not have a primary care physician, Any Lab Test Now® has partnered with DialCare, a service that helps you find a provider licensed in your state.

Any Lab Test Now® is Your Partner in Health

Get the sleep you need to live a healthy life. If you’re having sleep issues, visit your local Any Lab Test Now® and pick up a Sleep Balance Take Home Hormone Kit to find answers.

Suffering from COVID-Somnia? Help Could Be One Test Away

You can call it “Covid-Somnia.” Americans have been losing sleep over the pandemic — literally. Even before the coronavirus crisis, millions of people suffered from insomnia — the inability to fall or stay asleep. The pandemic has added even more challenges to getting some shut-eye — even for people who previously had no sleeping problems.

Our frontline and essential workers are probably most affected — working longer hours and taking on more shifts to help take care of the rest of us. But the disruption to our daily lives and fear of being exposed to the virus is taking a toll on every one of us — and it is showing up in our sleep, or lack thereof.

Pandemic Panic

According to data compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Health Statistics, more than 4 in 10 American adults had developed symptoms of depression or anxiety by the end of 2020. Both are known to have the potential to cause sleeping issues.

Concerns about the pandemic have not slowed down. People worry about catching the virus themselves or infecting others, including older family members who might be at high-risk because of pre-existing conditions. Isolation and lack of social interaction are also contributing to the problem.

Economic concerns, including job loss, are adding to the strain, as well as uncertainty about when life will return to normal, keeps minds racing and the body tossing and turning.

Fatigue is a public health problem. A lack of sleep can lead to impaired reaction times, affect judgment and vision, create difficulty with processing information and short-term memory recall. This constant state of weariness is very unhealthy. Sleep is crucial to our health and well-being.

• Sleep rejuvenates our immune system. Studies have found that a lack of sleep can make some vaccines less effective.
• Sleep impacts our mood, and the feeling of weariness can worsen depression.
• Sleep gives our brain a rest so we can think and learn better.
• Sleep also contributes to our mental health. A lack of sleep is often linked to many mental health conditions such as bipolar disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
• Sleep can also impact metabolism. Not enough sleep can lead to insulin resistance, which causes weight gain.

Settling Sleep Issues

Any Lab Test Now® offers a Sleep Balance Kit to help make sure you are getting the rest you need and measure any impact your current sleep patterns are having on your health.

The Sleep Balance Kit does not even involve a blood draw — just a simple series of urine tests to determine key levels of two important hormones: melatonin and cortisol.

• High cortisol results in insomnia, anxiety, sugar cravings, feeling tired but wired, and increased belly fat.
• Low melatonin results in excessive fatigue, depression, anxiety, and insomnia.

The Sleep Balance Kit is available in-store or for purchase online. The sample collection is conducted in the privacy and comfort of your own home. You do not even need a doctor’s order.

Be at Ease

Any Lab Test Now wants you to be at ease when it comes to seeking out any type of lab work or purchasing an at-home kit.

We provide you a safe and clean alternative location for lab work. Each of our 190+ stores is sanitized several times a day, in accordance with the CDC’s protocols. Any Lab Test Now is a committed partner in helping you manage your family’s healthcare so you can make educated decisions that will directly affect your quality of life. We want to put you at ease during the coronavirus pandemic. We are here to help.

Find your closest Any Lab Test Now store at www.anylabtestnow.com.

 

How’s Your Hormone Health?

Know the impact hormones have on your body and your health.

Feeling out of balance these days? It might be the pandemic. It might be hormones. It might be both!

Many of us have experienced emotional ups and downs. It is just one of the ways our bodies tell us things just aren’t quite right. If you are in tune with your body, you might recognize the symptoms and act quickly to figure out how to get back in sync before things get worse. But what causes our bodies to get out of balance in the first place?

Tiny but mighty, our bodies depend on hormones to function. Hormones are created by our endocrine system, more specifically, they’re created by glands that are part of the endocrine system. The main hormone-producing glands are the hypothalamus, parathyroid, thymus, pancreas, thyroid, adrenal, pituitary, pineal, ovaries and testes. Each is responsible for creating and maintaining different hormones, it’s these glands that work together in a delicate balance to keep us healthy.

The hormones coordinate many important functions like growth, metabolism and fertility. They can also influence your immune system and your behavior.

Some people are more sensitive to hormones than others. This might explain why some people suffer from premenstrual syndrome or postpartum depression, while others aren’t bothered at all by the hormonal changes of menstruation and pregnancy.

While we all experience hormonal shifts throughout the day, trouble arises when the hormone levels don’t return to normal levels and remain unbalanced – whether that is too much of a hormone or not enough.

Hormonal imbalances can be caused by endocrine-related health disorders including diabetes, thyroid disorders and polycystic ovarian syndrome.

Discovering Hormone Imbalances

Any Lab Test Now offers a wide variety of tests that can be taken both in the office and at home to determine what is causing your hormones to go haywire. Not all of the tests involve a blood draw either.

The Saliva Hormone Test

The Saliva Hormone test is the simplest and most non-invasive tests to discover any type of hormone imbalance in either males or females.

Hormone imbalance can occur at any age and can be due to a multitude of reasons. The ovaries produce many of the hormones in females, which also communicate with the brain to either increase or decrease the release of various other hormones.  The imbalance within the body can lead to symptoms experienced during a short period of time or for many years.

In men, the testes produce mainly 95% of all testosterone, which is balanced by the adrenal gland.  The brain also regulates the increase or decrease of hormones released within the body.  The irregularity of testosterone within the body may contribute to decreased bone density, decreased muscle strength and decreased libido.

The Weight Management Hormone Test

Undetected hormone imbalance can be the missing link as to why achieving and maintaining your optimal weight has been unsuccessful, despite your best efforts with diet and exercise.

The Weight Management Kit  is ideal for women and men who are struggling with weight issues, menopause or andropause and anyone wanting to get to the root of general health concerns.

The Weight Management Take Home Hormone Kit consists of a dried blood spot test and a saliva test. The test measures bioavailable hormone levels for those with unexplained weight gain, obesity, abdominal fat, high BMI and low metabolism. This kit is available in-store or for purchase online.

The Sleep Balance Hormone Test

More than 60 million Americans suffer from some degree of sleep loss. It’s no surprise that many of us are still unaware of the connection between hormones and sleep. Some of the most common hormone-related causes of sleep loss are high cortisol and low melatonin.

• High cortisol results in insomnia, anxiety, sugar cravings, feeling tired but wired & increased belly fat.
• Low Melatonin results in excessive fatigue, depression, anxiety & insomnia.

To restore the vital balance of hormones, you need to start with an accurate measurement of hormone levels. The Sleep balance kit is an at home test which includes:

• A dried urine test to measure Melatonin levels ( Melatonin (MT6s x 4))
• A dried urine test to measure Cortisol levels (Free Cortisol (Cx4))

Be at Ease

There are many more options for hormone testing available. You can speak with the experts at Any Lab test Now to discuss which one is right for you. As mentioned, many of the tests are available for purchase online and can be performed from the comfort of your home. However, if you need a blood test that requires a blood draw, you can also be at ease when it comes to seeking out any type of lab work at Any Lab Test Now.

We provide you a safe and clean alternative location for lab work. Each of our 185+ stores is sanitized several times a day, in accordance with the CDC’s protocols. Any Lab Test Now is a committed partner in helping you manage your family’s healthcare so you can make educated decisions that will directly affect your quality of life. We want to put you at ease during the coronavirus outbreak. We are here to help.

Find your closest Any Lab Test Now store at www.anylabtestnow.com.

 

 

Learn How to Manage Your BP Levels!

Why checking your blood pressure is so important.    

It is estimated that nearly half of adults in the United States suffer from high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. With the added stress and uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic, doctors are noticing even higher numbers across the board.

High blood pressure is the major risk factor for heart attacks and strokes. It’s now also the most common risk factor for severe complications and death in those with COVID-19.

High blood pressure is considered a “silent killer” because it doesn’t always present obvious symptoms to indicate something is wrong.

Blood pressure is the pressure of blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. Arteries carry blood from your heart to other parts of your body. The first step in managing your blood pressure is to know your levels.

A normal blood pressure level is less than 120/80 mmHg. The first number in a blood pressure reading, called systolic blood pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats. The second number, called diastolic blood pressure, measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart rests between beats.

A significant number of U.S. adults have become candidates for blood pressure medication or other treatment since stricter guidelines were implemented in late 2017. The stricter standard, the first major change in blood pressure guidelines in 14 years, redefined a reading of high blood pressure as 130/80, down from 140/90. An increasing number of adults under the age of 45 are now hypertensive.

If you find that your blood pressure is consistently elevated, keep a diary and invest in a home blood pressure cuff. Get in the habit of checking your blood pressure at least once a month. If it’s elevated, check it more frequently.

There are also blood test panels you can get done outside of the doctor’s office to detect conditions that may cause high blood pressure to worsen and to evaluate and monitor organ function over time.

A cholesterol panel is recommended for anyone who has high blood pressure. High cholesterol has long been linked to high blood pressure. If your arteries become hardened and narrowed with cholesterol plaque and calcium, the heart strains much harder to pump blood through them. As a result, your blood pressure becomes abnormally high.

Potassium, along with other electrolytes like sodium and chloride, helps to regulate the acid and base balance in the body. Each heart muscle needs the right balance of potassium to beat in a coordinated way with all the other heart muscles. If you have high blood pressure, heart arrhythmias or have had heart failure, it is especially important to get enough potassium. A potassium test can help you monitor your levels.

A cortisol test is another option. Cortisol is a steroid hormone that regulates a wide variety of processes in your body, including metabolism and immune response. It also is very important in helping your body respond to stress.

Although cortisol is critical for our survival, too much cortisol is damaging to the body and can cause increased blood pressure and damage to the heart.

Test Your Levels

Any Lab Test Now offers these tests and more to help you manage your blood pressure more effectively. No doctor’s prescription is ever needed for any blood work at Any Lab Test Now and neither is an appointment. We have convenient locations and hours to fit your busy schedule.

If you are concerned about your safety coming into a testing site, you can be at ease knowing Any Lab Test Now provides you a safe and clean alternative location for lab work. Each of our 185+ stores is sanitized several times a day, in accordance with the CDC’s protocols. Any Lab Test Now is a committed partner in helping you manage your family’s healthcare so you can make educated decisions that will directly affect your quality of life.

Find your closest Any Lab Test Now store at www.anylabtestnow.com.

Cortisol Testing

Managing Stress Promotes Healthy Cortisol Production

When taking steps to improve your health, keeping stress levels low is as important as your diet and exercise routine.

Stress is the body’s normal reaction to change, according to Cleveland Clinic. High levels of stress can be detrimental to your health. The major causes of stress are work, money and healthcare. Six out of 10 adults attribute money and work as significant sources of stress, according to a survey of 3,617 adults conducted by the American Psychological Association. Many Americans also cite mass shootings, discrimination and climate change as major causes of stress in 2019, the APA reports. Juggling work assignments, family commitments and social activities keeps many Americans busy. Crowded calendars are challenging, but when a busy lifestyle causes stress, it’s time to be concerned.

Any Lab Test Now offers a fast and convenient test to determine if your body is feeling the negative effects of stress. The Cortisol Hormone Test is the least invasive way to measure the level of cortisol in the body. Cortisol is a hormone produced by the adrenal glands and regulated by the hypothalamus, a part of the brain, and the pituitary gland. Cortisol is a crucial hormone that helps break down fat and protein. It stimulates liver glucose production and helps maintain blood pressure and regulate the immune system. Cortisol is the body’s main stress hormone. It is responsible for boosting energy during a stressful situation, according to the Society for Endocrinology. Chronic stress can cause cortisol levels to remain high and have a negative impact on your health.

Symptoms of high cortisol

Too much cortisol can wreak havoc on your health. Some of the signs your body is producing too much stress hormone are:

• Weight gain
• Acne, thinning skin and bruising
• Muscle weakness
• Fatigue, irritability and difficulty concentrating
• High blood pressure
• Headache
• Cushing’s Syndrome — a relatively rare disorder that could result from taking glucocorticoid-steroids for a prolonged period, or an adrenal tumor.

If left untreated, high cortisol levels can cause a host of problems, including cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, diabetes and mental health issues. High cortisol production in women over a prolonged time can decrease sex drive, the Society for Endocrinology reports.

Symptoms of low cortisol

Low cortisol can be life-threatening and may be due to a problem with the pituitary gland or the adrenal gland. Addison’s Disease occurs when the adrenal gland fails and is extremely rare, but is treatable with cortisol replacements, according to the Society for Endocrinology. The symptoms of low cortisol include:

• Fatigue and mood changes
• Dizziness
• Weight loss and muscle weakness
• Darkening of regions of the skin

Lower cortisol levels naturally

If your Saliva Cortisol Test from Any Lab Test Now comes back high, there are natural steps you can take to manage your cortisol level, in addition to visiting your physician.

• Sleep. Being well-rested reduces your body’s stress levels.
• Exercise regularly. Exercise helps people sleep better, which can lower cortisol production at night.
• Learn to relax. Practicing mindfulness or meditation can help you identify your stress level and keeps your body from overproducing cortisol.
• Eat healthy and drink plenty of water. Dehydration can increase the production of cortisol.
• Find a hobby. Taking time each day for fun activities that you enjoy can help reduce stress.

Impacts of medication

Certain medications can alter cortisol levels. Corticosteroid medications used to treat chronic conditions like asthma and arthritis can raise cortisol levels. Oral contraceptives and other estrogen medications also impact cortisol levels. If you feel like your medication might be interfering with your cortisol levels, please consult with your health care professional.

Get tested at Any Lab Test Now

With more than 180 locations nationwide, Any Lab Test Now can help decrease your stress by making sure your cortisol is at an optimum level. Most test results will be given to you within an average of one to three days. Any Lab Test Now offers affordable, direct-access healthcare that fits your busy lifestyle. Visit your local Any Lab Test Now to take control of your health today.

Too High Or Too Low: The Danger Behind Cortisol Levels

Every day, every hour, every minute, your body is performing a delicate balancing act. Levels of nutrients, water, hormones, it doesn’t take much for one imbalance to throw the whole thing off. That’s the case with the hormone cortisol.

Cortisol is commonly referred to as the stress hormone because it’s the hormone produced by the adrenal glands and is best known for helping with your body’s “fight or flight” instinct. But it’s responsible for so much more than that — everything from blood pressure to blood sugar is affected by cortisol, which is why it’s so important that you keep this hormone in balance. Any Lab Test Now can help you take control of your hormone health with a wide range of tests that can provide you with information vital to your daily wellbeing. Since it touches so many body functions, the Saliva Cortisol Test is a good place to start if you are showing symptoms of an imbalance

Stressed-Out Symptoms!

When it comes to cortisol levels, they naturally rise and fall throughout the day, usually associated with your sleep pattern. Basically, you would find your highest levels in the morning when you are waking up… and the lowest levels dropping off after midnight when you are sleeping. Signs that you may have a cortisol imbalance are pretty common symptoms of other things as well, making diagnosis difficult, but basically here are symptoms you might experience:

Too Much Cortisol

*Obesity *Excessive thirst *Excessive urination *Muscle weakness *High blood pressure *Increased blood sugar *Headaches *Backaches *Depression

Too Little Cortisol

*Fatigue *Muscle weakness *Dark patches on the skin *Hypoglycemia *Diarrhea *Constipation *Vomiting *Weight loss

If you are experiencing unusual, unexplained symptoms, then the Saliva Cortisol Test may provide information that will help you and your doctor diagnose your condition.

Cortisol Related Conditions

There’s still a lot of research being conducted on how cortisol imbalances affect our bodies. Obviously being in a constant state of stress will increase your cortisol production and lead to a cascade of health problems including heart disease, sleep problems, obesity, and depression.

Cushing syndrome is a condition that occurs when your body begins to make too much cortisol. It’s a condition associated with obesity and diabetes. On the flipside, Addison’s disease occurs when your body isn’t making enough cortisol. It is often characterized by skin changes, weight loss, low blood pressure, and fatigue. Researchers are also beginning to connect high cortisol levels with memory loss which makes it all the more important to know where you stand.

Get the Low-Down on Your Levels

Any Lab Test Now makes it easy for you to know your levels. The Saliva Cortisol Test is, as the name implies, a simple saliva test. You will have to fast at least twelve hours prior to collecting your specimen. You don’t need a doctor’s orders to take any test at Any Lab Test Now, putting you in control of your own health. You don’t even need an appointment! Just walk in to your closest Any Lab Test Now location. You’ll be greeted by a professional staff member who can help you make the most informed choice for your health.

Your Body’s Response to Stress

Remember being a child? You’d stub your toe or bring home a bad grade on your report card, and it would feel like the end of the world – for about five minutes. Then, you’d race out the door to giggle with friends or fly on the swings or shoot hoops at the playground.

Back then, there were stressful moments, but more often than not, they were short-lived. Now that you are a grownup, however, you may find it more difficult to let go of stress. Stress may be staying with you, day after day and week after week. After all, many people struggle to simply balance day-to-day responsibilities. Then, if something more severe happens, such as becoming a long-term care giver or losing a job, it becomes nearly impossible to remove stress from your life.

Your Body and Stress

The feelings you have during short-term stress are healthy, natural physical responses. When your body encounters a stressful situation, it releases a steroid hormone called cortisol. This hormone triggers the “fight or flight” response that puts your body on high alert so that you can more effectively cope with the perceived threat. When this happens, you may feel your heart racing, tummy tighten, breath quicken or even a sudden burst of energy.

You feel these things because cortisol is telling your primary systems, like your breathing and circulatory systems, to accelerate. At the same time, it tells your secondary systems, like your reproductive and immune systems, to slow down, allowing all of your energy to shift towards coping with the threat.

Once the threat has passed, your cortisol levels should slowly subside and your systems should return to normal functioning.

Too Much Stress; Too Much Cortisol

But, what happens when the stressful situation(s) never ends? What happens when your body has so much cortisol coursing through it that it remains on high alert for long periods of time?

When that happens, your systems never reset themselves. Your body may over-tax your primary systems or not restore your secondary systems to normal functioning, leading to issues like:

• High blood pressure
• Digestive issues
• Weight gain
• Depression or anxiety
• Decreased libido
• Reduced energy
• Reduced immunity
• Muscle weakness

If you’re feeling any of these symptoms for unexplained reasons, it could be that you’ve been battling stress for too long and your cortisol levels aren’t dropping as they should. Cortisol saliva tests or cortisol blood tests can both be used to quickly evaluate your cortisol levels so that you can find out if they are at an unhealthy level.

Coping with Stress

If you find that your cortisol levels are too high, it’s important to take steps to reduce your stress and begin restoring your body to its natural functioning. Of course, talking with your doctor will provide options that fit your health status and lifestyle, but these may include:

• Exercising
• Learning to slow down (Think yoga, meditation, massage)
• Keeping a gratitude journal
• Evaluating your priorities and taking steps to remove non-necessary commitments
• Employing self-care practices
• Embracing your creative side

Having some stress in your life is natural, but if you start to question the impact that stress is having on your overall health and well-being, it’s time to take back control. Walk in to your local Any Lab Test Now location to get the answers you need about your cortisol level. Once you know, you’ll have one less thing to stress over!

Stressed And The Holidays Aren’t Even Here Yet? Check Your Cortisol Level.

From a baby’s cry to fast-paced work projects, people are faced with stresses on a regular basis. In response to these daily demands, the body releases a naturally occurring steroid hormone, called cortisol. Cortisol helps regulate muscles, cardiovascular function, digestion and other systems. This gives you the extra energy and mobility you need to fight through a stressful situation. As your cortisol levels increase, you may experience increased appetite, cravings for sugar and weight gain. Then, as the stressful situation comes to an end and you no longer need the extra energy, cortisol levels should return to normal.

Prolonged stress, however, means that cortisol is being produced regularly. When this happens, it can build up in the body without an outlet for release. This keeps your internal systems heightened and on high alert which can cause damage or fatigue. Risks resulting from chronic increased levels of cortisol are serious and include:

• Lower immune function
• Lower bone density
• Learning and memory issues
• Weight gain, particularly in the abdomen
• High blood pressure
• Heart disease
• Depression

Is your cortisol level high?
Hormone testing, including the Saliva Cortisol Test or the Total Cortisol Test, can determine if your cortisol levels are too high or too low. Because cortisol levels naturally adjust throughout the day, the test may be required both early in the morning and again in the afternoon for the most accurate results.

What should I do about high cortisol levels?
Normal cortisol levels typically range from 6 to 23 micrograms per deciliter. Higher cortisol levels may be an indicator of Cushing disease or long-term, unmanaged stress. Low cortisol levels may be an indicator of Addison’s disease or hypopituitarism. In either case, your doctor will help you understand your test results and recommend any additional treatment options.

Stress management techniques may also prove effective in reducing higher than normal cortisol levels. From healthier eating and increased physical activity to meditation and deep breathing, stress management techniques provide your body with an outlet for releasing built-up cortisol and help bring your levels back into a healthier range.

If you regularly find yourself under stress, even if it is stress that stems from a positive experience, consider a  Saliva Cortisol Test or the Total Cortisol Test to live a healthier life and avoid long-term health issues.

Cortisol and Stress: How the Body Reacts

Cortisol has been termed as the “stress hormone” and it is usually increased under stressful responses when the body is experiencing a “fight or flight” response. Cortisol is a hormone that is released by the adrenal gland. The following functions are involved with normal levels of cortisol release; proper glucose metabolism, blood pressure regulation, immune function, and inflammatory response.

Normally, cortisol is higher in the morning and at its lowest at night. In our new modern day culture of sitting in the car during rush hour, lack of exercise and economic distress, the cortisol levels in our bodies are elevated for an extended period of time without having the chance to return to normal. This is known as chronic stress, which can contribute to blood sugar imbalance (hyperglycemia), decreased bone density, high blood pressure, metabolism imbalance and decreased immune system.

Having an increased cortisol level can be either physiologic or pathologic. Having a cortisol test done can measure your stress hormone levels throughout the day to see if you are having an abnormal spike of your cortisol at a certain time of the day, or a continuous increase of cortisol levels. Stress can be a contributor to a multitude of disease states. Cortisol level testing would be a great add on to any of our tests or panels offered through Any Lab Test Now.