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Interpreting Blood Test – Pregnant
Hi B & Daniel,
I’ve been going over the interpreting blood test course (very helpful btw, thank you!) and I was wondering if the reference ranges and optimal values would look different on someone who is pregnant versus someone who is not. If so, which ones and by how much?
Additionally, would the values differ in any other physiological condition (e.g. kids, elderly, menopause, etc.)
I got a blood test first thing in the morning about 3 weeks ago when I was almost 8 weeks pregnant. My results may be a skewed because it was 2 weeks after I had recovered from COVID, and I did eat before the appointment (nauseous so had to eat) and take my prenatal the night before. I had UTI symptoms a week before, but they had resolved by the time of the appointment after taking D-Mannose and my urine culture test came back negative.
Based on the course, this is my personal analysis:
- lower hematocrit: deficient in b12/folate, vit C, b6 or copper
- low hemoglobin: deficient in b12/folate, vit C, b6 or copper
- slightly smaller MCV: low in iron?
- slightly lower MCH: deficient in b6, folate of b12
- RDW is slightly elevated: deficiency in folate, iron, b12
- WBC is elevated: mild UTI maybe or recovering from covid?
- elevated neutrophils (4.5%): UTI? COVID?
- good ratio of neutrophils to lymphocytes
- Ferritin (not included in the screenshot): 80 ng/mL
- hbA1c (not included in the screenshot): 5.2 so normal
- Estimated Average Glucose (not fasting): 103 mg/dL
These are the tests that the midwife ordered. I didn’t ask to include more tests at that time but plan on getting more if needed (such as vitamin D)
My guess is that I’m mildly deficient in some or all of b12, b6, folate, vitamin C, copper and iron. I was taking the Thorne Prenatal but have switched over to Seeking Health because I need to take less pills per day. They are quite high in folate, b12, and b6. My pee is sometimes a righter color so I think I do end up peeing out some extra vitamins.
Is my analysis correct? I recognize that I’m missing some additional blood tests but I’m hoping it’s sufficient to provide some insight.
Thanks!
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1 Reply
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Hi @Misha – unfortunately, the functional ranges we use for normal adults cannot be used in pregnancy.
Almost every marker in basic labwork will change during pregnancy and I would need to do a whole new course just for pregnancy related labs.
But in general, based on the labs you’ve shared, you’re experiencing the positive changes that are SUPPOSED to happen in pregnancy. The reference ranges also change based on the trimester of pregnancy too.
So for example, the anemia markers RBC, hemoglobin, and hematocrit are supposed to decrease in pregnancy. So if someone compares their values to the optimal functional ranges, it will seem as though they are anemic, when they’re not! For example, an optimal hemoglobin range during pregnancy would be 11.1 to 13.2 g/dL, which is about an 8% drop from the non-pregnancy functional range. So the pattern you’ve described is actually normal and optimal for pregnancy.
Similarly, immune system markers will also change, and show a significant increase. Think about why!! Body wants to protect your baby! So a WBC of 7.95 is actually spot on for 1st trimester level. Neutrophils of 4.5 is considered high in non-pregnancy, but is actually optimal in 1st trimester pregnancy. In fact, neutrophils increase about 171% on average by the 3rd trimester. So nothing to worry about.
Hope this helps put your concerns at ease.
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