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anyone try those liver test strips from amazon?

You know the ones that say "Urine Test Strips for Urinalysis 11 Parameters. 155 Cnt Reagent Test Strips for UTI, pH, Ketone, Protein, Kidney, Acidosis, CKD, Gallbladder, Liver Function Testing." I wonder if these will be accurate enough to monitor liver function while on a kava binge. I guess I'm being totally paranoid because I only use traditional style kava, but with 155 tests I'd be curious to see any elevation at all. Sure would put my mind at ease. Did anyone else try this? I don't have any other health issues, but I do use Prozac now, and that's it.
 

kavamehameha

Magnum's 'awa drinking bird
To put this into a bit more perspective:

Urine test strips per se are definitely not useless. They do their job, but one has to understand what they are capable of. As with every measuring technique, the "explanatory power" regarding what's really going on in your body is of course limited. Biology is a complex thing. The quantities which are measured with these strips are associated to several different body functions. So while the measurement of an elevated value may provide a hint on what might be wrong (as certain quantities can be mostly attributed to certain body functions and organs), it can have many explanations. Moreover, the quantities measured by the test strips are not sufficient to properly monitor the liver function in every aspect. (Even though you might measure no elevated values at all, theoretically there could still be a problem with your liver). The combination of several different test methods is necessary for a proper diagnosis. Since this requires certain material, techniques, machines and knowledge, one usually (to say the least) does not perform such tests by oneself. If you are worried about your liver function, go to a doctor. He will know what to do.
 
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verticity

I'm interested in things
Those strips can measure bilirubin, which is one of the things measured in a liver panel. But a urine test will be a much cruder measure than a blood test. A blood test will just be much more sensitive and can do the full range of tests: ALT, AST, ALP, bilirubin, sometimes GGT. If you want an accurate early warning indicator if your liver enzymes are a little off, you need a blood test. The urine strips might be be able to tell you if your bilirubin is very high as would happen in severe liver disease, such as hepatitis or cirrhosis, but you would probably already have noticed symptoms like fatige and your skin turning yellow at that point...
 
I returned those silly strips, I opted for the real panel test at a lab, I’d like to know just in case I’m one of those genetic outliers that I’ve been hearing about, thanks again for all the advice
 
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