You got your labs back. The numbers are on the page. Your doctor said everything looks normal. But you still feel exhausted, foggy, and off. Here is how to understand what those numbers actually mean.
Laboratory reference ranges are built around population averages — meaning “normal” simply means you fall within the range of the general population. That range often spans from near-deficiency to near-excess. Functional medicine looks at optimal ranges — the levels at which people actually feel and perform their best — not just whether a value falls within the wide reference window.
For Total Testosterone, most labs list the male reference range as 264–916 ng/dL — a 650-point spread. A man at 265 and a man at 850 are both “normal” but feel dramatically different. Optimal for vitality is typically 700–1000 ng/dL. Free T3 should ideally fall in the upper third of the reference range; TSH alone is an inadequate thyroid panel. Fasting insulin should be below 5 uIU/mL for optimal metabolic health — values above 10 signal insulin resistance that will impact every other hormone.
DHEA-S, cortisol (best assessed via 4-point saliva or DUTCH panel rather than a single blood draw), SHBG, and inflammatory markers like hs-CRP round out a complete hormonal picture.
Want us to review your labs and explain what the numbers mean for how you feel? Call 844-734-2112 or reach out here.