Know Your Health
Female Wellness Profile: What Does It Check?
Looking after your health is not only about visiting a healthcare professional when something feels wrong. Regular health screening can help provide a broader picture of how your body is functioning and may help identify areas that need further attention.
A female wellness profile brings together a number of laboratory tests that look at different aspects of health. Rather than focusing on one specific concern, the profile provides information about areas such as blood health, blood sugar, heart and circulation, kidney function, liver health, thyroid function and nutritional markers.
For adults with a low or moderate health risk, a female wellness profile can provide useful baseline information about these areas of health. Understanding what the profile checks can also help you know what to expect before having your tests.
This guide explains what a female wellness profile includes, what the individual tests can tell you and why looking at several health markers together can be useful.
What Is a Female Wellness Profile?
A female wellness profile is a collection of laboratory tests designed to provide a broad overview of several important areas of health.
Instead of having a single test for one particular concern, the profile brings together several tests that can provide information about different parts of the body.
The Essential General Wellness Female profile includes tests covering:
- Blood health
- Blood sugar
- Heart and circulation
- Kidney health
- Liver health
- Thyroid function
- Nutritional markers
The profile includes several commonly used laboratory investigations, including a full blood count, HbA1c, lipid profile, creatinine, liver function tests, TSH, ferritin, vitamin D, vitamin B12 and an albumin/creatinine ratio.
A female wellness profile is therefore not designed to answer just one health question. It provides a collection of results that can be considered alongside your health history and other information.
Who Might Consider a Female Wellness Profile?
The Essential General Wellness Female profile is intended for adults who are considered to have a low or moderate health risk.
Wellness testing can be useful when you want to be more informed about your general health rather than waiting until you have a specific symptom or concern.
However, a female wellness profile is not a replacement for medical advice. Your individual health history, symptoms, medication and risk factors can all affect which tests are appropriate for you.
If you have a specific health concern, speak to your healthcare professional about which investigations may be suitable.
What Does a Female Wellness Profile Check?
One of the main benefits of a female wellness profile is that it looks at several different areas rather than concentrating on a single marker.
Each test provides a different piece of information. Your healthcare professional can consider the results together with your medical history and other relevant information.
Blood Health
Blood tests can provide useful information about different aspects of your general health.
The Essential General Wellness Female profile includes a Full Blood Count (FBC) with platelets and a ferritin test.
What Does an FBC Check?
A Full Blood Count looks at different cells in your blood.
These include red blood cells, which carry oxygen around the body, white blood cells, which are involved in the body’s immune response and platelets, which play an important role in blood clotting.
An FBC can therefore provide information about several aspects of blood health.
Your healthcare professional will interpret the results according to your individual circumstances. A result outside the usual reference range does not automatically mean that you have a particular condition.
What Does Ferritin Check?
Ferritin is a protein associated with iron storage in the body.
A ferritin test can provide information about your body’s stored iron levels and may be used when assessing possible iron deficiency or other concerns relating to iron status.
Iron requirements can vary between individuals. Menstruation, diet and other health factors may all be relevant when your healthcare professional considers your results.
Blood Sugar and HbA1c
Blood sugar is another important part of a general health assessment.
The Essential General Wellness Female profile includes an HbA1c test.
What Is HbA1c?
HbA1c provides an indication of average blood glucose levels over a period of time rather than measuring your blood sugar at just one moment.
This makes it different from a single glucose measurement. Your healthcare professional can use the result alongside other information when assessing blood sugar regulation and metabolic health.
If you have concerns about your blood sugar or diabetes risk, discuss them with your healthcare professional.
Heart and Circulation Health
Heart and circulation health can be influenced by a number of factors, including cholesterol levels.
The female wellness profile includes a lipogram, also known as a lipid profile.
What Is a Lipogram?
A lipogram measures different types of fats in the blood, including cholesterol and triglycerides.
Cholesterol has important functions in the body but the balance of different blood lipids can be relevant when assessing cardiovascular risk.
Your healthcare professional may consider your lipid results together with other factors such as your age, health history, lifestyle and other risk factors.
A cholesterol result should therefore be understood as part of a bigger health picture rather than viewed in isolation.
Kidney Health
Your kidneys perform important functions including filtering waste products from the blood and helping regulate fluid and electrolyte balance.
The Essential General Wellness Female profile includes creatinine and an albumin/creatinine ratio.
What Does Creatinine Tell You?
Creatinine is a waste product produced through normal muscle metabolism.
The kidneys normally remove creatinine from the blood. Measuring creatinine can therefore provide information that helps healthcare professionals assess kidney function.
A creatinine result can be influenced by several factors, so it needs to be interpreted in the context of the individual patient.
What Is an Albumin/Creatinine Ratio?
An albumin/creatinine ratio is used to assess the amount of albumin present in urine in relation to creatinine.
Albumin is a protein that normally remains in the blood. Detecting increased amounts in urine can provide information that may be relevant when assessing kidney health.
Your healthcare professional can explain what your result means and whether further investigation is appropriate.
Liver Health
The liver carries out many important functions in the body and plays a role in metabolism, processing substances and producing proteins.
The female wellness profile includes liver function tests (LFTs) and albumin.
What Are Liver Function Tests?
Liver function testing involves a group of laboratory measurements that can provide information about the liver and related processes.
Different markers can provide different pieces of information. Your healthcare professional will consider the pattern of results rather than relying on one number alone.
Albumin is one of the proteins measured as part of the assessment of liver health and can also be relevant to other aspects of health.
If your results are outside the expected reference range, your healthcare professional can explain what this may mean in your particular circumstances.
Thyroid Health
The thyroid gland plays an important role in regulating several processes in the body.
The Essential General Wellness Female profile includes a TSH test.
What Is a TSH Test?
TSH stands for thyroid-stimulating hormone.
TSH testing is commonly used when assessing thyroid function. The thyroid can affect areas such as metabolism, energy and many other processes in the body.
A TSH result does not provide a complete picture on its own in every situation. If there is a concern about thyroid function, your healthcare professional may consider your symptoms and medical history alongside the laboratory result.
Vitamin D and Vitamin B12
Nutritional health is another part of the female wellness profile.
The Essential General Wellness Female profile includes tests for Vitamin D25OH and Vitamin B12.
Why Is Vitamin D Tested?
Vitamin D has several important roles in the body, including supporting bone health and normal immune function.
The Vitamin D25OH test measures the main circulating form of vitamin D used to assess vitamin D status.
Your healthcare professional can explain whether your result is appropriate for you and whether any further action is needed.
Why Is Vitamin B12 Tested?
Vitamin B12 is important for normal red blood cell formation and the healthy functioning of the nervous system.
Low vitamin B12 levels can occur for different reasons. Diet, absorption and other health factors may all be relevant.
Testing can help provide information about your vitamin B12 status when considered appropriate.
Why Look at Several Health Markers Together?
One of the useful features of a female wellness profile is that it does not look at your health through just one measurement.
Your blood count may provide information about your blood health. HbA1c provides information about average blood glucose levels while cholesterol testing provides information about blood lipids.
The kidney, liver and thyroid tests provide information about other important areas of health. Vitamin D, vitamin B12 and ferritin add further information about nutritional and blood-related health.
These results can be considered together rather than treating each result as a separate answer.
It is also important to remember that laboratory results are not interpreted in isolation. Your healthcare professional may consider your symptoms, medical history, medication, family history and other relevant factors when discussing your results.
Does a Female Wellness Profile Require Preparation?
The Essential General Wellness Female profile catalogue does not show special preparation requirements.
However, preparation requirements can vary depending on the tests being performed and the arrangements for your collection.
Before attending for your female wellness profile, follow the instructions provided by Togalab or your healthcare professional.
If you are unsure whether you need to fast, whether you should take medication as usual or what you need to bring with you, ask before your collection rather than guessing.
You should not stop prescribed medication simply because you are having laboratory testing unless your healthcare professional has specifically instructed you to do so.
What Happens When You Have Your Tests?
Your collection will depend on the specimens required for the tests included in your profile.
Many of the tests in a female wellness profile use a blood sample. Other laboratory investigations may require different specimen types.
A trained healthcare professional will guide you through the collection process and ensure that the appropriate specimens are collected for the requested tests.
If you are nervous about having blood collected, let the healthcare professional know. Asking questions before the collection can also help you feel more comfortable with the process.
What Happens After Your Laboratory Tests?
Once your specimens have been collected, they are processed according to the requirements of the relevant laboratory tests.
Your results provide laboratory information that your healthcare professional can interpret in the context of your individual health.
It is important not to interpret individual results on your own based only on whether a number appears high or low. Reference ranges can vary and results need to be considered alongside your personal circumstances.
If your results raise a concern, your healthcare professional can advise whether further testing or assessment is appropriate.
What If a Result Is Outside the Reference Range?
Seeing a result outside the reference range can understandably cause concern.
However, an abnormal-looking result does not automatically mean that you have a disease or serious health problem. There can be several reasons why a laboratory result may fall outside a reference range.
Your healthcare professional can explain the result in context and determine whether it requires further investigation.
This is one reason why a female wellness profile should be viewed as a source of health information rather than a diagnosis.
Can You Request a Female Wellness Profile Yourself?
The Essential General Wellness Female profile is listed as self-request available in the Togalab profile catalogue.
If you are considering testing for general wellness or would like more information about the profile, you can contact Togalab to ask about the practical arrangements.
If you have symptoms or a particular medical concern, it is still important to speak to a healthcare professional. They can help determine whether a general wellness profile is appropriate or whether different testing may be more suitable.
What Should You Ask Before Your Test?
If you are arranging a female wellness profile, you may want to confirm a few practical details beforehand.
Consider asking:
- Where can I have the profile collected?
- Do I need to make an appointment?
- Do I need any special preparation?
- Do I need to fast?
- What should I bring with me?
- How will my results be made available?
- Who should I speak to about interpreting my results?
Having these questions answered before your visit can make the testing process simpler.
How Togalab Can Help
Togalab provides a broad range of laboratory and diagnostic services for patients and healthcare professionals.
The female wellness profile is one way of bringing several areas of general health testing together. The profile includes testing related to blood health, blood sugar, heart and circulation, kidney health, liver health, thyroid function and nutritional markers.
If you are unsure about the profile, the collection process or where to have your testing performed, Togalab Client Services can assist with practical enquiries.
For medical questions about your symptoms or which tests may be appropriate for you, speak to your healthcare professional.
Contact Togalab
If you have questions about laboratory testing, collections or test results, you can contact Togalab Client Services.
For enquiries and test results:
011 663 6300
Client Services:
clientservices@togalab.co.za
Finance:
Finance@togalab.co.za
Toga Nurses are available at various locations. Contact Togalab for more information about available locations and services.
Your Next Step
If you are considering a female wellness profile, start by finding out whether this type of general health screening is appropriate for you.
You can speak to your healthcare professional about your individual health needs or contact Togalab Client Services for practical information about the profile and collection arrangements.
For enquiries and test results, call 011 663 6300 or email clientservices@togalab.co.za.
If you have symptoms or concerns about your health, speak to a healthcare professional who can advise you about the most appropriate next step.
Final Thoughts
A female wellness profile can provide a broad collection of laboratory information covering several important areas of health.
From blood health and blood sugar to kidney, liver and thyroid markers, the profile brings together different tests that can help provide a wider picture of your health. Nutritional markers such as vitamin D, vitamin B12 and ferritin add further information.
Laboratory testing is most useful when results are understood in context. Your healthcare professional can help explain what your results mean and whether any further assessment is needed.
If you’re considering general health screening or are unsure about arranging your tests, Togalab Client Services can help with the practical details. Taking the time to understand your testing options can be a useful step towards staying informed about your health.