Metabolism Test Panel — Expanded

About this test

This expanded panel builds on the basic metabolism panel to include blood sugar markers, key B vitamins, and additional metabolic indicators — providing a detailed look at how your body regulates energy, hormones, and essential nutrients. It's appropriate for people dealing with unexplained fatigue, weight changes, metabolic symptoms, or those who want a thorough baseline metabolic assessment.

The additional markers in this panel help distinguish between energy problems caused by hormonal imbalance versus nutrient deficiency versus blood sugar dysregulation — distinctions that directly affect what treatment or lifestyle changes will help most.

Components

• Cortisol: The adrenal stress hormone that regulates blood sugar, energy, and inflammation. Chronically high or low cortisol can have wide-ranging effects on metabolism and wellbeing.
• Testosterone (Total): Affects muscle, bone, energy, and mood in both men and women. Both excess and deficiency can cause metabolic symptoms.
• TSH with reflex to Free T4: Screens for thyroid dysfunction — one of the most common and treatable causes of metabolic problems, weight gain, and fatigue.
• DHEA-S: An adrenal hormone that declines with age and can influence energy, body composition, and hormonal balance.
• Glucose (fasting): Your current blood sugar level, checked while fasting. A key marker for diagnosing and monitoring diabetes and prediabetes.
• Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c): Reflects average blood sugar over the past 2–3 months — a more stable and reliable indicator of long-term glucose control than a single fasting glucose reading.
• Vitamin B9 (Folate): Essential for cell production, DNA repair, and red blood cell health. Deficiency causes fatigue and a specific type of anemia.
• Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin): Required for nerve function and red blood cell production. Deficiency is more common in people who eat little meat, take certain medications (like metformin), or have absorption issues, and causes fatigue and neurological symptoms.
• Calcium: Important for bone health, nerve signaling, and muscle function. Metabolic disorders often affect calcium regulation.

Who is this test for?

This panel is best suited for adults who have already done basic metabolic screening and want a more complete hormonal and nutritional picture. It is also appropriate for people working with a healthcare provider to investigate more complex symptoms such as unexplained weight gain, chronic fatigue, poor exercise response, or hormonal imbalance.