Endometriosis Labs: Why You Need Them and What They Can Tell You
Do you feel overwhelmed and confused when it comes to navigating your endometriosis symptoms? You’re not alone! Feeling out of control and not knowing what to do about your severe pain and uncomfortable symptoms is an unfortunate reality of having endometriosis. One of the first steps to finding answers is learning more about the different types of endometriosis labs.
While there’s no specific test for endometriosis diagnosis (this is generally done through a laparoscopy), there are endometriosis lab tests that can give you a deeper insight into your symptoms. Let’s take a closer look into why it’s important to decode your blood tests for endometriosis results and what they can tell you!
Why Understanding Endometriosis Blood Test Results Is Crucial
When you learn more about your body and what may be causing your specific symptoms, it becomes easier to tackle your endometriosis head-on. As a functional medicine dietitian working in the endo space (and an endowarrior myself!) my goal is to help other endowarriors improve their endo symptoms. That’s why I always recommend looking at endometriosis blood test labs to help understand specific symptoms.
One of the most frustrating things to hear from doctors after reviewing your blood test for endometriosis results is, “Your labs are normal.” That’s definitely not helpful! Here’s the thing: your labs tell a story, and what is considered “normal” or not of concern could actually be the answer to why you are experiencing symptoms with endo. Being able to thoroughly analyze your results will give you clarity into realizing your body’s signals and optimizing your health!
What Labs for Endometriosis Can Reveal About Your Symptoms
It’s time to decode your body with endometriosis labs so you can figure out what may need support! Making connections with your symptoms and lab results can lead you in the right direction to improve your quality of life with endo (that’s the goal here!). As complicated as endo can be, your body shares much more valuable info than you might think.
Understanding your labs for endometriosis is a fantastic way to simplify your path to symptom resolution. The results can help you understand what systems in your body are contributing to symptoms so you can address them faster and more effectively. This requires a total body approach, looking at several hallmarks that characterize endometriosis.
These are the main lab markers to take note of for endometriosis lab tests:
Immune Heath
Endometriosis is a disease of immune system dysfunction. Endometriosis labs can reveal a range of information about your immune health, this includes labs such as TPO antibodies levels, your CBC and even your HDL and triglyceride levels. An abnormally high HDL and low triglycerides can point towards an autoimmune process, TPO antibodies can very clearly identify autoimmunity against the thyroid and a CBC gives you a nice overview of what's going wrong body wide when it comes to your immune function.
Lab examples: CBC, vitamin D, thyroid antibodies (TPO, TG), tTG test (for celiac), serum IgA, ANA, and triglycerides + HDL.
Hormone Health
Hormone health for women plays an integral role in understanding and managing endometriosis symptoms. One of the most common hormonal imbalances in endowarriors is having higher levels of estrogen, which can increase inflammation, growth, and pain. In addition to estrogen, testosterone, DHEAs, prolactin, progesterone and thyroid levels have a massive role to play in endo symptoms. For example, a high prolactin can suppress FSH and LH reducing the quality of the antiinflammatory progesterone you produce in your luteal phase.
Lab examples: prolactin, testosterone, estradiol (peak+7 and CD3), progesterone (peak+7), thyroid panel (TSH, FT3, FT4, RT3, antibodies), vitamin D, and cortisol.
Inflammation
Taking a closer look at your inflammation lab results is another essential marker for endometriosis. Endo itself falls into the category of inflammatory chronic diseases. The inflammation and disease connection
contributes to the growth and development of endometriosis. Checking for high levels of glucose (aka high levels of sugar) is an important factor here, as the higher it is, the more it can cause inflammation in your body. Adopting an anti-inflammatory diet for endometriosis is one of the ways you can keep your levels in check.
Lab examples: C-reactive protein (CRP), HbA1c, glucose, insulin, cholesterol panel (HDL, LDL), ferritin, Ca-125, vitamin D, homocysteine, liver enzymes (AST, ALT), and CBC.
Gastrointestinal
Many endobabes benefit from learning more about their gut health with gastrointestinal lab results. The majority of your immune system is located in the gut, which is why it’s critical to take proper care of your gastrointestinal health. Things like globulin, albumin, and protein levels are all measured in this type of lab assessment. Vitamin D supplementation is common for promoting a healthy gut biome, among others.
Lab examples: elastase, calprotectin, helicobacter pylori, ova/parasite, colonoscopy, GGT, CMP (BUN, CO2, albumin), eosinophils, monocytes, globulin, and cholesterol panel.
Nutrient Deficiency
Another vital marker for endo labs is looking into a nutrient deficiency test (a leaky gut syndrome blood test also falls into this category). Levels of specific nutrients being too high or low can affect endo-related symptoms. When you understand your levels of key nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D, folate, etc., you can explore diet and supplement options to get them at optimal levels.
Lab examples: vitamin D, B12, folate, iron panel (iron, ferritin, TIBC, % saturation), CBC (CO2, uric acid), copper, RDW, retinol (vitamin A), and alkaline phosphatase.
Nervous System
It’s essential to look more into your nervous system labs, as endometriosis can involve the entire nervous system. Endo lesions can cause inflammation of the pelvic nerves, which over time can cause your nervous system regulation to be extra sensitive. Once you’re able to identify your levels of potassium, sodium, chloride, etc., then you can start to find ways to balance it, such as incorporating nervous system regulation techniques.
Lab examples: potassium, sodium, CO2, cholesterol panel, chloride, glucose, and WBC.
How To Decode Your Labs for Endometriosis Symptom Management
We’ve only just started scratching the surface of what endometriosis lab tests can tell you! What we know for sure is that endo is an incredibly complicated full-body condition. This is why it’s so challenging to pinpoint how to reduce endo flare-ups and calm symptoms of the disease. Gaining valuable insight from your endometriosis labs is your first line of defense to take control of your endo!
Ready to reclaim control over your health journey? I’ve done the research for you and compiled a comprehensive master lab guide! In this guide, you’ll find in-depth details, optimal levels, and definitions for each of the hallmark lab markers, along with next steps and recommendations. It’s the ultimate resource for any endowarrior looking to have a better understanding of the endo signs and symptoms in your body.
Grab your copy of the Endometriosis Lab Guide to start managing your endo effectively by decoding your labs!
