Finding the root cause of your health issues

A hair analysis test is like taking your car for an MOT. You’re given a full report on how everything is functioning, what’s not working properly and what’s needed for it to be fixed. You give your car a regular MOT to make sure its engine is working well, so why not give yourself a regular hair analysis test to make sure your engine is OK? Naturopathic nutritionist Rhi Hepple explains how this simple test has helped some of her clients find the root of their health issues and resolve them

My hair analysis test is a wonderful tool that provides you with a picture of your true state of health. It enables you to find out where there are imbalances in your system so you can follow guidelines to restore and rejuvenate your body to heal itself. Your body has an amazing power to heal itself, but it can’t magic that power up from nothing. With your hair analysis report you have that power printed in black and white.

I have had some fascinating results from this test. Sometimes the change it can make in someone’s life can be dramatic. One woman discovered the root cause of why she’d had loose stools and an urgency to go to the toilet for over 20 years. I remember receiving an email from someone else who within weeks of making some changes in her diet had cleared years of mucus – she joked how ticklish it felt now she could breathe through her nose! Another client’s sleep disorder was soon resolved after supporting his metabolism of protein.

• Weight issues If someone comes to me because they have weight issues and constantly feel hungry I can often resolve this with simple digestive supports. Often the hair analysis test will reveal that they are not producing digestive enzymes. If your body is not metabolising enough fat, carbohydrate or protein (despite having these in your diet) then it will keep craving more food to fill that void. Not producing enough of those digestive enzymes to support the metabolism of these major food groups will have a huge effect on your health.
• IBS I often hear from clients who have had IBS issues for years and food allergy testing has not come up with any answers. But after doing the hair test we have found out that their loose bowels are because of not digesting fat, their stomach pain and trapped wind are due to not metabolising carbohydrates.
• Constant hunger can often be put down to not metabolising protein.
• Lack of energy may be caused by poor metabolism of carbohydrates.
• Constant mucus The root cause of the mucus a client had been struggling with for years wasn’t the dairy she had cut out of her diet but the soya she had replaced it with.
• Skin problems The hair test can establish that skin problems people struggle with – from psoriasis to acne to cysts – were being exacerbated by a very poor gut flora. Once that gut flora was re-established and healthy digestive function restored the skin clears. Poor skin health could be due to digestive issues; in which case bacterial or fungal infections or constipation are common. Or it might be a sluggish liver, and kidney not detoxifying well enough. Sometimes food sensitivities may be aggravating your skin inflammation (most commonly dairy, gluten, particular fruits and sugar). There could be a number of reasons but the hair analysis test will pinpoint what the specific reason is which can advise you how to resolve.
• Mental health issues The hair analysis testing has also enabled me to uncover the root of some people’s mental wellbeing issues – whether it be chronic nutrient deficiencies, deficiencies of amino acids or gut flora issues such as candida or bacterial infections (again that gut flora really is the root of our physical, mental and emotional health). A lack of tryptophan, for example, could be the reason you struggle with depression as tryptophan is the precursor of serotonin (our happy hormone). It also helps to regulate our sleep so resolving this deficiency often resolves years of insomnia.
• Inflammation Deficiency of the amino acid glutamine could be the reason that someone has so much inflammation, as glutamine is needed to repair the gut wall. If there is any damage to the gut wall and the body doesn’t have what it needs to heal it, then you get ‘leaky gut’, where toxins are reabsorbed into the bloodstream.
• Food sensitivities The hair analysis test pinpoints any foods that you may be sensitive to – this is not foods you are allergic to but foods that disagree with your digestive system and may be aggravating your symptoms. Often sugar and yeast are highlighted as aggravators when candida is abundant in the digestive tract as these are what these ‘bad bacteria’ feed on. It might be that certain fruits, vegetables or grains are aggravating your inflammation. By eliminating these from the diet for a period of time you can take the pressure off the digestive system and enable it to have the energy to heal. Issues like diverticulitis and colitis are soon resolved once you know what is aggravating the digestive system – avoid that food and take anything the test reveals you are deficient in and you provide the body with what it needs to heal.
• Liver and kidney imbalances Finding an imbalance in the liver or kidneys can have a huge impact on health issues, but taking a few supplements and eating particular foods to strengthen the function of these organs can really relieve symptoms. One client’s constant nausea and another’s migraines and another’s wakefulness at 3am were all resolved with digestive aids to take the pressure off the liver, along with eating plenty of foods to support its function.
• Hormone imbalance can be supported if we see poor gut flora health, a sluggish liver or essential fatty acid deficiency. All these areas are needed to support how the body makes and processes hormones.

Preventive healthcare: isn’t it far more preferable than tackling ill health? 

Hair analysis testing provides a picture of what has gone on with your health over the last six months or so (depending on how long your hair is). So just like that MOT it can be a picture of your imbalance at this time. A re-test can show a completely different set of results once a lot of the imbalances have been resolved by following our guidelines. Obviously an improvement in your symptoms is the first sign of improvement in your health. By ensuring you have restored balance and improved how you digest, metabolise and absorb nutrients is the best way you can support your health in the future. Naturopathic nutrition is not just about resolving your current symptoms but ensuring your health for the future stays strong and prevents you from any health issues.

To find out how the hair analysis test works or book a test click here