Have you ever wondered why you’re tired all the time? If you’re allergic or sensitive to certain foods? I have, there’s lots of niggling things that aren’t enough to get really concerned over and if I went to the GP, they wouldn’t be keen to order a load of tests for me based on feelings I have. The lovely people behind Cerascreen got in touch to arrange a meeting to discuss their launch into the UK market of their health self-testing kits and I was intrigued. So many people claim they are gluten intolerant, dairy intolerant based on the fact that they feel bloated after eating or some other vague symptoms that could be any number of things. What Cerascreen offer is a range of home health testing kits that are accessible and affordable. The best thing is, they can be done at home, by yourself and there are no restrictions (apart from being over 18).
Myself and two of my blogger colleagues Clare from Mumsy Midwife and Afra from Mad Mum of 7 went to London to meet with the founders of Cerascreen, a German company branching out into the UK . You can now buy their range of self testing health kits from www.cerascreen.co.uk. Their independent labs are based in Germany. The guys are very enthusiastic and passionate about their products and how they can help people reach optimum health. They have a background as Nutritionists.
Meeting the people behind Cerascreen
What tests are available?
There are 8 health tests available in the UK at the moment, with more to follow. In Germany there are 20 available. Here’s a list of what’s available, to find out more about the individual tests, click on the links below:
Food Reaction Test £119
Vitamin D Test £39
Histamine Intolerance Test £49
Vitamin B12 Test £39
If you’d like to order any of the tests, you can get a 10% discount as a lovely loyal reader of my blog, just quote midwifeandlife-10 when you order.
Whilst we were at the meeting, they offered us to try out the process for ourselves with the vitamin D self test kit. I was especially interested in this, because I have low energy (possibly due to having 3 children!), particularly in winter and pale skin, I don’t go out in the sun much, and when I do, I wear sunscreen and cover up.
What’s inside your self testing kit
Inside the box you get an information leaflet, telling you what your kit should contain, and clear step by step instructions for performing the test. There’s also the activation card with your own test ID and a little sticker to place on the sample bottle. Then there’s a clear sealed bag with the blood bottle, a transport bottle, 2 blood lancets, an alcohol wipe and a plaster. Finally, there’s the addressed pre-paid envelope to send the sample off in. The contents vary if it’s a saliva or urine test. The stress hormone test kit measures your cortisol levels over the course of a day and you need to provide saliva samples at set intervals. If your cortisol levels are low you could be heading for a breakdown. I’ll be testing mine soon, so I’ll let you know if I’m heading for a meltdown, at the moment I have a meltdown most days!
When you’re taking your blood sample, it can be a bit daunting to have to prick your finger, but just think about diabetics who have to do it everyday. When I was pregnant I had gestational diabetes and had to self test, so it didn’t bother me. For these tests, it’s slightly different to checking your blood sugar, you need to prick the tip of your finger, making sure it is warm first and cleaned with the alcohol wipe. You need a few drops of blood to fill the little tube up to the line.
The final step is to register an account on Cerascreen and input your test ID. The whole process in the lab is confidential, they only know you as a number and your results are confidential and won’t be shared by Cerascreen. You need to fill out a personal health questionnaire which is short and straightforward so you can get detailed results. The results take up to 5 days for some tests, but 2-3 days for most. Ours were sent on a Friday and reached the lab on Monday , we had the results by the following Thursday. My result came back as 22.1ng/ml. Ideally, a person’s vitamin D level should be 31-40, meaning I have a deficiency. It comes as no surprise to me, as I have low energy, I get stiff very easily and I’m tired all the time and prone to depression. I’ll definitely be getting some vitamin D supplements to see if it makes a difference. I’m not in the dangerously low level where it can affect bone density, which is good to know. In the detailed report, which you can download as a PDF and print for your records, it explains the results and the implications, along with lots of useful information.
The Food Testing Kits
I think a lot of people are going to be interested in the Food Reaction test, Gluten Intolerance and Lactose Intolerance Tests. They all look at two different elements, your IgE reaction which is the actual allergic reaction and the IgG4 reaction, which is the intolerance part. Both IgE and IgG4 are so-called immunglobulins. They repel substances in our body, which are recognised as harmful by our immune system. An intolerance or allergy can also result in overreactions to “harmless” substances. We then feel these overreactions in the form of stomach ache and other allergic reactions. After sending in your test, a total of 56 foods are evaluated in an extensive analysis with over 40 parameters. That means 95% of the potential causes are covered. Following on from this, you receive a detailed evaluation of your test results, personal advice and individual nutritional and dietary supplement recommendations in your personal online customer area. A comprehensive IgE and IgG4 screening of your blood is performed for the test in their human diagnostic laboratory.
I had a look at one of the reports, it gives you not only your reactions to the specific foods but also an indicator of how strong your reaction to the different foods are, so you can make informed choices about your diet. It also gives you dietary suggestions. I have one of these kits to test which I’ll be taking soon and I’ll let you know the results on my Facebook page. If you suspect you may have a food intolerance then it may be worth you taking the test.
Disclosure: I have been compensated for my time in writing this post, however all opinions are my own and honest.
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