Environmental Toxins Lab

To test for the presence of excessive environmental toxin exposure.

Environmental toxins, technically called toxicants, are substances produced endogenously from the human body and which, when absorbed, inhaled, or ingested, can cause acute or chronic toxic overload, which may manifest in a variety of biological organ, tissue, and cellular-level systems.

Environmental toxins are cancer-causing chemicals and endocrine disruptors, both human-made and naturally occurring.

Screening patients with multiple chronic inflammatory symptoms, resistance to weight loss, and signs of excessive total toxic load is important to detecting unknown chemical exposure to daily products, foods, and environment.

Screening for Environmental Toxins can aid practitioners in uncovering true root causes of toxicity from common environmental sources and provide a clear roadmap to detoxification and healing.

In order to assess the most comprehensive potential for total toxic load, consider running Environmental Toxins with a Vibrant Heavy Metals, Mycotoxins, or Food Additives panels.

How To Prepare For This Lab: 

Fasting is not required for the Heavy Metals test.

However, fasting for 12 hours may increase the amount of metals excreted in urine, so consult with your ordering provider about whether they recommend you fast for 12 hours before the test. Avoid foods high in iodine (seafood, dairy, seaweed) and selenium (Brazil nuts) as they have strong binding affinity for heavy metals (they act like "heavy metal magnets"). Consuming these foods prior to the Heavy Metals test may cause falsely lowered results. Some Vibrant America ordering providers may prefer you do a "provoked" Heavy Metal test which requires taking a "provoking agent" (such as NAC, glutathione, DMSA, or EDTA) prior to testing to promote the release of body stores of metals so that the metals are "mobilized" (moved through the body) and excreted (released) in urine.

Vibrant America does not require a provoked test, nor does Vibrant America recommend a specific provoking agent, dose, or timing of provocation before testing. Discuss with your ordering provider whether they recommend a provoked or unprovoked test, and which provoking agent, dose, and timing of provocation and urine collection they recommend for you.

Please note that unprovoked test results cannot predict provoked test results as the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (release) of heavy metals in urine is highly variable in different people and is influenced by a number of physical, dietary, and environmental factors.

Overall, the majority of Vibrant America ordering providers order unprovoked testing. For best test performance, collect the first morning urine upon awakening, prior to eating or drinking.

Urine Sample Required.