5Strands Affordable Testing is introducing three new functional health assessments:
- General Health Assessment (food and environmental intolerances)
- Pet Food Intolerance Test (commercial pet food diets)
- Raw Food Intolerance Test (raw food diets)
“Unlike an allergy, intolerances do not involve the immune system,” says Austin Collins, CEO for 5Strands. “Dietary intolerances occur within the body’s digestive system. When our pets lack the digestive enzymes to break down food, that can then manifest in a large variety of symptoms. Some of the most common intolerances for dogs and cats include: upset stomach, paw biting, constant scratching, hair loss, and head shaking.
Once a pet parent has received the 5Strands collection kit, they simply collect their dog or cat’s hair, place it inside the box and send it back to 5Strands Affordable Testing for evaluation. In essence, 5Strands acts as a road map for those who have tried traditional testing methods and diets and not achieved the desired outcome.
The General Health Assessment Test includes two tests: The Food Intolerance Test and the Pet Environmental Intolerance Test. The Pet Food Intolerance Test covers proteins, grains, vegetables, fruits, additives and preservatives that may be found in a commercial pet food based diet. Of the 275 plus items tested, the results will show how the pet’s hair sample responded upon exposure to each item tested.
The level of severity is provided in the results, which can also be downloaded on the 5Strands mobile app. The Pet Environmental Intolerance Test covers fabrics, cleaning supplies, grasses, trees, mould, dust mites and other animal dander. Understanding what your pet’s environmental triggers are will help you adapt or modify your pet’s lifestyle.
The Pet Food Intolerance Test offers sensitivity testing for 275 plus commercial pet food ingredients producing an instant elimination guideline for the owner. Identifying these temporary imbalances will save pet owners the time and money involved in trial-and-error elimination. By knowing which food items are causing disturbances within the gut microbiome, pet owners can alter their pet’s diet which will reduce everyday discomforts such as paw biting, scratching, upset stomach, hot spots, etc.
The Pet Raw Food Intolerance Test was designed for pet owners that feed their dog or cat a raw food diet. The ingredients tested consist of over 300 meats, seafood, bones, fruits, vegetables, oils and some grains. Once again the test will generate an instant elimination guideline identifying ingredients that create temporary imbalances so owners can remove them from their pet’s diet.
“The process couldn’t be easier,” adds Mr Collins. “You simply go online, purchase a kit, register the kit, collect a hair sample, and send it back to us. “You will then receive the test results in one week. By using these results, pet owners can remove or avoid items that are causing their pet’s discomfort. This is a holistic approach that will help find answers to problems that were previously considered unsolvable.”
For more information about 5Strands visit the website, HERE.
