🔬 My tests at 38 years old on plant-based nutrition

I have been on plant-based nutrition since 2016 (10 years), of which more than a year vegan. I gave up sugar, canned food, store-bought flour, food with dyes, stabilizers, and other chemical additives harmful to health and microflora. Almost every day I do physical exercises, yoga, and my own set of exercises aimed at strengthening and stretching the whole body. The tests were taken when I was 38 years old.

Based on the extensive study conducted. I am a healthy strong man with excellent heart, liver, kidney, thyroid function, and normal iron and fat metabolism. However, there is a complex of small deficiencies: vitamin D, zinc, borderline vitamin A. An excess of iodine was also revealed, which needs to be corrected. More details below on the main parameters:

1. Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin): 292.00 pg/ml (norm: 197 — 771)

• Now B12 is normal thanks to the intake of a plant-based organic supplement, but it used to be at the lower limit.
• I note that the deficiency is present in many regardless of the type of nutrition, since B12 is a vitamin of bacterial origin and it comes to us and to animals on plants (vegetables and fruits). However, now plants are often grown in artificial soil or are washed quite thoroughly, and it does not get into animals, neither with plants, nor in the form of supplements, nor in feed.
• Deficiency entails: anemia (weakness, shortness of breath, pallor), neurological symptoms (numbness and tingling in the hands and feet, gait disturbance, loss of taste and smell), cognitive impairments (memory problems, confusion, dementia).

2. Vitamin D (25-hydroxycalciferol): 24.83 ng/ml (norm: 30 — 100)

• Although I live in Yalta and there is plenty of sun here, after the winter months, although I am often outdoors and lead an active lifestyle, I have a deficiency.
• Apparently, for most residents of Russia it is necessary to correct their vitamin D indicator. Now I am taking a supplement to raise the vitamin D level.
• Vitamin D affects a huge number of systems. Vitamin D deficiency is linked to seasonal depression. Its deficiency often proceeds hidden, but the consequences are very noticeable: bones and muscles, immunity, mood and brain, heart and vessels, endocrine system. Vitamin D deficiency affects the decrease in testosterone levels, calcium absorption, and worsening fertility.
• However, an overdose of it is also very dangerous. The thing is that the pharmacy preparation is in a different form, not the one that our body produces itself and successfully uses for its intended purpose without harm to the body, even in large quantities.
• The benefits and harms, how to use and in what quantities, are very well described in the book: "The China Study. Results of the Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition and Health" - Colin Campbell, Thomas Campbell.

3. Vitamin A (Retinol): 0.30 mcg/ml (norm: 0.3 — 0.8)

• At the lower limit, although for several months I have already been replenishing its deficiency with plant products, in particular carrots, and now also mango.
• Deficiency entails: deterioration of vision and the appearance of night blindness, skin problems (dryness, peeling of the skin, acne), slowed healing of wounds and abrasions, immunity worsens, deficiency affects hair and nails (brittleness, dullness, hair loss, nail splitting), in men vitamin A participates in the synthesis of testosterone, its deficiency can worsen sperm quality.
• This is rarely mentioned, but vitamin D deficiency very strongly affects the proper formation of bones and especially in children. For example, teeth grow unevenly, caries appears, and defects such as cleft palate.
• I first learned about the deficiency of vitamin A in most modern people and the consequences of this deficiency in an excellent book: "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration" Weston Price

4. Vitamin E is normal: 9.72 (norm 5.0-18.0)

• My vitamin E is normal, but in the world there is a deficiency in 67% of the population according to a large study by The Lancet Global Health.
• E is responsible for the antioxidant protection of the body. With a deficiency, deviations occur in the nervous system (muscle weakness, loss of sensation in the limbs), brain development worsens especially in children, causes anemia, deterioration of vision due to retinal damage, reduces fertility (both in men and women).
• I first learned about the deficiency in most of the world's population in the book: "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration" Weston Price

5. Serum iron (25.36 mcmol/L) with a norm of 11-28, Ferritin (51.6 mcg/L) with a norm of 20-250, Transferrin (2.86 g/L) with a norm of 2.0-3.6, Transferrin saturation with iron (35.3%) with a norm of 20-50

• Excellent iron status. No signs of deficiency, anemia, or iron overload.
• Hemoglobin (152 g/L) with a norm of 132-173 — normal. Erythrocytes (4.92) — normal. This confirms that there is no anemia.
• What iron deficiency affects: Chronic fatigue, weakness, drowsiness even after 8-10 hours of sleep. Drop in performance, Pallor of skin and mucous membranes (especially the inner surface of the eyelids, lips, nail beds), dry skin, Hair and nails (Brittleness, dullness, hair loss. Nails become thin, layered, may acquire a spoon-shaped form (koilonychia)), Shortness of breath with little physical exertion, rapid heartbeat (tachycardia), tinnitus, dizziness, Perversion of taste (craving to eat chalk, clay, raw dough, ice) and smell (like the smells of gasoline, paint), Frequent colds and acute respiratory viral infections, since iron is necessary for the reproduction of immune cells, Decreased concentration of attention, memory impairment, "fog" in the head. In children — delayed mental development.
• And here too it turns out that iron deficiency is ubiquitous, and the cause is banal but hard to avoid — these are iron absorption blockers: polyphenols (tannins) which worsen the absorption of iron from food by 50-90% depending on their concentration, and absorption falls for several hours immediately from the moment of their intake. And polyphenols are contained in black tea and tea with mint, cocoa, coffee, and products associated with them: chocolate. Even vitamin C, which improves iron absorption, does not help much. The question is how often do you drink these hot drinks and eat products with chocolate? That is, you ate and immediately had a chocolate and tea or coffee and iron is not absorbed. This is the huge problem — the general iron deficiency in the modern population. In addition, caffeine and sugar remove calcium and magnesium from the blood in such an amount that the body does not have time to replenish its reserves.

6. Iodine in plasma: 72.97 mcg/L (norm: 30 — 60)

• I have an excess of iodine, which was a surprise, but if you think about it, the population is forcibly added iodine, for example to salt, and they constantly talk about it, but it is clear that the situation with iodine is radically opposite. There is too much of it everywhere now.
• What is dangerous: with a sharp excess of iodine, the thyroid gland temporarily turns off the production of hormones T3 and T4 to avoid overheating. As a result, hypothyroidism develops (decreased function).
• However, I am fine with this and it means the thyroid works as it should: TSH — 1.910 (norm 0.27 4.2), free T3 — 5.74 (norm 3.1 — 6.8), free T4 — 14.60 (norm 10.8 — 22.0), Anti-TPO — 22.30 (< 34), Anti-rTSH — 1.22 (< 1.75). But I will monitor and eat fewer products with iodine.

7. Cholesterol and lipid profile:

• LDL ("bad" cholesterol): 2.64 mmol/L (< 3.0) – Normal (optimal level).
• HDL ("good" cholesterol): 1.67 mmol/L (> 1.0) – Normal (high, protective factor).
• LDL / HDL ratio (bad divided by good) = 1.58 close to ideal, which is less than or equal to 1.5, and at 1.5-2 — is considered normal. This coefficient is now considered one of the most important markers in all world cardiology. World-famous studies (for example, the Framingham study) have shown that it predicts the risk of heart attack more accurately than the level of total cholesterol or even the classic atherogenic index. It also predicts protection or predisposition to cancer.
• Cholesterol is not a poison and not an enemy. It is a fat-like substance (lipophilic alcohol) that is vitally necessary for your body. Without it you would not live. It performs 4 key functions: Building material: It is part of cell membranes (shells), making them strong and elastic at the same time. It protects cells from destruction. Hormone synthesis: Sex hormones (testosterone, estrogen, progesterone) and stress hormones (cortisol) are synthesized from cholesterol. Synthesis of vitamin D: Under the action of sunlight, cholesterol in the skin turns into vitamin D, necessary for immunity and bones. Digestion: In the liver, bile acids are formed from cholesterol, without which the digestion and absorption of fats from food is impossible. Conclusion: As long as cholesterol performs these functions — it brings enormous benefit. I will tell you more later.
• The found pattern of the influence of cholesterol when it deviates from the norm on many diseases (cancer, cardiovascular, infectious diseases, etc.) is well described in the book: "The China Study. Results of the Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition and Health" - Colin Campbell, Thomas Campbell

8. Urea: 2.30 mmol/L (norm according to 1990: 1.2 — 2.5 mmol/L) and Leukocytes (WBC): 3.81 (norm according to 1999: 2.9 10.7×10⁹/L)

• In the classic case, it indicates a reduced intake of protein from outside or an increased consumption of protein by the body due to physical exertion. In my case it is physical exertion, since I do sports almost every day and a vegan diet.
• Based on research. Vegans often have lower urea and leukocyte indicators compared to people who adhere to a mixed or meat diet. This is due to the peculiarities of nutrition and its influence on metabolism and the immune system. A decrease in urea level is also associated with better kidney function indicators in vegans. Moreover, in studies from 1990 the urea norm was 1.2–2.5 mmol/L: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-642-86925-9_7.pdf (3.4–7.0 mg/dL is 1.2–2.5 mmol/L). And now this norm has been shifted as far as 3.2-7.3 mmol/L.
• Scientific data: In several randomized controlled trials (the gold standard of science) it was shown that switching to a vegan diet leads to a statistically significant decrease in the total number of leukocytes, including neutrophils and monocytes.
• Mechanism: The decrease in the number of inflammation cells is associated with a lower intake of branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) from food, which have a pro-inflammatory effect. Thus, a vegan diet can have an anti-inflammatory effect, and a decrease in leukocytes in this context is considered a positive sign. It is important to note that although the total number of leukocytes decreases, the functional abilities of the immune system in vegans may not deteriorate.
• The key point emphasized by researchers — these indicators, although lower than in meat eaters, usually remain within the clinical norm and are not a sign of pathology.

Earlier studies by Maekawa and Kinugasa 1957 consider the leukocyte norm up to 9.0×10⁹/L without a lower limit, and Shiga et al. 1999 considers the norm range: 2.9 – 10.7×10⁹/L

My tests: All_blood_test_results_2026.07.14.pdf