Bloods & Lab Tests
How to read your results: iron, B12, vitamin D, thyroid, lipids, inflammation and more. 10 evidence-based guides, each written in plain English with UK context and real citations.
ApoB and the lipid panel: what actually predicts heart risk
ApoB and non-HDL cholesterol often predict heart risk better than LDL alone. What your lipid panel, trig:HDL ratio and Lp(a) mean, plus NICE and GP tips.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsB12 and folate deficiency in the UK: why it is missed and how to read the tests
B12 and folate deficiency are missed when tests read normal. Why serum B12 misleads, how active B12, MMA and folate fit, who is at risk, and UK treatment.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsHomocysteine, MTHFR and methylation: what is real and what is overhyped
Homocysteine, MTHFR and methylation, explained plainly: the B-vitamin link, the honest trial evidence, and why most commercial methylation hype overreaches.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsHow to read a full blood count (FBC)
Learn to read a full blood count the way a clinician does: what haemoglobin, MCV, the white cell differential, platelets and RDW mean, with UK ranges shown.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsIron Deficiency and Ferritin: Why a "Normal" Result Can Still Be Too Low
Why a normal ferritin can still be too low: UK guide to functional vs lab ranges, symptoms beyond anaemia, causes, and how to treat iron deficiency safely.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsLipoprotein(a): the inherited heart risk most people never test
Lipoprotein(a) is a genetic, mostly fixed cholesterol particle that raises heart attack, stroke and aortic stenosis risk. Why to test it once, in nmol/L.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsReading inflammatory markers: CRP, hs-CRP, ESR and ferritin
What CRP, hs-CRP, ESR and ferritin measure, why high-sensitivity CRP flags heart risk, how ferritin masks iron deficiency, and how to read them together (UK).
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsThe omega-3 index: testing, dosing and what the evidence shows
The omega-3 index measures EPA plus DHA in red blood cells. See target ranges, the dose to raise it, the REDUCE-IT vs VITAL vs STRENGTH split and UK guidance.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsVitamin D in the UK: dose, blood levels, testing and the K2 question
UK vitamin D guide: the 10 microgram (400 IU) dose, deficiency rates, adequate versus optimal nmol/L, the K2 and magnesium question, testing and safe limits.
Read guide → Bloods & Lab TestsZinc, copper and the ratio that matters
Zinc powers immunity, skin, taste and testosterone, but long-term high-dose zinc causes copper deficiency. UK doses, safe limits and the zinc-copper balance.
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