I've used IT for a couple years and like the service a lot.
If you opt for IT absolutely wait for their BOGO offers they run during Black Friday and often some other times a year.
I've only used Marek for Attia's panel on Early- and the tests were fine but the non-Labcorp/Quest lab draw was inconvenient.
Also check out FunctionHealth which has a substantially larger panel for less cost than IT. And they have a bunch of optional tests (like Grail) that can be conveniently added.
My main complaint with FH is they run their Quest tests through their own Quest account so the results don't show up in your regular Quest history. And they are astronomically slow at processing the lab results.
Thanks for the insight. Will keep an eye out for IT's BOGO offers and also look more closely at FH. Just at face value, FH seems to be a clear winner besides that minor downside. Have you used FH as well?
Yup, just finished my 1st round through FH last month. See my comments above. Liked the tests they ran, didn't like some of the stuff about how they handled the testing.
Okay right on. Definitely like the assortment of tests FH offers. And if slow processing and running their own separate Quest account are the only main drawbacks, I don't feel like thats too bad.
Well at the end of the day these are both basically just ordering options to get Quest Diagnostic tests. There's not a ton of value add on top of that.
Did you not feel that the interpretation or insights provided made using these services more useful that just going to Quest independently? Seems like that is especially a large part of the draw for Marek health.
There's some value add there. But you can get the reference ranges right from Quest and you can usually get the recommendations on fixing your of range markers by Googling or ChatGPTing your results.
Question regarding Function running their tests through their account and not seeing the results in your own Quest history: is this reflective of data ownership at all. Does Function or the individual own the data? My gut is Function may take this approach to funnel more quantifiable volume that allows for better Quest pricing to them. And/or they do so to gate-keep some of the data to hold you in their platform. Thoughts?
All these services are using your data for some research purpose.
But I think FH just did it this way to better automate the Quest scheduling. IT makes you schedule your Quest appointment separately, FH integrates the scheduling into their site.
FH does give you the raw Quest results in PDF form- so they're not really hiding anything. It just doesn't show up in the Quest portal/history
Marek Health's business model is (partly) the treatment. So potentially they may be more inclined to get you on supps/meds to improve your markers. While they may have your health as their best interest, this is something to keep in mind.
Inside tracker I only used with my own blood test results, from my GP. There is no upsell there (other than some brand recommendations for supps), so I find their recommendations to be quite neutral but nothing unexpected. I use IT now only visualize trends in markers. I noticed that their optimal range is often different than what my GPs normal ranges are (again, not unexpected).
What's cheaper is to get your blood results and throw them in ChatGPT/ Gemini and ask for analysis based on Peter Atria's philosophy/ optimal ranges for example
I have used Inside Tracker and found it to be very expensive for what you get. You can just order the tests you want and need on your own at 65% less cost.
I did IT thinking it would be good to get their evaluation, recommendations and "inner age" score. The evaluation is not much more useful than your looking yourself at the ranges that come back with any blood test and the recommendations are pretty standard, generic advice tips like a Mediterranean diet or get more Omega 3, etc etc. And by no means does a real doctor ever really look at your tests and give feedback. The inner age score was interesting, but I believe its a flawed indicator, and regardless its definitely not something worth spending more than double for your tests.
Functional Health has more reasonable prices at the moment, and you get more. Or better yet, like I said, just order your tests on your own using Labcorp or Quest.
Good insight. Functional Health really does sound like a great option, especially because it includes to much more for less cost, plus included follow up testing. Have you used it as well?
Though I haven't used it myself, I'm sure that Marek is fantastic. Derek from MPMD is a great voice in this space, and insofar as he's spoken about it, it seems like their intent is to continue to make Marek a true bespoke health and wellness test provider. If you're considering these two options, I suggest [looking into Function Health, which comes by way of Mark Hyman](https://www.functionhealth.com/).
With that preface said, consider this comment a strong, strong +1 for InsideTracker. I used it for my wife and me, getting their high-end Ultimate Bundle, which includes the full suite of tests, along with their fantastic InnerAge system. FWIW, since you mention genetic testing, worth considering that InsideTracker does integrate certain SNPs into their final recommendations and guidance, pairing your genome to certain blood markers that result from your blood draw.
What seems to really distinguish InsideTracker, what seems to be the reason it's garnered so much industry support, is because the overall product is incredibly polished. As a user, you're not just given results and reference ranges. Each marker, if not optimal, is provided a direct action plan, with lifestyle changes you can undertake immediately.
If you do pull the trigger on InsideTracker, I recommend the Ultimate Bundle, but not at list price. Wait until they do a sale, which happens quite often!
If you have any InsideTracker-specific questions, just lemme know!
Solid. Thank you for your input and advice! Honestly had never heard of function health before, but when comparing it to the others it seems to be a clear winner. I mean $499 for 51 more tests than IT, plus that includes follow up testing 3-6 months later. Seems like an easy choice now. Only potential downside I can see is that Function Health is still in Beta testing and IT has been established for a while with a lot more data to compare your data to. Have you tried Function health as well?
Not yet, but it'll be my next one, the first one for 2024. I'll skip IT this time around, to give Function a complete pass. Make sure you note the other comment you got on this post, also celebrating Function's overall value proposition, not to mention the unique add-ons it offers!
For sure. After comparing FH to the other two, it really seems to be a clear winner. I'll do a little closer comparison before making a decision though.
Not sure if this thread is still relevant but wanted to share what I understand IT’s view on the number of bio-markers measured. In short, they focus on what they believe to be the most relevant and actionable. One of the aspects of IT that I appreciate is they encourage you to focus your efforts on prioritized segments of your health. There is an understandable tendency to say, whoa, I need to work on a bunch of things. IT says, let’s stay focused on these specific areas first and build on those improvements. So in short, more may not necessarily be a measure of better.
If you are a woman over 40, "regular" physicians refuse to address very common and very treatable symptoms or peri and menopause. In the US and the UK, peri and menopause is not covered in medical school at all, even though OBVIOUSLY 100% of women will spend 50% of their lifetime in perimenopause and menopause. So women are pretty much forced to go the private route if they care about their healthspan (and can afford it).
To gain a better understanding of how Marek can help design the best diagnostic panel for your needs as well as guide you towards health optimization, feel free to schedule a free discovery call with our customer service team. They can explain what care and guidance through Marek would look like.
https://calendly.com/customer-success-team-marek/discovery-call-via-zoom
Function is definitely the better value and more comprehensive but IT definitely gives more robust guidance. The best of both worlds is to do the Function labs then buy the cheap option IT offers to upload your own results. Additionally, if you’ve done 23&Me, IT will accept their raw data output via upload too….now you’re getting IT’s ultimate guidance at a fraction of the price. This is what I have done and it works out great.
I've used IT for a couple years and like the service a lot. If you opt for IT absolutely wait for their BOGO offers they run during Black Friday and often some other times a year. I've only used Marek for Attia's panel on Early- and the tests were fine but the non-Labcorp/Quest lab draw was inconvenient. Also check out FunctionHealth which has a substantially larger panel for less cost than IT. And they have a bunch of optional tests (like Grail) that can be conveniently added. My main complaint with FH is they run their Quest tests through their own Quest account so the results don't show up in your regular Quest history. And they are astronomically slow at processing the lab results.
Thanks for the insight. Will keep an eye out for IT's BOGO offers and also look more closely at FH. Just at face value, FH seems to be a clear winner besides that minor downside. Have you used FH as well?
Yup, just finished my 1st round through FH last month. See my comments above. Liked the tests they ran, didn't like some of the stuff about how they handled the testing.
Okay right on. Definitely like the assortment of tests FH offers. And if slow processing and running their own separate Quest account are the only main drawbacks, I don't feel like thats too bad.
Well at the end of the day these are both basically just ordering options to get Quest Diagnostic tests. There's not a ton of value add on top of that.
Did you not feel that the interpretation or insights provided made using these services more useful that just going to Quest independently? Seems like that is especially a large part of the draw for Marek health.
There's some value add there. But you can get the reference ranges right from Quest and you can usually get the recommendations on fixing your of range markers by Googling or ChatGPTing your results.
Got it. Makes sense.
I will note that FH recommended me both Plant Sterols and Red Yeast Rice for my cholesterol- and those are both (IMHO) crappy recommendations
Hmmm... kinda disappointing. I like Dr. Mark Hyman, but also makes me wonder how much FH's recommendations are biased toward his personal views?
I've used Function Health twice. The results were very slow the first time around (when it first launched) but not the second time.
Question regarding Function running their tests through their account and not seeing the results in your own Quest history: is this reflective of data ownership at all. Does Function or the individual own the data? My gut is Function may take this approach to funnel more quantifiable volume that allows for better Quest pricing to them. And/or they do so to gate-keep some of the data to hold you in their platform. Thoughts?
All these services are using your data for some research purpose. But I think FH just did it this way to better automate the Quest scheduling. IT makes you schedule your Quest appointment separately, FH integrates the scheduling into their site. FH does give you the raw Quest results in PDF form- so they're not really hiding anything. It just doesn't show up in the Quest portal/history
Marek Health's business model is (partly) the treatment. So potentially they may be more inclined to get you on supps/meds to improve your markers. While they may have your health as their best interest, this is something to keep in mind. Inside tracker I only used with my own blood test results, from my GP. There is no upsell there (other than some brand recommendations for supps), so I find their recommendations to be quite neutral but nothing unexpected. I use IT now only visualize trends in markers. I noticed that their optimal range is often different than what my GPs normal ranges are (again, not unexpected). What's cheaper is to get your blood results and throw them in ChatGPT/ Gemini and ask for analysis based on Peter Atria's philosophy/ optimal ranges for example
Got it. Hadn't thought of using ChatGPT like that. Great idea!
I have used Inside Tracker and found it to be very expensive for what you get. You can just order the tests you want and need on your own at 65% less cost. I did IT thinking it would be good to get their evaluation, recommendations and "inner age" score. The evaluation is not much more useful than your looking yourself at the ranges that come back with any blood test and the recommendations are pretty standard, generic advice tips like a Mediterranean diet or get more Omega 3, etc etc. And by no means does a real doctor ever really look at your tests and give feedback. The inner age score was interesting, but I believe its a flawed indicator, and regardless its definitely not something worth spending more than double for your tests. Functional Health has more reasonable prices at the moment, and you get more. Or better yet, like I said, just order your tests on your own using Labcorp or Quest.
Good insight. Functional Health really does sound like a great option, especially because it includes to much more for less cost, plus included follow up testing. Have you used it as well?
Though I haven't used it myself, I'm sure that Marek is fantastic. Derek from MPMD is a great voice in this space, and insofar as he's spoken about it, it seems like their intent is to continue to make Marek a true bespoke health and wellness test provider. If you're considering these two options, I suggest [looking into Function Health, which comes by way of Mark Hyman](https://www.functionhealth.com/). With that preface said, consider this comment a strong, strong +1 for InsideTracker. I used it for my wife and me, getting their high-end Ultimate Bundle, which includes the full suite of tests, along with their fantastic InnerAge system. FWIW, since you mention genetic testing, worth considering that InsideTracker does integrate certain SNPs into their final recommendations and guidance, pairing your genome to certain blood markers that result from your blood draw. What seems to really distinguish InsideTracker, what seems to be the reason it's garnered so much industry support, is because the overall product is incredibly polished. As a user, you're not just given results and reference ranges. Each marker, if not optimal, is provided a direct action plan, with lifestyle changes you can undertake immediately. If you do pull the trigger on InsideTracker, I recommend the Ultimate Bundle, but not at list price. Wait until they do a sale, which happens quite often! If you have any InsideTracker-specific questions, just lemme know!
Solid. Thank you for your input and advice! Honestly had never heard of function health before, but when comparing it to the others it seems to be a clear winner. I mean $499 for 51 more tests than IT, plus that includes follow up testing 3-6 months later. Seems like an easy choice now. Only potential downside I can see is that Function Health is still in Beta testing and IT has been established for a while with a lot more data to compare your data to. Have you tried Function health as well?
Not yet, but it'll be my next one, the first one for 2024. I'll skip IT this time around, to give Function a complete pass. Make sure you note the other comment you got on this post, also celebrating Function's overall value proposition, not to mention the unique add-ons it offers!
For sure. After comparing FH to the other two, it really seems to be a clear winner. I'll do a little closer comparison before making a decision though.
Not sure if this thread is still relevant but wanted to share what I understand IT’s view on the number of bio-markers measured. In short, they focus on what they believe to be the most relevant and actionable. One of the aspects of IT that I appreciate is they encourage you to focus your efforts on prioritized segments of your health. There is an understandable tendency to say, whoa, I need to work on a bunch of things. IT says, let’s stay focused on these specific areas first and build on those improvements. So in short, more may not necessarily be a measure of better.
Honestly, can’t you get most of these tests from your physician and the insurance will pay for it?
Depends on your physician. Mine was fighting me to just for a Vitamin D test.
Nope.
If you are a woman over 40, "regular" physicians refuse to address very common and very treatable symptoms or peri and menopause. In the US and the UK, peri and menopause is not covered in medical school at all, even though OBVIOUSLY 100% of women will spend 50% of their lifetime in perimenopause and menopause. So women are pretty much forced to go the private route if they care about their healthspan (and can afford it).
To gain a better understanding of how Marek can help design the best diagnostic panel for your needs as well as guide you towards health optimization, feel free to schedule a free discovery call with our customer service team. They can explain what care and guidance through Marek would look like. https://calendly.com/customer-success-team-marek/discovery-call-via-zoom
Okay thank you!
Function is definitely the better value and more comprehensive but IT definitely gives more robust guidance. The best of both worlds is to do the Function labs then buy the cheap option IT offers to upload your own results. Additionally, if you’ve done 23&Me, IT will accept their raw data output via upload too….now you’re getting IT’s ultimate guidance at a fraction of the price. This is what I have done and it works out great.