In February 2025, a systematic literature review found that 32%-66% of Americans were undergoing at least the basic recommended preventive blood tests each year.¹

While the authors of this published report say this is still “suboptimal,” it represents a significant improvement over prior decades when relatively few people underwent blood screenings.¹

When doctors check blood levels of lipids, inflammatory markers, and kidney function, they’re looking for early warning signs of health issues that can be detected and corrected before irreversible damage manifests.

Life Extension long ago advocated for comprehensive annual blood testing to screen for a wide range of disease risk factors.

This article describes the most popular blood test panels utilized by our readers.

The Value of Blood Panels

Long before someone shows symptoms of a disease, blood tests can identify risk factors for its development, alerting patients and doctors to potential problems.

The most popular tests our readers have each year are the Male and Female Blood Test Panels These panels screen for the most common conditions and identify risks for a wide range of diseases.

If abnormalities are found, doctors can initiate an appropriate response. Many concerns can be effectively managed with dietary and lifestyle changes or medications.

What To Test For

The Male and Female Blood Test Panels have been created to obtain maximum biomedical value at a consumer-friendly affordable cost.

All of the tests you see on this and the next three pages are included in the Male and Female Panels:

Chemistry with Lipids

The chemistry panel is a group of tests that assess common minerals, as well as markers of liver and kidney function.

It includes a comprehensive lipid panel that measures different atherogenic factors, including total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides and apolipoprotein B. The results can be used to estimate coronary heart disease risk and take steps to correct the risk factors detected.

For instance, elevated apolipoprotein B signals an increased risk of cardiovascular disease^,2-4 while liver⁴ and kidney function³ tests can help reveal diseases that are reversible if caught in time.

Complete Blood Count

The complete blood count (CBC) quantifies various immune cell subsets, red blood cells, anemia markers, and platelets.⁵

Abnormalities may indicate infectious disease, immune function disorders, blood disorders, clotting abnormalities, and nutritional deficiencies.⁵

Ferritin

Iron is vital for transporting oxygen in the blood. Inadequate iron results in iron deficiency anemia.

Testing for ferritin, an iron-binding protein involved in storing iron in cells, measures the body’s stored iron levels.⁶

Free and Total Testosterone

In men, the hormone testosterone maintains reproductive function and supports healthy bone and muscle mass, libido, mood, and more. Levels decline with age, contributing to loss of libido, erectile dysfunction, depression, and frailty.⁷

Testosterone also plays an important role in endocrine function in women. Low testosterone can contribute to low libido, vaginal dryness, and other symptoms.⁷

It is best to measure both the total testosterone and free testosterone for a complete assessment.

DHEA-S

The hormone dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) is a precursor to sex hormones (estrogen, testosterone, DHT) and is an important aspect of optimal hormone levels. It supports energy, immune function, healthy bone, and muscle mass while supporting stress response.^8,9 It is the most abundant circulating steroid hormone in the body, and as such should be evaluated periodically.¹⁰

Levels of DHEA-S typically drop with age.⁹ Maintaining youthful levels may have multiple significant anti-aging benefits.¹¹

Estradiol

Estradiol (E2) is the primary form of the hormone estrogen in women. Its secretion by the ovaries helps regulate reproductive function. Adequate estrogen helps maintain reproductive, bone, and vaginal health, along with skin elasticity, and more.¹²

Men also produce estrogen.^13-15 Low levels can increase risk for osteoporosis and fractures and high levels can cause estrogenic effects in the male body.^14,15

It is important to maintain estrogen in a balanced state. For both genders, it should not be too high or too low, and it should be viewed in context with other hormones like testosterone, progesterone, and DHEA-S.

Homocysteine

If the level of the amino acid homocysteine rises too high, it can significantly increase the risk of coronary artery disease.¹⁶ It is considered as an independent risk factor for coronary, cerebral and peripheral athero-sclerosis. Some people have a genetic predisposition to have higher homocysteine levels and can take easy steps to lower it.¹⁷

C-Reactive Protein

The high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) test can measure the level of systemic inflammation. Persistently elevated CRP indicates chronic inflammation.¹⁸

By identifying inflammation early, patients and their doctors can make changes to counter it and reduce its damage.

When CRP is elevated, it indicates a higher risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer and dementia.¹⁹

Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone

Low or high levels of thyroid hormones can lead to significant problems.

Hypothyroidism (low levels) can cause fatigue, weight gain, hair thinning, dry skin, and depression.²⁰

Hyperthyroidism (high levels) may cause hand tremors, rapid and irregular heartbeat, and weight loss.²¹

Testing thyroid-stimulating hormone is an important indicator of high or low thyroid hormone levels, which can typically be corrected with medication or thyroid-supportive herbs and nutrients.

Vitamin D

Low vitamin D has been tied to increased risk for cognitive decline, cardiovascular disease, metabolic disease, cancer, and osteoporosis.^22,23

It is virtually impossible to achieve optimal vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D) status without testing one’s blood for it. For some people, just 2,000-3,000 IU a day of vitamin D is needed, whereas others require 5,000-8,000 IU of supplemental vitamin D daily.

We at Life Extension see vitamin D values that are too high and too low. When it is too low, often adding a few thousand IUs a day (with a heavy meal) usually enables optimal 25-hydroxyvitamin D to be achieved.

When 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels are too high, such as over 100 ng/mL, we alert the customer and advise them to cut back on vitamin D supplements until lower levels are confirmed on a follow-up vitamin D test.

Low levels are common in the general population and can be increased through oral intake of vitamin D.

Hemoglobin A1c

Metabolic diseases, including metabolic syndrome and type II diabetes, are a major driver of accelerated age-related decline in health and can lead to other serious health problems.²⁴

A key component of metabolic disease is elevated blood glucose, which causes damage to tissues when the glucose binds to proteins in the body in a process called glycation.²⁵

Glucose levels may rise and fall throughout the day and fluctuate with food intake, making it difficult to see an overall effect from a single glucose test result. Hemoglobin A1c (A1c) overcomes this problem since it is a marker of long-term glucose control over the last two to three months.²⁶

Higher A1C levels indicate that glucose is persistently elevated in the blood and may indicate a need for dietary and lifestyle changes, medications, and nutrients.²⁵

Insulin

Testing insulin also provides critical information about metabolic health.

When cells are sensitive to insulin, glucose and fasting insulin levels stay lower. With insulin resistance, insulin levels rise, which can lead to type II diabetes.

High insulin is one of the best and earliest signals of insulin resistance.²⁷ High insulin means the body is trying too hard to overcome insulin resistance in its early stages by secreting excessive amounts of insulin in an attempt to get more glucose into the cells.²⁸

A common oversight in medical practice today is testing for glucose and A1c but omitting fasting insulin.

Those in early diabetic stages with elevated fasting insulin may have normal levels of glucose and A1c because the insulin pushes down glucose and A1c, but only temporarily. As insulin resistance worsens, glucose and A1C will continue to increase until type II diabetes diagnosis manifests, which will torpedo healthy longevity.²⁹

Apolipoprotein B (ApoB)

Apolipoprotein B plays a role in allowing LDL particles to penetrate the arterial wall and trigger changes that lead to formation and progression of occlusive plaque, i.e., atherosclerosis.

Higher levels are tied to the development of atherosclerosis, which can lead to cardiovascular disease, that can result in heart attack and stroke.³⁰

The higher your ApoB, the higher your cardiovascular risk. There are several ways to reduce elevated ApoB that we discuss with customers who inquire.

Magnesium

Hundreds of enzymatic reactions throughout the body require the mineral magnesium to function.³¹

Many people do not get enough in their diet. Low levels have been tied to cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, cognitive dysfunction, and other problems.³¹ If blood levels are too low, the body may compensate for this by pulling magnesium out of other tissues to try to get levels in a better range. If it is pulled from the bone, this can weaken it; if pulled from other tissues, this can have negative effects on metabolism.³²

Cortisol

Cortisol is a new addition to the Male and Female Blood Test Panels this year, highlighting its increasing relevance in comprehensive health assessments. It is a vital hormone for optimal functioning in life and is especially important in times of stress, both physical and emotional. Without it, the effects of stress would overwhelm the body and mind.^33,34

Studies show that elevated cortisol levels significantly increase mortality risk, with men facing a 63% higher risk, women an 82% higher risk,³⁵ and with a five-fold increase in cardiovascular-related deaths in both genders.³⁶

Like most hormones, cortisol needs to be in the right balance. Chronic stress, disease, and aging can disrupt cortisol regulation, which may be associated with numerous negative health outcomes, such as weight gain, metabolic disorders,³³ and progression of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease.³⁴

Cortisol is also vital for immune response. However, if cortisol remains persistently elevated, it can cause immune dysfunction as well as an increased risk of chronic diseases.³⁷ Cortisol levels are highest in the morning to help start the day, then generally decline as the day goes on.³⁴

Why Separate Panels for Men and Women?

Some tests are mostly relevant for one gender, which is why there are separate Male and Female Blood Test Panels.

The sex hormone progesterone can be heavily involved in women’s health, while PSA screening applies to men as described in the following two paragraphs:

Progesterone

The female panel tests levels of progesterone. This sex hormone is essential to female health, particularly the reproductive system.³⁸ The decline in progesterone levels during menopause can affect sleep. Progesterone also plays a role in improving sleep quality and mood symptoms, such as anxiety and depression.³⁹

Prostate Specific Antigen

The male panel includes prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing. Elevated levels of this protein may indicate benign prostatic hypertrophy (enlarged prostate), prostatitis or prostate cancer.⁴⁰

Summary

Regular blood testing measures risk factors for common diseases, allowing problems to be identified early so steps can be taken to correct them. Blood testing can reveal issues long before they develop into serious diseases.

Annual Male and Female Blood Test Panels are an effective way to stay on top of your health, helping to flag concerns before they lead to illness.

If you have any questions on the scientific content of this article, please call a Life Extension Wellness Specialist at 1-866-864-3027.

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