Is it accurate to draw blood to check trace elements?

Once the trace elements are deficient, it will affect the health of the human body, so many parents will regularly check the trace elements of their children. There are many ways to check. The most common way is to draw blood for blood test or to check the hair. Through the inspection, problems can be found in time and supplementation can be convenient and timely. So is it accurate to draw blood to check trace elements?

First, is it accurate to draw blood to check trace elements? According to the different content of elements in the human body, they can be divided into major elements and trace elements. Any element that accounts for more than one ten-thousandth of the total weight of the human body, such as calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, etc. that everyone is more familiar with, is a major element. Any element that accounts for less than one ten-thousandth of the total weight of the human body is called a trace element. The calcium in it is not a trace element at all.

Second, blood samples can be collected from venous blood or peripheral blood. The content of trace elements in the human body is low and is easily contaminated by various factors during the sample collection process. Therefore, special care must be taken when collecting trace element blood samples. In addition to the requirements for sample collection set out in the Ministry of Health's Technical Specifications for Clinical Testing of Blood Lead, special trace element test tubes that have passed regular spot checks must also be used, and the test tubes should be immediately sealed with inert and non-contamination materials to prevent the container itself from affecting the test results. Blood tests are easily contaminated, causing cross infection, and are inconvenient to sample. They reflect the body’s trace element status over a short period of time and are greatly affected by diet and disease.

Is it accurate to draw blood to check trace elements? The content of some trace elements in the blood is also very small, because blood is not the effective organ through which these nutrients exert their effects. Therefore, finger blood sampling cannot accurately reflect the situation of trace elements in the human body. In other words, the so-called trace element detection cannot measure the true situation of these elements at all. The results of trace element testing are only a reference. You cannot use them alone to determine whether a child is lacking in a certain trace element, and you cannot blindly treat or supplement your child.