Quick answer: Function Health tests more than 100 biomarkers in a single annual draw, organized into roughly ten physiological categories: metabolic health, lipids and cardiovascular risk, thyroid, hormones, liver and kidney function, nutrients and vitamins, inflammation, blood and immune cells, cancer screening markers, and heavy metals plus environmental toxins. A standard annual physical from your primary care doctor typically orders 10 to 20 of these. The function health 100 biomarkers panel is designed to surface patterns your routine labs almost certainly miss, from subclinical thyroid resistance to early micronutrient depletion to a quietly rising PSA.
Why 100 biomarkers, and why does that number matter?
A single out-of-range value is noise. A pattern across a dozen related markers is a signal. The clinical argument for running function health 100 biomarkers in one draw is correlation: your free T3 is most meaningful alongside reverse T3 and TSH; your homocysteine reading changes what you do about your B12; your LDL particle count reframes a normal-looking LDL-C. When you test 100 markers simultaneously on the same blood draw, every result is calibrated to the same day, the same hormonal state, the same hydration level. That temporal alignment is something a piecemeal approach cannot replicate.
For context on the breadth of the panel, see our piece on how many biomarkers does function health test and how that compares to what most clinicians order. The short version: your annual physical orders a fraction of this.
Category 1: Metabolic health markers
Metabolic markers are the workhorse of the panel and often the first place early disease shows up. Function tests fasting glucose, fasting insulin, hemoglobin A1c, and typically the calculated HOMA-IR (insulin resistance index derived from glucose and insulin together). This cluster matters because A1c alone misses early insulin resistance: you can have a completely normal A1c of 5.2 while your fasting insulin is already elevated at 18 uIU/mL, which signals your pancreas is working overtime to hold glucose down.
Function also runs a full metabolic panel including uric acid, which is an underappreciated metabolic marker. Elevated uric acid correlates with gout risk, kidney stone formation, and cardiovascular risk independent of gout symptoms. Most people have never had it tested.
| Marker | What it signals | Optimal vs. standard lab range |
|---|---|---|
| Fasting glucose | Immediate blood sugar regulation | Optimal: 70-85 mg/dL; standard: 70-99 |
| Fasting insulin | Pancreatic stress, insulin resistance | Optimal: under 5 uIU/mL; standard: 2-19 |
| Hemoglobin A1c | 90-day glucose average | Optimal: 4.8-5.2%; standard: under 5.7 |
| HOMA-IR | Calculated insulin resistance score | Optimal: under 1.0; insulin resistant: over 2.5 |
| Uric acid | Gout, kidney stone, cardiometabolic risk | Men: 3.5-6.0 mg/dL; women: 2.5-5.0 |
Category 2: Lipids and cardiovascular risk
Function goes well beyond the standard total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides panel. The clinically meaningful additions are apolipoprotein B (ApoB), Lp(a), and LDL particle size. ApoB counts every atherogenic particle directly, which is a better cardiovascular risk predictor than calculated LDL-C in most large outcome studies. Lp(a) is genetically determined, unaffected by diet or statins, and elevates heart attack risk by two to four times in people who carry it. The majority of adults have never had their Lp(a) tested even once.
The full lipid section in the function health biomarkers list also includes homocysteine, which connects the cardiovascular and B-vitamin sections. Homocysteine above 10 micromol/L is independently associated with coronary artery disease and stroke, and it falls with B12, B6, and folate supplementation in many people. That actionability is exactly why it belongs in a comprehensive panel.
- ApoB: optimal under 80 mg/dL for most adults; under 60 mg/dL if you have established cardiovascular risk factors
- Lp(a): anything above 50 mg/dL or 125 nmol/L warrants proactive conversation with a clinician
- Homocysteine: optimal 6 to 9 micromol/L; above 15 is clinically elevated
- hs-CRP: bridges the lipid and inflammation categories; under 1.0 mg/L is cardiovascular-optimal
Category 3: Thyroid markers
Function runs a complete thyroid panel, not the single TSH most doctors order. The difference matters enormously. TSH measures pituitary signaling to the thyroid, not actual thyroid output. You can have a normal TSH of 1.8 while your free T3 (the biologically active hormone) is sluggish at 2.4 pg/mL, producing textbook hypothyroid symptoms that your doctor dismisses because your TSH looks fine.
The function health full panel markers for thyroid include:
- TSH: the standard screen; optimal 0.5 to 2.0 mIU/L for symptomatic evaluation
- Free T4: precursor hormone produced by the thyroid gland directly
- Free T3: the active hormone; conversion from T4 to T3 can be impaired even when T4 is normal
- Reverse T3 (rT3): an inactive metabolite that competes with free T3 at receptor sites; elevated in chronic stress, illness, or caloric restriction
- TPO antibodies and thyroglobulin antibodies: markers of autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto’s), which often precedes TSH changes by years
Finding elevated TPO antibodies with a normal TSH is extremely common and clinically significant. Talk to a clinician about your results if your antibodies are elevated even with normal TSH, because early Hashimoto’s benefits from monitoring and often dietary intervention.
Category 4: Hormone markers
The hormone section varies somewhat by sex, but both versions are more detailed than a typical primary care hormone panel. For men, function tests total testosterone, free testosterone, SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin), estradiol, LH, FSH, DHEA-S, cortisol, and prolactin. For women, the panel captures the same markers plus progesterone, and the interpretation varies by cycle day and menopausal status.
The most misunderstood marker here is SHBG. Total testosterone can look perfectly normal at 600 ng/dL, but if SHBG is high (say, 80 nmol/L), your free testosterone is effectively low. The free fraction is what actually reaches androgen receptors. A clinician who only checks total testosterone will miss this regularly.
DHEA-S is the other frequently overlooked marker. It peaks in your mid-twenties and declines steadily. Low DHEA-S correlates with fatigue, reduced muscle recovery, and early immune senescence. It is the only adrenal hormone you can meaningfully supplement over the counter, which makes knowing your baseline practically useful. You can read our deeper look at the overall function health review for more context on how the platform interprets hormonal findings.
Category 5: Liver and kidney function
Liver markers in the function health 100 biomarkers panel go beyond the standard AST and ALT. The panel includes GGT (gamma-glutamyl transferase), alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin (total and direct), albumin, and total protein. GGT is the sensitive early signal for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and alcohol intake. It rises before ALT in many people with early hepatic stress, and it correlates strongly with oxidative stress independent of alcohol. Most annual physicals never order it.
On the kidney side, the panel captures creatinine, BUN, eGFR (estimated glomerular filtration rate), cystatin C, and the albumin-to-creatinine ratio (uACR) from urine. Cystatin C is a more sensitive early marker of kidney function decline than creatinine alone, because creatinine is influenced by muscle mass. A large muscular person can have a creatinine of 1.3 that reads as borderline high when their kidney function is actually fine, while cystatin C would be normal. Running both gives you the full picture.
Category 6: Nutrients, vitamins, and minerals
This section is where the function health biomarkers list catches things that nobody expects. Nutrient testing in a standard physical is essentially nonexistent unless you have a specific diagnosis. Function tests vitamin D (25-OH), B12, folate, ferritin, serum iron, TIBC, zinc, magnesium (red blood cell magnesium, not serum), and omega-3 index.
The RBC magnesium distinction is critical. Serum magnesium is homeostically controlled within a narrow range until severe deficiency, so it is nearly useless as a screening tool. RBC magnesium measures intracellular stores and is low in a meaningful percentage of the population that eats a Western diet. Low intracellular magnesium contributes to poor sleep, muscle cramps, constipation, anxiety, and cardiac arrhythmia, and will never show up on a serum draw.
The omega-3 index measures EPA plus DHA as a percentage of total red blood cell fatty acids. An index below 4% is associated with significantly elevated cardiovascular and cognitive risk. The target is 8% or higher. Most Americans test around 4 to 5%, meaning a majority of the population is suboptimal on a marker that is both testable and directly modifiable with supplementation. This is exactly the kind of finding that makes a comprehensive panel like the function health full panel markers worth having.
| Nutrient marker | Common finding | Why standard panels miss it |
|---|---|---|
| RBC magnesium | Subclinical depletion in 40-60% of adults | Serum Mg appears normal until severe deficiency |
| Omega-3 index | Below 4% in most US adults | Not included in any standard panel |
| Ferritin | Low in premenopausal women; high in metabolic syndrome | Often omitted unless anemia is suspected |
| 25-OH Vitamin D | Below 40 ng/mL in majority of adults | Ordered sporadically, not annually |
| Zinc | Low in plant-heavy diets and older adults | Rarely ordered outside immune or wound contexts |
Category 7: Inflammation markers
Chronic low-grade inflammation is the substrate for nearly every major age-related disease. Function’s inflammation section includes hs-CRP (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein), fibrinogen, ferritin (which doubles as both a nutrient and an acute-phase reactant), and sometimes IL-6 or ESR depending on the panel version. The distinction between standard CRP and hs-CRP matters: standard CRP detects acute infection and inflammation above 10 mg/L, while hs-CRP resolves differences in the 0.1 to 3.0 mg/L range where cardiovascular risk stratification actually lives.
Ferritin above 200 ng/mL in women and above 300 ng/mL in men, in the absence of infection, is increasingly recognized as a marker of metabolic inflammation and iron overload. Both states drive oxidative damage through different mechanisms. A high ferritin alongside a high hs-CRP tells a different story than a high ferritin with normal hs-CRP, and the function health 100 biomarkers panel captures both simultaneously.
Category 8: Complete blood count and immune markers
The CBC with differential is a standard component, but what Function does with it is different from a routine review. The panel tracks the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), which is a validated inflammatory and immunosenescence marker, and the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR). These ratios are not exotic research constructs: they are used in oncology, infectious disease, and longevity medicine to characterize immune system aging.
A rising NLR over serial panels, even within the standard reference range for each individual cell type, is a meaningful early signal. Longitudinal tracking is where the function health full panel markers genuinely shine, because single-value interpretation has limits that pattern-over-time does not.
Category 9: Cancer screening markers
The cancer screening section includes PSA (prostate-specific antigen) for all men, CA-125 for women (ovarian cancer marker), CEA (carcinoembryonic antigen, associated with colorectal and other cancers), and AFP (alpha-fetoprotein, liver cancer and germ cell tumor marker). These are not diagnostic, and Function communicates that clearly. They are screening signals that, when elevated, trigger follow-up imaging or biopsy.
PSA screening in particular has a complicated evidence history, but the current consensus from major urology organizations supports shared decision-making for men starting at 40 to 45 with average risk. Running it annually and tracking the velocity (how fast it rises year to year) is more clinically useful than any single absolute value. A PSA that jumps from 1.2 to 2.8 in one year is more concerning than a stable 3.0, and you can only know that with serial measurement. The cost breakdown behind the membership is covered in our piece on function health cost if that context matters for your decision.
Category 10: Heavy metals and environmental toxins
The environmental exposure section is the most distinctive and least replicable part of the 100 biomarker blood test through standard care. Function tests blood lead, mercury, arsenic, and cadmium at minimum. Some panel versions include additional toxic elements. These are not hypothetical concerns for industrial workers. Mercury accumulates in people who eat tuna, swordfish, or other large predatory fish more than twice a week. Lead persists in bones for decades after exposure. Cadmium rises in smokers and in people who live near certain industrial sites or eat a lot of shellfish and leafy greens grown in contaminated soil.
There is no safe level of lead in adults, and the CDC has progressively revised the concern threshold downward over the decades. Finding a blood lead of 3.5 micrograms per deciliter is not an emergency, but it is information that changes behavior: you look at water pipes (pre-1986 plumbing), you look at old paint exposure, you adjust fish choices. That behavioral signal is exactly what these markers are for.
The simplest way to actually get this done
Superpower is a full-body lab membership that runs 100+ biomarkers, has each result reviewed by a doctor, and tracks your numbers year over year (about $199/year). It is what we point readers to when they would rather get one clean, complete draw than chase single tests one at a time. Here is superpower blood test reviewed in full.
How Function Health actually uses 100+ markers together
The individual biomarker meanings matter less than the cross-system patterns Function’s platform surfaces. Their algorithm and physician review layer look for clusters: for example, low free T3 plus elevated reverse T3 plus low ferritin plus below-optimal RBC magnesium is a recognizable pattern of hypothyroid-like symptoms with identifiable upstream causes. None of those four values would trigger a flag in isolation on a standard lab panel. Together they point toward a resolvable problem.
This is the clinical argument for running all 100+ markers at once rather than chasing individual symptoms with individual tests. Specialists optimize within their domain. A comprehensive one-draw panel gives you the systems view. If you want to understand the competitive landscape before committing, our superpower blood test review covers how a comparable panel handles the same system-wide approach. For the Andrew Huberman angle on why this kind of testing matters, see our piece on function health andrew huberman and his stated rationale for comprehensive annual testing.
The cost of building this panel yourself through Quest or Labcorp, ordering every component individually, would run $600 to $1,400 depending on which add-ons you need, assuming you can even order them directly in your state. See our comparison of how much does superpower cost versus assembling panels piecemeal to get a realistic sense of the economics.
What people most commonly misread in their results
Several function health biomarker meanings trip people up. The most common misreads:
- Total vs. free hormones: a testosterone of 550 ng/dL sounds fine until you see SHBG at 85 nmol/L and free testosterone at 6 pg/mL. Always read them together.
- Vitamin D range: the standard lab reference range flags deficiency below 20 ng/mL. Most functional medicine clinicians target 50 to 80 ng/mL. A value of 32 that looks normal on your Quest report is often suboptimal for immune and musculoskeletal function.
- Ferritin as a lone iron marker: ferritin is an acute-phase protein. If you have any acute illness or inflammation at the time of the draw, ferritin will be falsely elevated. Always interpret it alongside hs-CRP and serum iron.
- B12 upper range: very high B12 (above 900 pg/mL) without supplementation can indicate liver disease or certain cancers, not just good nutrition. It is rare but worth flagging to a clinician.
- LDL-C vs. LDL-P vs. ApoB: LDL cholesterol content and LDL particle number diverge in insulin-resistant and metabolically complex patients. ApoB is generally the more predictive number. If your LDL-C is normal but your ApoB is elevated, treat the ApoB.
FAQ
What does function health 100 biomarkers include exactly?
The panel covers approximately 10 categories: metabolic (glucose, insulin, A1c, HOMA-IR, uric acid), lipids and cardiovascular (ApoB, Lp(a), homocysteine, lipid panel), thyroid (TSH, free T3, free T4, rT3, TPO/TG antibodies), hormones (testosterone, SHBG, estradiol, DHEA-S, cortisol, LH, FSH, progesterone), liver and kidney (ALT, AST, GGT, creatinine, eGFR, cystatin C, uACR), nutrients (vitamin D, B12, folate, ferritin, zinc, RBC magnesium, omega-3 index), inflammation (hs-CRP, fibrinogen), CBC with differential and NLR, cancer screening markers (PSA, CA-125, CEA, AFP), and heavy metals (lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium). The exact count varies slightly by panel version and any add-ons selected.
Is a 100 biomarker blood test accurate?
Function uses the same CLIA-certified Quest and Labcorp reference laboratories that process standard doctor-ordered labs. The analytical accuracy of each individual test is identical to what your hospital runs. What differs is the breadth, the interpretation layer, and the longitudinal tracking. Accuracy concerns specific to home-draw kits (finger prick, dried blood spot) do not apply here, as Function uses standard venous draws at Quest or Labcorp patient service centers.
What does function health full panel markers cost?
The annual membership was priced at $499 per year as of early 2026, which works out to about $42 per month for unlimited access to their platform and one comprehensive annual draw with physician review. Add-on panels for gut microbiome, heavy metals, toxicology, or specific hormone panels run an additional $29 to $299 each. For context on how the economics compare to alternatives, see our breakdown of function health cost versus building the panel yourself.
Can you get 100+ biomarkers tested without a membership?
Yes, through services like Superpower (about $199 per year), Marek Health, or by ordering individual tests directly through companies like Ulta Lab Tests, LabsMD, or RequestATest where direct-to-consumer testing is legal. The limitation with self-assembled panels is that you typically do not get the coordinated interpretation layer or longitudinal tracking that a membership service provides. You get raw numbers, which requires more self-directed research to act on.
What is function health biomarker meaning for markers outside normal range?
Function uses a tiered flag system, distinguishing between out-of-standard-reference-range values and out-of-optimal-range values. The optimal range is often tighter than the lab reference range and is based on population data from people without diagnosed disease rather than the general patient population. A value that is flagged as suboptimal is not a diagnosis. It is a signal to investigate, monitor, or change a behavior. Their physician review layer adds a brief written interpretation for flagged markers.
How does the thyroid section compare to what a primary care doctor orders?
Most primary care annual physicals order only TSH. Some add a free T4 if TSH is abnormal. Function runs TSH, free T3, free T4, reverse T3, TPO antibodies, and thyroglobulin antibodies as a standard part of the panel. The clinical difference is substantial: autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto’s) often presents with normal TSH and elevated antibodies for years before TSH shifts. Running antibodies catches that window. The T3/rT3 ratio adds another dimension for people with fatigue and cold intolerance who have been told their thyroid is normal.
Does Function Health test for APOE status or genetic cardiovascular risk?
The standard 100+ biomarker panel is blood chemistry, not genetic testing. APOE genotyping (Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular risk alleles) requires a separate genetic add-on, which Function offers as an optional component at an added cost. If APOE status is a specific concern, confirm with Function directly whether it is included in the current add-on catalog, as their test menu evolves over time.
Who should not use a 100 biomarker panel as their only medical evaluation?
The 100 biomarker blood test is a screening and optimization tool, not a substitute for symptom-driven clinical evaluation, physical examination, or imaging when those are indicated. Someone with new chest pain, a palpable lymph node, unexplained weight loss, or any acute symptom needs an in-person clinical encounter, not a lab panel. The panel is most valuable for apparently healthy adults building a longitudinal baseline, catching silent risk factors, and tracking the effect of lifestyle or supplementation changes over time.
