http://theroothealthproject.com/

The Root Health Project, St. Louis, MO (2026)

02/16/2026

WHY GET TESTED?

Let’s pause the biomarker deep dive for a minute and simplify this.

Biomarkers are road signs.
They tell us when there’s trouble ahead — long before symptoms show up.

Each biomarker reflects how specific cellular pathways are functioning. And the ones I focus on? They tell us how your core cellular systems are performing.

These systems are universal.
Every single one of us depends on them.

If they aren’t functioning properly:
• Cellular energy drops
• Mitochondrial output declines
• Risk for aging and disease increases

When these core systems are off, it’s not a matter of if issues develop — it’s a matter of when and to what degree.

Why this matters

These pathways require specific:
• Nutrients
• Minerals
• Molecules

If something is missing, the pathway slows down.
Biomarkers help identify what’s lacking.

When we replace what’s deficient:
• Biomarkers move toward optimal
• Cellular pathways improve
• Energy production increases
• Health begins to recover

Normal ≠ Optimal

“Normal range” is based on the middle 95% of people tested — including those with poor lifestyle habits and underlying dysfunction.

Only the extreme 5% are flagged as abnormal.

Optimal range is different.
It’s the narrow window within normal that research associates with:
• Lowest disease risk
• Best cellular performance
• Strongest energy production

You can be “normal” — and still functioning at 60–70%.

The Big Picture

Cellular systems are interconnected.
When one pathway struggles, others follow.

That’s how a downward spiral starts.

The good news?
When we identify and correct deficiencies, we can reverse the direction — creating an upward spiral toward optimal function.

For yourself.
For your family.
For your friends.

Get tested
Take action

👉 Click the link in the Bio to connect with the tools and tests I use to correct core function!

If this resonates please share it. you might change the trajectory of someone’s health!

02/09/2026

IRON STATUS: THE LABS THAT MATTER 🩸⚙️

If you want a true picture of your iron status, you need context, not just one marker.

Key labs to assess iron properly:

🔴 Total Serum Iron
Optimal: 85–130 µg/dL

🔴 Ferritin (iron storage)
Optimal: 60–100 ng/mL

🔴 Transferrin Saturation
Optimal: 30–40%

🔴 Total Iron Binding Capacity (TIBC)
Optimal: 300–360 µg/dL

👉 These are often bundled together in a single iron panel.

⸻

❌ Absolute Iron Deficiency

(Not enough iron in the body)

• Low ferritin
• Low serum iron
• Low transferrin saturation
• Normal or high TIBC

➡️ Typically treated with iron supplementation.

⸻

❌ Functional Iron Deficiency

(Iron is present but unavailable)

• Normal or high ferritin
• Low serum iron
• Low transferrin saturation
• Low or normal TIBC

⚠️ Often associated with elevated hs-CRP (inflammation).
Iron is trapped and can’t be used effectively.

🚨 This is primarily an inflammatory issue.
Supplementing iron before addressing inflammation can worsen oxidative stress.

⸻

Why this matters

Lab values don’t exist in isolation.
You can have “normal” labs and still feel awful.

➡️ Being slightly off (sub-optimal) doesn’t just add up —
it multiplies dysfunction.

Understanding how these systems interact is the key to optimizing iron so your mitochondria can actually produce energy.

🔗 Link in bio for the iron supplement I use for true iron deficiency.
Functional iron deficiency requires a more strategic, multi-pathway approach.

Know your labs. Context changes everything.

02/05/2026

⚠️ Signs of Low Iron

• Brain fog
• Headaches
• Lightheadedness
• Increased anxiety or irritability
• Heart palpitations / arrhythmias
• Fatigue
• Shortness of breath
• Exercise intolerance
• Cold hands and feet
• Restless legs
• Brittle nails & hair loss

🔴 The common denominator?
All of these symptoms are tied to low cellular energy.

Your brain and heart are two of the most energy-demanding organs in the body.

❌ IRON DEFICIENCY IS A MITOCHONDRIAL ENERGY CRISIS FIRST.

By the time anemia shows up on labs, mitochondria have often been underpowered for months—or years.

⸻

✅ Why iron matters at the cellular level:

• Iron is required for the electron transport chain
Low iron → broken electron flow → ↓ ATP (energy)

• Iron deficiency shifts cells into survival metabolism
↑ Lactate and worsened NAD⁺ / NADH balance

• Iron is required for mitochondrial biogenesis
Low iron accelerates functional decline with aging

• Iron deficiency increases oxidative stress
More membrane damage + higher inflammatory signaling

⸻

❌ The vicious loop:

Low iron → mitochondrial dysfunction
Mitochondrial dysfunction → ↑ ROS & inflammation
Inflammation → ↑ hepcidin
Hepcidin blocks iron absorption & traps iron in macrophages

➡️ Mitochondria are starved even when total body iron looks “normal.”

🔴 This creates FUNCTIONAL IRON DEFICIENCY —
one of the most under-recognized drivers of chronic fatigue and disease progression.

⸻

➡️ Next post:
The exact labs to run and how to actually fix this.

📢 Please share this. Someone you know is dealing with this right now.

🔗 Link in bio to the tools I personally use with clients.

02/04/2026

⚠️ About 1 in 3 people has some form of iron deficiency

In women of child-bearing age, the number is likely even higher.

Key iron biomarkers to look at:
🔴 Serum Iron – low circulating iron
🔴 Ferritin – depleted iron storage
🔴 TIBC – often reflects late-stage deficiency, liver stress, or chronic inflammation impairing iron transport

⸻

❌ Who’s most at risk?
• Women of reproductive age
• Endurance athletes
• GI disorders or poor absorption
• Older adults
• Chronic inflammatory states
• Low-protein or restrictive diets

⸻

📉 As iron levels fall, disease risk rises:
• 20–40% ↑ risk of heart failure
• 30–60% ↑ risk of cognitive decline
• 40–60% ↑ immune dysfunction & infections
• 30–50% ↓ aerobic capacity
• 20–30% ↑ all-cause mortality

⚠️ You can be deficient, symptomatic, and at risk
long before anemia appears on labs.

⸻

🔍 Iron thresholds often missed:
❌ Ferritin

01/30/2026

People keep asking what I’ve been doing since I stepped away from clinical practice after 31 years.

For a long time, I didn’t have a clean answer.

I had the research.
I had an idea.
But I didn’t yet have the words

I’d try to explain it and end up saying something like:
“I’m doing advanced blood tests that look at your biochemistry down to the cellular level.”

That usually earned a polite nod… or a glazed look.

Sometimes they would ask, “Like functional medicine,” and I would say yes, mostly because I didn’t know how to explain what I was really trying to do

What I did know is one reason why I left.
I loved helping people, but I couldn’t ignore the fact that you can only physically see a limited number of people in a day.

This idea doesn’t fit inside a clinic schedule.

I didn’t want to help only a few people a day.
I wanted to help people understand why their health was changing — long before disease showed up.

That’s how The Root Health Project was born.

It’s about teaching people how their cells actually work — and what happens when those core systems start to struggle.

Because health doesn’t usually disappear overnight.

It erodes quietly.

Your body compensates.
Lab values stay “in range.”
You feel mostly fine… until one day, you don’t.

Just because you’re young or feel “fine” doesn’t exclude you.

By the time symptoms appear, the story has often been unfolding for years.

One of the hardest things to explain is this:

“Normal” labs don’t always mean things are okay.

Patterns matter.
Trends matter.

Groups of markers that are slightly off can signal accelerated aging or breakdown.

Cellular pathways tell a story — if you know how to read them.

When those pathways struggle, energy drops, aging accelerates, and disease risk rises.

That’s the work I’m committed to now: helping people understand those signals earlier — and showing them that, often, the body can respond when the right pieces are restored.

If this resonates, keep reading the pinned comment below. It explains why this matters so deeply to me.

Link in bio to the tools and tests I use and trust.

Keep learning.
Keep asking questions.
Keep fighting for the years you deserve.

01/26/2026

KNOW YOUR NUMBERS KNOW YOUR RISK!

This quarter essentially describes accelerated biological aging with multiple cellular pathway issues.

🔴 Each marker both reflects and perpetuates the others.

❎ 6-10X cardiovascular risk

❎ 5-8X neurodegenerative risk

❎ 4-6X metabolic syndrome

❎ 3-5X all cause mortality risk

Know your numbers these are all modifiable

Click the link in the Bio and go to my Fullscript dispensary to see what I use to improve these pathways.

Reduce your risk

As always please share this information with those you care about! Someone you know is heading towards a health crisis. YOU can change the trajectory of someone’s health.

01/20/2026

🔴 KNOW YOUR FORMS OF MAGNESIUM!

❎ Magnesium Glycinate

Chelated with the amino acid glycine. Very good bioavailability and gentle on the stomach which makes it good for long term use. Excellent for sleep, anxiety, stress and muscle cramps.

❎ Magnesium Citrate

This form is bound to citric acid from fruits. This form absorbs quickly and has good bioavailability. It’s a good all around magnesium supplements but is known to pull water into the bowel. This makes it a good choice for those with constipation.

❎ Magnesium Malate

This form is bound with malic acid from fruits. It has good bioavailability. It may support energy production which makes it a good choice for fatigue and muscle soreness.

❎ Magnesium Taurate

This form is bound to Taurine . It’s designed to support cardiovascular health. May help with heart rhythm, stress and anxiety.

❎ Magnesium L- Theonate

This is a special patented form that is bound to threonic acid. This form crosses the blood brain barrier and helps with cognition, anxiety and mood.
A good choice to help with sleep issues.

❎ Magnesium Oxide

This is a super cheap form. Very poor bioavailability less than 10 percent absorption rate. May act as a laxative.

To replenish magnesium levels of your RBC magnesium is low expect it to take some time.
That makes your choice of magnesium supplementation even more important.

Click the link in the bio to connect to my Fullscript dispensary .This is where I put my favorite supplements to correct all the deficiencies I talk about. This one will simply be listed under ( low RBC Magnesium)

As always I ask you to please share this information with those you care about. You could change the trajectory of someone’s health!!

01/14/2026

❎ This is why Magnesium deficiency is considered a hidden epidemic!

Magnesium is involved in over 600 enzymatic reaction!

If you’re low nothing is working properly.

Check out my last post to see what conditions are involved with magnesium deficiency and who’s at risk!

As always this information could change someone’s life please share with your friends and family.

01/13/2026

Magnesium is one of the most important minerals in human biology and one of the most under recognized! It’s involved in almost every major system in the body. When magnesium is low nothing works right. Low RBC magnesium is not just “nutrient deficiency” it is a systemic risk multiplier!

MAGNESIUM IS REQUIRED FOR 600+ ENZYMATIC REACTIONS

If RBC magnesium is low if directly affects:

❎ energy production

❎ nervous system stability

❎ heart rhythm

❎ blood sugar control

❎ hormone signaling

❎ immune defense

❎ DNA repair

❎ detoxification

❎ Bone strength

High risk groups for low RBC magnesium

🔴 chronic stress

🔴 high caffeine intake

🔴 high alcohol intake

🔴 insulin resistance or diabetes

🔴 GI disorders

🔴 long term PPI use

🔴 long term diuretics

🔴 high calcium supplementation

🔴 chronic inflammation or infection

Follow along in this series of posts to understand why you want RBC magnesium tested and not serum magnesium levels.

This biomarker is vitally important! As always please share this with friends and family members you could change the trajectory of someone’s health!

01/09/2026

The lab test for homocysteine levels is readily available from most standard lab facilities.

It is a valuable BIOMARKER to access cardiovascular risk. I believe it’s more valuable than total cholesterol.

Elevation of homocysteine indicates a breakdown of fundamental cellular pathways. This has implications not only in cardiovascular disease but, neurological conditions, immune function and modification of Gene expression by altering methylation patterns.

As I stated before it’s not just a BIOMARKER it is actively damaging blood vessels if it’s elevated.

The good news is by correcting a few nutrient deficiencies these pathways are often easily corrected.

Click the link in the Bio to take you to my Fullscript dispensary there you will find the supplements I use to correct this. It’s simply listed under high homocysteine.

As always please share this information. You may change the trajectory of someone’s health

12/31/2025

Elevated Homocysteine has implications in immune function, neurological function and methylation of genes,

There is one area in particular that I hope will make you get tested and take action.

ELEVATED HOMOCYSTEINE IS ACTIVELY DAMAGING YOUR BLOOD VESSELS!

🔴 Over 10 µmol/L
• Cardiovascular disease risk ↑ ~20–30%
• Stroke risk ↑ ~25%
• All-cause mortality ↑ ~15–20%

(Risk begins here even with normal cholesterol)

⸻

🔴 Over 12–15 µmol/L
• Heart attack risk ↑ ~40–60%
• Stroke risk ↑ ~50%
• Dementia risk ↑ ~30–50%
• Brain volume loss accelerates

Studies show each 5 µmol/L increase:
➡️ ~20–25% increase in cardiovascular events

⸻

🔴 Over 15 µmol/L
• Cardiovascular mortality ↑ ~65–80%
• Alzheimer’s disease risk ↑ up to 2×
• Venous blood clot risk ↑ 2–3×
• Pregnancy complications ↑ (neural tube defects, miscarriage)

⸻

🔴 Over 20 µmol/L
• Stroke risk ↑ 4–5×
• Severe endothelial dysfunction
• High thrombosis risk
• Strong association with early mortality

Doctors often focus on cholesterol not vascular inflammation!

There is a genetic variation that makes those who have it more likely to have elevated homocysteine but, the strongest association is age!

You can have elevated homocysteine at any age but if you are over 50 I strongly urge you to get tested.

Please tell your parents and grandparents to ask for this on their blood test!

As always please share this information with others you may change the trajectory of someone’s health!

Next post we will talk a little more on testing and underlying nutritional deficiencies that can improve homocysteine levels!

12/30/2025

What is Homocysteine?

Homocysteine is a sulfur containing amino acid that is produced from the breakdown of protein ( methionine )
Under healthy conditions it is recycled and cleared!
When this process fails it accumulates!

Why does this matter?

High homocysteine is not just a BIOMARKER it is biologically active and damaging!

HIGH HOMOCYSTEINE:

❎ Damages endothelial cells( the inner lining of blood vessels)

❎ Increases oxidative stress

❎ Promotes inflammation

❎ Disrupts nitric oxide signaling

❎ Increases blood clotting tendency

❎ Impairs mitochondrial dysfunction

❎ Accelerates brain aging

This is why it is linked to cardiovascular, neurological and metabolic disease!

⚠️Most labs consider normal up to 15 umol/ L but your disease risk rises well before that!

HOMOCYSTEINE is an amplifier of disease- damaging blood vessels, brain tissue and mitochondria long before symptoms appear.

IF YOUR LEVEl IS OVER 10 THE RISK HAS ALREADY BEGUN!

Next post we will drill in a little more on that risk!

If you have elevated Homocysteine and elevated hs CRP ( the previous biomarker we outlined ) the combination is DEADLY!

it is an easy test to get and you should ask for it on your labs!

As always PLEASE share this information with your friends and family! Tell them to get this tested! It’s easy to fix and you could change the trajectory of their health. Left unchecked they could be speeding to a heart attack!

The Root Health Project

02/16/2026

02/09/2026

02/05/2026

02/04/2026

01/30/2026

01/26/2026

01/20/2026

01/14/2026

01/13/2026

01/09/2026

12/31/2025

12/30/2025

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