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What does it cost to go to a doctor and get tested for deficiency? You'd only need to do that once a decade or after implementing major changes to your diet. I
by Jolter 9y ago
What does it cost to go to a doctor and get tested for deficiency? You'd only need to do that once a decade or after implementing major changes to your diet. I have a feeling it would come out to less than your strategy of eating pills "just in case".
- freedomben 9y agoIt's not quite that simple.. Firstly, it is surprisingly costly and it's getting more so because of several factors (a big one being insurance company regulation around requiring tests to be linked to diagnosis codes. This makes the doctor look bad for giving "unnecessary tests" which in turn makes them not want to give you a test if there isn't clinical evidence to warrant it, regardless of your desire and willingness to pay for it). Secondly, you need to be tested much more often than once a decade. Levels can vary wildly based on diet in sometimes complicated ways. For example? Vitamin D levels are dropping despite no changes in vitamin D intake (and sun exposure). This turns out to be a calcium deficiency, which is required for vitamin D absorption. The calcium deficiency in turn results from some other condition not necessarily related to diet. You also need to be re-tested potentially many times after beginning a supplement to determine if you are at the correct dose. In some cases when the supplement can be dangerous at high levels (such as Vitamin B6 or Iron) you need to be tested regularly for a while to ensure you aren't overdosing (especially B6 levels too high can cause nasty symptoms). Source: personal experience doing exactly this with a variety of vitamins and minerals
- pigscantfly 9y agoYou should find a doctor who doesn't take insurance. Out of pocket will be higher, but you can file for reimbursement yourself to offset some of the charges, and the doctor shouldn't have a problem offering a test.
- coldtea 9y ago>It's not quite that simple.. Firstly, it is surprisingly costly and it's getting more so because of several factors Well, in these parts of Europe it's like €50 or so.
- pkaye 9y agoThe most common deficiencies are vitamin D, iron, magnesium, vitamin B12, and vitamin B9. Maybe $200-$300 to get them checked without insurance. I think most people shouldn't be concerned about supplements except vitamin D and iron. Just eat a varied diet.
- nradov 9y agoTests for most of those micronutrients are not very precise, and actual blood levels can fluctuate widely from day to day or even hour by hour depending on what you just ate or how active you've been. So in order to establish a reliable baseline you'd have to do multiple lab tests spread out at various times over several days.
- snikeris 9y agoI don't think there are tests for everything. For example, a search for "choline deficiency test" didn't turn up anything for me.
- smileysteve 9y agoOn the other hand, if deficient in anything, the generic multi-vitamin is likely much less expensive than a targeted vitamin.