One Lab Test. More Treatment Options.
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Why knowing your G6PD status now, can help guide care later.
There’s one simple lab test we think almost everyone at Michigan Immune Defense should consider having done once: G6PD — glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase.
G6PD is an enzyme that helps red blood cells protect themselves against oxidative stress. A small percentage of the population has an inherited G6PD deficiency, and many people have no idea they have it.
Why does that matter at MID?
Because your G6PD status is important information when considering higher-dose IV vitamin C.
Our Active Illness Infusion includes 7.5 grams of vitamin C, which allows us to provide supportive care even if you haven't previously had a G6PD test.
But if we've already tested you and know you're not G6PD deficient, we have more options. When clinically appropriate, we can consider increasing the vitamin C in your Active Illness Infusion to 15 grams without first having to order the test and wait for the result.
That same information can also help guide decisions if higher-dose vitamin C protocols are considered for you in the future.
It's a simple $60 blood test, and once we have the information, it becomes another valuable piece of your health history.
We'd rather have that information before we need it than wait until we do.
Key Takeaways
G6PD stands for glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, an enzyme that helps protect red blood cells from oxidative stress.
G6PD deficiency is inherited, and many people who have it don't know it.
At MID, we require G6PD status before considering vitamin C doses above 10 grams.
You can still receive our 7.5-gram Active Illness Infusion if you haven't previously been tested.
Having an acceptable G6PD result already on file gives us the option to consider 15 grams of vitamin C during an acute illness when clinically appropriate.
The same result can help determine eligibility for higher-dose vitamin C protocols in the future.
The G6PD test is $60 and generally only needs to be established once for this purpose.
We've already done the homework.
Knowing more about your body before you need treatment gives us more information—and more options—when you do.
Your future health is being built today.
Take care of your cells, and they'll take care of you.
FULL ARTICLE:
There's one $60 lab test that I think everyone should have done, and it's a good chance you've never heard of it. It's called G6PD, glucose 6 phosphate dehydrogenase. It's an enzyme that helps your red blood cells protect themselves against oxidative stress.
Most people have a normal G6PD activity, but a small percentage of the population did not. They have a genetic deficiency in G6PD. So, why do I hear about it? Because knowing your G6PD status gives us important information about what therapies we can use for you in the future.
At MID, one of those therapies is higher doses of IV vitamin C. Our IV vitamin C protocols can range from five all the way up to 100 g. But before we move above 10 grams, our protocol requires that we know your G6PD status. That's because at higher doses of vitamin C, it can cause oxidative stress. And someone who is G6PD deficient can be at increased risk for red blood cell breakdown with higher doses of vitamin C. So knowing this ahead of time really matters.
Let's say you wake up sick, you call us. We absolutely fit you in and we support you with our active illness infusion, which includes 7 and a half grams of vitamin C. But if we've already tested your D6PD, we can double the vitamin C in that infusion to 15 g. So instead of having to stay at our lower dose when you're sick, we can double it and get you better quicker.
And then we also have that information to consider higher dose protocols in the future. That's the real reason I want this information in your chart. We're not waiting until you're sick to start gathering information about your body.
We've already done the homework. And in the future, if you want to use higher doses of vitamin C as a more intensive protocol for prevention against chronic disease, we have it already covered.
It's a simple $60 blood test. You do it once and now we have another important piece of information that can help guide your care going forward. I'd rather have that information before we need it than wait until we do. That's what proactive healthcare looks like.
Your future health is being built today. Take care of your cells and they'll take care of you.
