A third of Americans don't get enough sleep, due to stress or health problems. Sleep disorders are linked to weight gain, high blood sugar, anxiety, and driving & workplace injuries.
Using four saliva samples, this at-home sleep and stress test measures stress hormone (cortisol) and sleep hormone (melatonin) within 24 hours: morning, noon, evening, & night, to assess whether your levels follow the daily natural rhythm.
You can also order a 24-hour cortisol test (4x) or adrenal stress test.
Our at-home sleep and stress test is easy, fast, reliable, and requires just a few steps:
Order Online.
Receive Your Cortisol and Melatonin Home Test Kit and Collect Sample at Home.
Ship It Back For FREE To Our World-Class CLIA Labs (US only).
Receive Secure, Confidential, & Easy-To-Understand Report Within Days for Your Comprehensive At-Home Sleep Hormone Test.
The stress hormone, cortisol, is produced in adrenal glands and has important role in metabolism to break down carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins. A well defined 24 hour circadian pattern is an important characteristic of cortisol. The levels peaks around 8 am and then gradually drop throughout the day.
The sleep hormone,melatonin, is produced by pineal gland in the brain and has an opposite trend to the cortisol cycle. It is highest in the night and drops after we wake up. Studies suggest the levels are strongly dependent on exposure to light, especially the blue light common in electronic devices.
Change in the normal circadian rhythm can be caused by many issues including chronic stress, adrenal fatigue, burnout, or problems with adrenal glands. Chronically high levels are especially bad as they may result in increased appetite and weight gain. Excessive levels cause muscle loss, immune suppression, water retention, and bloating. Low levels are also bad since deficiency can result in fatigue, sluggishness, and low energy.
Checking cortisol levels can help identify potential problems with adrenal glands. Very high levels are indication of Cushing syndromeand unusually low levels indicate Addison's disease. Therefore, diurnal cortisol test assessing the circadian rhythm profile is crucial to diagnose issues related to the HPA (hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and adrenal glands) hormone balance.
Any changes in melatonin cycle can results in insomnia, delay in falling asleep, and drowsiness during the day from lack of sleep. A measurement can help assess how your daily cycle compares to an expected healthy trend. Learn more about melatonin at the National Sleep Foundation
An easy, low cost method of measuring your levels is by using a sleep and stress test at home. Simply order the test kit, collect the saliva sample at home, ship it for free to our world class CLIA-certified labs, and find out your levels within days. Unlike a blood test, a saliva sample makes it especially useful for those fearful of needles.
We also offer 4 point cortisol test, as well as cortisol am test and cortisol pm test as an alternative. The Cortisol AM-PM Saliva Test Kit measures levels in the morning and evening.
For a detailed discussion about symptoms of low and high cortisol levels, a comparison of cortisol blood test versus saliva test cortisol, main reasons to get tested, the convenience of an at home saliva cortisol test, the important role it plays in weight gain, adrenal fatigue, muscle loss, and more, please read: All About Cortisol. ZRT lab has an excellent discussion and plots of diurnal cortisol curves for healthy individuals as well as patients with chronic stress, chronic fatigue, and burnout symptoms. Finally, you can learn more about the intricate details of a salivary testing cortisol levels for Cushing Syndrome from the experts at Mayo Clinic.
The adrenal glands are a pair of glands on top of each kidney. They produce five key hormones:
Adrenaline hormones have a classic 4-ring backbone structure derived from cholesterol (examples are testosterone, estrogen, progesterone).
There are two types of steroid hormones:
The pineal gland is a pine cone shaped gland that is about the size of a pea in the middle of brain. Besides the cyclic release of melatonin to control sleep cycle, it plays a key role in skin pigmentation, and release of another hormone called serotonin. This short YouTube video explains more.
A: Except New York and New Jersey our tests are available in all 48 states. State regulations in NY, NJ do not allow us to ship the tests to their residents.
A: The kit contains four tubes for sample collection, instructions on how to collect the samples, and a form requesting basic information including date and time of collection. The directions are straight forward and easy to follow.
A: You will receive the kit within 3-5 business days with a prepaid return envelope. After you ship the sample and it is received by our lab, you get the results within 5-7 business days.
A: The report with your test results will be easy to understand and will have all the necessary details. It will mark your cortisol and melatonin levels on a healthy range for the time of the day and will specify what are the expected low and high ranges. It will briefly discuss what your numbers mean and next steps you should take to maintain healthy levels.
A: You can use HSA (or FSA/MSA/HRA) accounts to pay for the tests since these are prescription tests (for further confirmation, please check the IRS publication#969). However, please ensure you are not going outside your specified max and min deductible limits. We do not have the capability to process the insurance claim. Since insurance plans vary for individuals we can not guarantee your HSA payment will always be processed by your plan. We suggest talking to your insurance provider if you have any questions.
A: Measuring cortisol and melatonin levels using saliva is a well researched and thoroughly documented procedure. If fact, it is reliably accurate and one of the best way to testing cortisol levels.
The variations in results are mainly from two sources: the way samples are collected and the variation from lab-to-lab. Levels are highest in the morning, when we are most energetic, and then drop during the day.
To minimize this variation, you should collect the sample within 30-45 minutes of waking up, without eating, brushing or putting anything else in your mouth that might contaminate the sample.
To minimize the variation from labs, we have partnered with CLIA-certified labs that are regulated by the states, as well as Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Majority of the tests from these labs are FDA approved to ensure they meet the proper regulatory requirements. Additionally, the College of American Pathologists (CAP) requires inter-laboratory tests to ensure the ranges established by each lab do not drift or are not out of acceptable ranges. This is done by regularly testing reference samples between different labs. Finally, the labs test thousands of samples for different age groups and health conditions, and have well established reference data to compare your results against this large pool.
A: Unfortunately, no. As a lab test provider we can only test and report out data from your sample. We are not authorized to provide any medical recommendations. But we strongly encourage you to discuss the results with your doctor for next steps.
Still wondering how do you test cortisol and melatonin levels?
