Testing with a Functional Approach
Genetics, lifestyle, dietary habits, environment and more are all determinants of what our bodies need to function optimally and often play the key role in many chronic ailments. Consulatations use a functional approach to uncover possible root causes of various chronic conditions, rather than treating symptoms. Cayman Nutrition uses a number of comprehensive tests to look a patient’s individual therapeutic requirements to address nutrition and food related health issues.
Our Complete Sensitivity Test offers a comprehensive analysis of your reactivity to 170 common food and non-food items. By understanding what substances your body is sensitive to, you can make informed decisions about your diet and lifestyle, potentially alleviating the symptoms and improving your overall well-being.
Food and non-food sensitivities occur when your body reacts adversely to certain substances, triggering a range of symptoms. Unlike allergies, sensitivities can develop gradually over time due to factors such as diet, environment, and lifestyle choices.
Common symptoms of sensitivities include:
• Digestive issues
• Skin problems
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Joint pain
These symptoms can significantly impact your quality of life, making it essential to identify and manage the triggers.
Presentation of Results:
The purpose of the patented Mediator Release Test (MRT) is to identify and quantify which foods and chemicals cause an inflammatory response in your body. It is an accurate test with 94.5% sensitivity and 91.7% specificity. 120 foods and 30 chemicals are tested. Each of the 170 items are then classified into one of three reactivity levels:
High Reactivity / Outside Range
These items are most likely to cause sensitivity. They may be contributing to physical symptoms, we recommend a structured elimination diet, followed by gradual reintroduction for these items.
Moderate Reactivity
These items might cause sensitivity. Having multiple moderate reactivity items in one meal might cause symptoms due to their cumulative effect. We recommend after prioritising the high reactivity item elimination diet that you then follow a structured elimination diet, followed by gradual reintroduction to these items also.
No Reactivity / Within Range
These items are safe and fall within the optimal range.
After receiving your MRT results, a personalized diet therapy protocol will be designed for you to eliminate your reactive foods and additives. The timeline is different for everyone, but many people start feeling improvement of symptoms within the first 10 days. Following 14 days of elimination, you will start with your least reactive foods for re-introduction and assessment of reactivity.
COMPLETE PRICE: $715 KYD (Insurance coverage available with some health insurance plans)
Please inquire HERE - Testing times available on Mondays and Tuesdays
The SpectraCell test assesses 31 specific micronutrients—vitamins, minerals, amino acids, antioxidants and metabolites—and how they affect cellular function in a person. If someone is deficient in a particular nutrient, our SpectraCell testing will uncover this deficiency so that it can be effectively treated, thus facilitating real prevention. Not only will correcting intracellular deficiencies slow aging and degenerative disease progression, but it can also prevent as well as repair cellular dysfunction, and by extension disease.
What makes SpectraCell’s testing particularly relevant is that it takes into consideration a person’s biochemical individuality when assessing nutritional status. Testing is performed intracellularly—it is not a static serum measurement—thus taking into account cellular absorption, metabolism and utilization in its nutritional evaluation of cell function, which correlates with tissue health and systemic health. Serum (extracellular) nutrients fluctuate wildly, are only a snapshot and tell you nothing about the functional health of cells. SpectraCell testing measures nutrient status, in the context of cellular function, over a period of 4-6 months.
SpectraCell testing uncovers micronutrient deficiencies if they exist. All the factors that affect nutritional needs for each person—age, lifestyle, illness, injury, drugs, circumstance, genetics—are reflected in the results.
What’s tested:
Complete price: $625 KYD (Insurance coverage available with some health insurance plans)
Please inquire HERE - Testing times available on Mondays and Tuesdays
While traditionally the health impact of fatty acids was mainly associated with cardiovascular disease, it is now widely recognized that fatty acids also play a crucial role in the development of other diseases including type 2 diabetes, inflammatory diseases, and cancer. Thus, maintaining optimal levels of fatty acids is essential for overall health and wellbeing.
Understanding and maintaining proper levels of fatty acids is a vital key to optimizing health. The Omega-3 Index Complete Test provides comprehensive information and includes the following:
Omega-3 Index
The Omega-3 Index is the proportion of long-chain omega-3s, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), of all fatty acids in your red blood cell membranes. It reflects the omega-3 status of your body over the last 4 months, similar to how hemoglobin A1C reflects long-term glucose blood levels. As a part of an overall healthy lifestyle, an Omega-3 Index in the 8-12% range may help to maintain heart, brain, eye and joint health. To increase your Omega-3 Index, eat foods rich in EPA and DHA, especially “oily” fish such as those in the accompanying table. They can also be obtained from dietary supplements (fish, krill, cod liver, algal oils) and functional foods (omega-3 enriched milk, eggs, etc.).
Omega-6:Omega-3 Ratio
Omega-6:Omega-3 (n6:n3) ratio is calculated by dividing the sum of seven omega-6 fatty acids by the sum of four omega-3 fatty acids in whole blood. Only one omega-6 fatty acid, arachidonic acid (AA), and one omega-3 fatty acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), make up the AA:EPA ratio. The desirable range for the Omega-6:Omega-3 ratio is 3:1 to 5:1, and the desirable range for the AA:EPA ratio is 2.5:1 – 11:1. The desirable ranges for the ratios were calculated to correspond to the desirable range for the Omega-3 Index due to the strong relationship between among these metrics.
The Trans-Fat Index
The Trans Fat Index is the percent of 18:1 and 18:2 trans fatty acids of total fatty acids in red blood cell membranes, and the desirable range is <1%. Trans fatty acids (or trans fats) in our blood come only from the food we eat because our bodies cannot make them. Trans fats in the diet come from two sources: 1) industrial production by the “partial hydrogenation” of vegetable oils, in which liquid oils are converted into solid fats to be used in processed foods, and 2) meat and milk products of ruminant animals, like cows and goats. The fatty acids that make up the Trans Fat Index were chosen because they were typically found in processed foods, but a small amount may come from ruminant sources.
Omega 3 Fatty Acid Benefits
Lowers LDL and increases HDL cholesterol; decreases blood clotting time
Anti-arrhythmic, anti-inflammatory effect that benefits heart tissue
Structural in brain and retinal tissue; improves learning and memory
Critical in fetal and infant development
Improves hyperactivity in children and depression in adults
Treatment for autoimmune disorders, kidney disease, PMS, RA, MS
Improves skin integrity
Complete price: $300 KYD (Insurance coverage available with some health insurance plans) - Book your test HERE
Health conditions linked to MTHFR depend on your type of mutation and how many copies you contain. A person with two gene variants or who is homozygous for the MTHFR mutation may have an increased chance of health conditions.
Who may benefit from this test?
Individuals with any of the following diagnoses or symptoms:
Cardiovascular Diseases e.g. hypertension, coronary artery disease, stroke
Neurological Disorders e.g. depression, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, ADD/ADHD, ASD, chronic fatigue syndrome, migraine, insomnia
Metabolic Conditions e.g. metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus, kidney diseases, reduced ability to metabolize medications, multiple chemical sensitivity
Musculoskeletal Disorders e.g. osteoporosis
Eye Diseases e.g. macular degeneration
Cancer e.g. colorectal, breast, and others
The MTHFR gene mutation can inhibit the body’s processing of folic acid requiring replacement with natural Folate forms as well as possibly supplementing other affected vitamins such as Vitamin B12, methionine and other B Vitamins. Countering genes effects by changing the supplementation of these nutrients is the focus.
FULL NUTRITIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS ARE PROVIDED.
Complete price: $595 KYD - Book your test HERE
Food allergens are substances present in foods that can trigger an allergic reaction when they are consumed, including commonly eaten foods such as nuts (peanuts and tree nuts), milk, eggs, wheat, soy, fish, and shellfish. Elevated levels of IgE can be observed when the body overreacts to these typically harmless foods. This type of allergic reaction can result in a wide range of symptoms from mild (sneezing, runny nose, congestion) to severe and potentially life-threatening (anaphylaxis).
Symptoms triggered by the production of IgE antibodies to foods may include:
Anaphylaxis
Atopic Dermatitis (Eczema)
Cardiovascular Symptoms such as Drop in Blood Pressure, Tachycardia, Fainting
Conjunctivitis (Red, Itchy, or Watery Eyes)
Fatigue
GI Symptoms such as Nausea, Vomiting, Diarrhea, Abdominal Pain
Headache
Rashes or Hives
Respiratory Symptoms such as Wheezing, Coughing, Shortness of Breath
Scratchy Throat or Coughing
Swelling of the Eyes, Face and Tongue
IgE Food Allergy Panels are blood-based (serum) tests that focus on specific food allergens to assess the levels of IgE antibodies to help identify the source of the allergy. We offers both the Basic (26 foods) and Advanced (92 foods) IgE Food Allergy Panels that assess for food allergen specific IgE antibodies across several clinically important food groups.
Basic: Almond, Apple, Barley, Beef, Cacao, Carrot, Chicken, Egg (Whole), Garlic, Green Bean, Maize, Corn, Milk (Cow’s), Oat, Onion, Orange, Peanut, Pork, Potato, Rice, Shrimp, Soybean, Tomato, Tuna, Wheat, White Bean, Yeast (Bakers/Brewers)
Advanced: Almond, Apple, Apricot, Asparagus, Aubergine, Eggplant, Avocado, Banana, Barley, Beef, Blueberry, Brazil Nut, Broccoli, Buckwheat, Cabbage, Cacao, Carrot, Cashew Nut, Celery, Cheese - Cheddar Type, Cheese - Mold Type, Cherry, Chick Pea, Chicken, Coconut, Coffee, Cow’s Milk Whey, Crab, Cranberry, Cucumber, Egg White, Egg Yolk, Fish (Cod), Foxtail Millet, Garlic, Gluten (Wheat), Goat Milk, Grape, Grapefruit, Green Bean, Halibut, Hazelnut, Lemon, Lentil, Lettuce, Lima Bean, Linseed, Lobster, Maize - Corn, Mango, Milk (Boiled), Milk (Cow’s), Mushroom (Champignon), Mustard, Mutton, Milk, (Casein Component of Milk), Oat, Olive, Onion, Orange, Papaya, Paprika - Sweet Pepper, Pea, Peach,, Peanut, Pear, Pecan Nut, Pineapple, Pistachio, Plum, Pork, Potato, Pumpkin, Red Kidney Bean, Rice, Rye, Salmon, Sardine - Pilchard, Sesame Seed, Shrimp, Soybean, Spinach, Strawberry, Sunflower Seed, Sweet Potato, Tomato, Tuna, Turkey Meat, Walnut, Watermelon, Wheat, White Bean, Yeast (Bakers/Brewers)
Complete price: Basic - $450 / Advanced - $650 (Insurance coverage available with some health insurance plans)
Please inquire HERE - Testing times available on Mondays and Tuesdays
Digestive Health Testing for Dysbiosis
“Dysbiosis means that you have an imbalance in the different types of microscopic organisms living in your body. If there are too many of some types and not enough of others, they don’t work with you as they should, and they might work against you. In particular, dysbiosis in your gut may have broad effects on your health.
How does dysbiosis affect me?
In any microbiome, a lack of diversity and balance can pave the way for one type of microorganism to take over. Dysbiosis makes us more vulnerable to infections from germs living inside and outside of our bodies. It can also interfere with other important services that our microbiomes normally provide for us. For instance, your gut microbiome provides you with many services by interacting with your body in a multitude of ways.
What can gut dysbiosis lead to?
Bacterial dysbiosis in your gut is directly involved in various gastrointestinal (GI) diseases affecting your digestive system, including:
Bacterial infections like H. pylori and C. difficile / Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) / Inflammatory bowel diseases, like ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease / General digestive difficulties, like diarrhea, constipation and gas.
But your gut microbiome also interacts with your brain and with many of your other body systems, including your:
Immune system / Nervous system / Endocrine system.
Gut dysbiosis may be indirectly involved in a variety of other conditions, including:
Malnutrition / Malabsorption / Food intolerances / Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) / Atherosclerosis / Fatty liver disease / Metabolic syndrome / Chronic inflammation / Chronic fatigue / Mood disorders.
What causes dysbiosis?
Different things in your internal and external environment can affect your microbiomes, including:
Antibiotics and antimicrobial agents / Other drugs and medications / Smoking and alcohol use / Environmental toxins / Physical and psychological stress / Chronic inflammation / Chronic diseases - - see: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/dysbiosis
Our Comprehensive Stool Testing involves:
Assessment of the gut microbiome, measuring levels of healthy bacterial flora versus potentially pathogenic bacteria species, yeast, and parasites
Digestion and absorption of nutrients (Pancreatic Elastase, Muscle Fibers, and Vegetable Fibers)
Elimination efficiency of undigested food residues and toxins
Infectious pathogens (EIA evaluation for Campylobacter, Enterohemorrhagic E. coli cytotoxin, Giardia lamblia, and Cryptosporidium)
Indices and markers of intestinal immune function (Secretory IgA)
Indices and markers of inflammation (Calprotectin, Lactoferrin, and Lysozyme)
Indices and markers of intestinal physiology and of intestinal health (Presence of RBC, WBC, Mucus, Occult Blood, Fecal pH, and Short Chain Fatty Acids)
Based on results, a comprehensive approach is provided to address dysbiosis and gut issues that may include elimination of pathogens and irritants, supplementation of digestive enzymes, and pre- and probiotics, and a protocol to repair of the mucosal gut barrier.
Complete price: $675 KYD (Insurance coverage available with some health insurance plans) - Please inquire HERE