How reliable is hair analysis?
When researchers split one person’s hair sample and sent it to six US hair-analysis labs, the highest and lowest results differed more than tenfold for 12 minerals, and the authors recommended against using hair analysis to assess nutritional status or suspected environmental exposure (Seidel 2001, JAMA). It was one sample, in 2001, and the labs weren’t named, but I haven’t found a better study showing that hair results track body levels for most minerals.
So I use HTMA as a conversation starter about minerals and exposure, read with your history and diet, and confirm anything that matters with a blood or ordinary urine test. Hair can also be contaminated by shampoos, dyes and water. Grade: unreliable as a stand-alone measure. More on this in Heavy Metals: Which Test Answers Which Question.
What HTMA measures
Eight key clinical ratios from one hair sample
Each ratio is calculated from the mineral levels and interpreted against established Trace Elements Laboratory reference values. The ratios reveal patterns that individual mineral values alone cannot identify.
Ca/P ratio
Metabolic Rate
Read in HTMA practice as fast, balanced or slow oxidiser, and used as a starting point for food choices. No trial has shown that matching diet to oxidation type improves outcomes, so I check it against how you actually respond.
Na/K ratio
Stress & Vitality
The life-force ratio. High = active stress response or inflammation. Very low = read in HTMA practice as a low-output, fatigue pattern. These ratio readings haven't been validated against blood or urine cortisol, so treat them as a prompt to test, not a finding.
Ca/K ratio
Thyroid Function
Thyroid hormone effect at tissue level — distinct from blood TSH. Can reveal functional hypothyroidism even when TSH is within normal range.
Zn/Cu ratio
Hormone Balance
Zinc and copper compete for the same receptor sites. Imbalance affects sex hormones, immune function, mood, and detoxification capacity.
Na/Mg ratio
Adrenal Activity
The adrenal ratio — sodium is retained by aldosterone, magnesium is depleted by cortisol. Low Na/Mg is read in HTMA practice as low adrenal output, high as active stress. Not validated against measured cortisol.
Ca/Mg ratio
Blood Sugar Regulation
Elevated Ca/Mg is associated with carbohydrate intolerance, blood sugar instability, and tendency toward metabolic syndrome.
Fe/Cu ratio
Infection Pattern
Iron and copper compete in infection defence. The Fe/Cu ratio helps identify whether the pattern favours bacterial or viral susceptibility.
Cu/Mo ratio
Chemical Sensitivity
Copper and molybdenum balance influences chemical sensitivity and liver detoxification capacity. Elevated Cu/Mo is associated with increased environmental reactivity.
Minerals and metals assessed
Calcium
Magnesium
Sodium
Potassium
Copper
Zinc
Phosphorus
Iron
Manganese
Chromium
Selenium
Boron
Cobalt
Molybdenum
Lithium
Rubidium
Mercury
Lead
Cadmium
Arsenic
Aluminium
Nickel
Barium
Bismuth
Tin
Titanium
Thallium
Antimony
Who HTMA is most useful for
An accessible investigation for specific clinical situations
People who cannot or prefer not to do blood draws
Hair collection requires scissors and thirty seconds. For anyone with needle phobia, difficult veins, or simply a preference for non-invasive testing, HTMA provides a meaningful clinical picture without venepuncture.
Children
Assessing mineral status, toxic metal exposure, and metabolic patterns in children without blood draws. Particularly relevant for children with fatigue, behavioural concerns, learning difficulties, or frequent illness.
A lower-cost first investigation
For those who want functional testing but are not ready for the full five-test TDG programme. HTMA generates clinical hypotheses that indicate which follow-up testing is most likely to be highest yield — often pointing clearly toward blood chemistry, DUTCH, or OAT.
Heavy metal burden investigation
When heavy metal exposure is suspected from occupation, old property, diet, or amalgam fillings, HTMA can give a first look at excretion patterns. An elevated toxic metal is a prompt to confirm with the standard test (blood lead, blood mercury or an unprovoked urine sample against proper reference ranges), not a finding on its own. Hair can also be contaminated by dyes, treatments and water.
Adding a mineral dimension to blood chemistry
Blood chemistry and HTMA read mineral status from different perspectives. Blood measures current serum concentration. HTMA measures the excretion pattern over 8–12 weeks. Together they provide a more complete picture than either alone.
People who struggle with stool or timed urine collections
The GI-MAP and DUTCH have collection protocols that some people find challenging — timed samples, specific timing requirements, sensitivity around stool collection. HTMA has no timing requirements and no special collection conditions.
How it works
Four steps from order to results
01
Book and pay
Book your HTMA through the link below. You will receive a confirmation and the HTMA intake form to complete before your kit arrives.
02
Collect your sample
Cut approximately one teaspoon of hair from the nape of the neck — close to the scalp, within 4cm of the root. Instructions provided. Post the sample to the TEI laboratory in the US using the prepaid envelope.
03
Lab analysis
TEI Laboratories (Texas) processes the sample using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Results typically returned within 2–3 weeks of the lab receiving your sample.
04
Interpretation and call
Stephen reviews your results and intake form together, produces a written interpretation report, and delivers the findings in a 30-minute results call. Protocol recommendations follow.
What is included
Complete HTMA package
HTMA Laboratory Analysis
TEI Labs (Trace Elements Inc.) USA — the established HTMA reference laboratory
30 minerals and metals quantified by ICP-MS
8 key clinical ratios calculated
Laboratory reference report provided
Clinical Interpretation
Oxidation-type and pattern reading (fast/slow oxidiser, 4 Lows, Calcium Shell), labelled as HTMA patterns, not diagnoses
Key ratio analysis with clinical significance
Toxic metal pattern and displacement analysis
Written interpretation report — detailed clinical narrative
Protocol Recommendations
Supplement priorities from your findings, with what’s worth testing in blood first
Food suggestions to try as a starting point, checked against how you respond
Cross-test recommendations — what to investigate next
Lifestyle guidance based on adrenal and stress pattern
30-Minute Results Call
Walk through findings and interpretation
Questions answered and context clarified
Next steps agreed — follow-up testing if indicated
Recorded for your reference
Pricing options
Standalone or combined
TEI Labs HTMA — all 30 markers
Full written interpretation report
Protocol recommendations
30-minute results call
HTMA client intake form
Results within ~3–4 weeks of lab receipt
Everything in standalone HTMA above
Read alongside blood chemistry results
Serum minerals cross-referenced with HTMA excretion pattern
Combined interpretation — the most complete mineral picture available
Single results call covering both tests
Cross-test integration
Where HTMA can add a prompt alongside other tests
None of these readings is validated as a diagnosis. Each one below is a lead to check with the other test, not a finding on its own.
vs Blood Chemistry
Blood measures current serum minerals. HTMA measures the 8–12 week excretion pattern. Low serum magnesium tells you there is deficiency now. Low HTMA magnesium with high HTMA calcium explains why the Ca/Mg ratio has been disrupting blood sugar and sleep for months.
vs DUTCH Plus
The DUTCH shows the cortisol pattern. HTMA shows what that cortisol pattern has been doing to your mineral status over months — the Na/Mg adrenal ratio and Ca/Mg blood sugar ratio reflect the hormonal environment, not just the hormones themselves.
vs OAT
Elevated OAT pyroglutamate indicates glutathione depletion from oxidative stress. Elevated HTMA toxic metals identify whether heavy metal accumulation is the source of that oxidative demand — connecting the downstream signal to the upstream cause.
vs GI-MAP
Low HTMA cobalt indicates low stomach acid — the same upstream factor that allows gut dysbiosis to establish. HTMA and GI-MAP together connect the mineral basis of digestive insufficiency with the gut ecology consequences that follow from it.
Common questions
Before you order
Does hair treatment or colour affect results?
Yes — chemical treatments can introduce minerals into the hair shaft that distort readings. The intake form asks specifically about hair treatment history. If hair has been permanently coloured, bleached, or permed recently, collection from an untreated area or waiting until new growth is sufficient is preferable. Medicated shampoos containing zinc or selenium particularly affect those mineral readings and should be disclosed.
Does HTMA diagnose heavy metal poisoning?
No. HTMA measures excretion patterns, not tissue body burden. A person with deeply sequestered metals who is not currently mobilising them may show low toxic metals on HTMA. Elevated readings suggest exposure or excretion and are worth confirming with a standard blood or urine test. I don’t use provoked (chelator) urine tests: there are no valid reference ranges for them, and the American College of Medical Toxicology recommends against them.
How much hair is needed and where from?
Approximately one teaspoon — around 125mg. Always collected from the nape of the neck, within 4cm of the scalp, as this reflects the most recent growth period. The instructions provided with the kit cover collection in full. Short hair can be collected from multiple sites and blended. Pubic hair can be used if head hair is insufficient or significantly treated.
How long does the whole process take?
From ordering to results call: typically 4–6 weeks. The intake form is completed online immediately. The kit is posted within a few days. TEI Labs in Texas processes the sample within 2–3 weeks of receipt. The interpretation and results call follow within 5–7 days of lab results arriving.
Is HTMA part of the TDG five-test programme?
No. HTMA is a specialist investigation that sits outside the TDG five-test programme. The TDG programme covers blood chemistry (Regenerus), GI-MAP, DUTCH Plus, OAT, and food sensitivity panel. HTMA is available as a standalone investigation or as an add-on to any blood chemistry test — it is the first in the Detective Health Specialist Investigation series for specific clinical questions beyond the core five.
Ready to see your mineral picture?
Order standalone HTMA directly, or book a free 20-minute call first if you are unsure whether HTMA or another investigation is the better starting point for your situation.