Index of Tests and Treatment Claims Checked on This Site

This index collects the pages that check tests, treatments and marketing claims sold in naturopathic, functional and integrative settings. The pages are critical and educational. They say what a test or treatment claims, what it actually measures or does, what medical guidance says, and where there are documented harms. Where a treatment has a legitimate medical use, that use is stated separately from the marketed claim. This site never tells anyone to buy or order a test, and nothing here replaces care from your own doctor. For urgent symptoms, call 911 first.

Start with the questions

Before reading about any one claim, three habits help. Ask whether there is scientific evidence, not just personal stories, behind the statement.[1] NCCIH notes that evidence from research studies is stronger and more reliable than an advertisement, a website or someone's account of what worked for them.[1] And remember that no test is perfect: false positives and false negatives happen, and are more likely with certain types of tests or if testing was not done right.[2] For plain definitions of lab words, see Lab Test and Clinical Terms.

Tests sold in integrative practice

A note on legitimate uses: a cortisol test, for example, is used in medicine to help diagnose or rule out conditions that cause too much or too little cortisol.[3] The question on the test pages is whether a marketed use goes beyond what the test is validated for. For standard tests, see the table in the lab terms page above. Biohacking-focused guides to the same tests are at food sensitivity panels, hair mineral analysis, microbiome tests, saliva hormone tests and home lab testing and longevity clinic panels.

Treatments and programs checked

For detox in general, NCCIH says some "detoxification" or "cleansing" programs can be unsafe and falsely advertised, and reports a 2015 review that found no compelling research supporting "detox" diets for weight management or removing toxins.[4] NCCIH also states that the CDC recommends chelation therapy to remove toxic metals in some specific serious cases, which is a medical use and separate from marketed "detox" chelation.[4] On cancer, NCCIH says no complementary health approach has been shown to prevent or cure cancer.[5] More background: detox and chelation specialty claims, ozone therapy claims and intravenous delivery science.

Claim checks: short, direct answers

• Naturopaths treat the root cause, doctors treat symptoms
• Adrenal fatigue is a real diagnosis
• Toxins build up in your body and cause disease
• Food sensitivity tests find your trigger foods
• IV vitamins boost energy and immunity
• Functional medicine finds what doctors miss
• Natural treatments cure cancer or autoimmune disease

Tools for judging any claim

Naturopathic and Integrative Claims With No Good Trial Support, Red Flags in Integrative and Naturopathic Marketing, Regulatory Oversight of Supplements, Tests and Clinic Claims and Evaluating Clinic Claims. The practices side of the library is in the Index of Naturopathic and Integrative Practices.