ZRT Hormone Test Kit

 *Please note: We cannot advise or interpret your test for you since no one at Naturally Better is a medical professional.

These tests are for those who have decided to use bio-identical hormones on their own.
ZRT Labs cannot offer advice on the results of your test.

California State and New York State Residents. We cannot send these kits to you.

Saliva Testing of Hormones
Simple, stress free collection of saliva at home. Testing at can help you determine if your hormones are out of balance.

Why test saliva?
Because steroid hormones play such a vital role in maintenance of health, knowledge of an imbalance in any one or more hormones can help illuminate the cause of health problems and provide a rational basis for correcting the imbalance through diet, exercise, or hormone supplementation.

Are the levels of steroid hormones in blood and saliva the same?
When the various glands manufacture the steroids they are released into the bloodstream bound to carrier proteins. Only a small fraction (1-5%) of a given amount of steroid hormone breaks loose from the carrier protein in the bloodstream and is free to enter target tissues. This free or unbound hormone is what we want to measure, since it is active or bioavailable to the target tissues such as the breast, uterus, brain, and skin. Many studies in the scientific literature have shown that there is a strong correlation between the levels of steroid hormones in saliva and the bioavailable (free) levels of steroids in the bloodstream. The amount of steroid hormone that enters the salivary ducts and then saliva, is representative of the fraction of steroids in the bloodstream that are bioavailable to other tissues in the body.

Advantages of saliva vs blood testing of steroid hormones Saliva collection is easy, can be done anywhere, any time and at a much lower cost. Serum hormone testing is stressful, and the stress of a blood draw can sometimes alter the result. Blood has to be drawn at a doctor's office or drawing station, and it is more difficult to obtain samples at the desired times (e.g. early am), multiple times through the day or late evening. There is also an extra cost involved in drawing blood, independent of the cost for the test itself.

Hormones in saliva are exceptionally stable, allowing wide latitude in collection and shipment. Samples can be stored at room temperature for at least a week without loss of activity, so samples can be shipped to the testing facility by regular mail. Blood, on the other hand, must be kept cool on ice packs, increasing costs for shipping as well as the likelihood of error due to improper handling.

Finally, saliva hormone testing allows you to take more control over your own health. Saliva testing may help you to gain insight into health problems before you see your doctor. It will also allow you to monitor an OTC hormone supplementation program (eg natural progesterone cream, estriol cream, DHEA cream or homeopathic testosterone) if improvement in quality of life, disease prevention, or anti-aging is your goal.

How Can Saliva Hormone Tests Help You?

There are several ways salivary hormone tests can help you to take responsibility for, and optimize your health.
The first way is to help identify possible causes of health problems. Depending on the specific hormones involved, certain symptoms or groups of symptoms are usually present when hormonal imbalance exists. Hormone testing is a valuable way to determine which hormones need to be supplemented to achieve hormone balance..

What do I do after I receive my Test Kit?

You will receive instructions with your kit for collecting the saliva and mailing it to ZRT Labs.
It will also include a requisition form for you to indicate what hormones you want tested.
The results will be mailed or e-mailed directly to you from the Laboratory.

For information on why Dr. John Lee says about why Saliva Testing is the preferred method to test hormones, click here

NOTE: California State Residents
California State health law requires that the testing of any specimen collected or mailed from California be accompanied by a written order from a health care professional licensed in California to order laboratory tests. This includes the following disciplines: M.D.; D.C.; LAc; R.D.; D.O.; N.P.; and Pharmacists (R.PH). As of September 2002 (Senate Bill 577), such lab tests may be ordered by complementary/alternative health care practitioners "not providing services that require medical training." California consumers not working with a licensed health care professional should contact a compounding pharmacist in their area (click on Followup resources) or phone ZRT Laboratory (503) 466-2445 for further information.

NOTE: New York State Residents
New York State health law prohibits the testing of specimens collected in or mailed from New York, and prohibits the transmission of data from our laboratory to NY physicians or residents. Therefore, direct receipt of lab results for NY residents is not possible.