Physical well-being

An elite athlete's most important tool is their own body.

Its well-being, endurance, and recovery must be continuously taken care of.

Annimari recently started collaborating with Co-Test Finland, an importer of various wellness and health-related tests.

• "Even though my body's ferritin levels, for example, have always been naturally good, I know that a third of women suffer from iron deficiency at some point," she states. "It can manifest as fatigue, poor recovery from exertion, etc. Low vitamin D levels in the body can also impair iron absorption. In addition, a lack of vitamin D can, of course, cause weakness in bones and muscles and a weakening of the immune system."

• "It is important for an athlete to monitor their own values. It's great to be involved in increasing awareness of an easy way to find out the state of one's own body at home. In my opinion, there's no need to wonder about the causes of one's fatigue or other symptoms when additional clarification can be easily obtained. And then, if necessary, one can go for further examinations to healthcare professionals."

Iron deficiency is much more common among young women than is believed, says diagnostics expert Mika Saramäki, who is one of the most experienced rapid test developers in the world.

However, iron deficiency is easy to determine by measuring ferritin levels in the blood. Ferritin measurements provide a very reliable picture of stored iron levels, provided the person being tested is otherwise healthy. In the case of iron deficiency, it is always important to remember the possibility that in addition to diet, poor iron absorption from food, and heavy menstruation, the cause of the deficiency may also be celiac disease.

In Finland, two out of a hundred people suffer from celiac disease. Celiac disease should at least be ruled out as a possible cause of iron deficiency. "Co-Test's Celiac Disease Test is based on a method patented by Professor Markku Mäki," says Saramäki, who was involved in the test's development.

At Finland's latitudes, it is very difficult to get enough vitamin D from food. Vitamin D absorption is very individual, and in winter, vitamin D deficiency can occur even if vitamin D is taken as a dietary supplement. Only one in six adults has sufficient vitamin D levels for bone health.

Co-Test's Vitamin D test makes it easy not only to determine one's own vitamin D level but also to monitor the development of vitamin D levels.

The quality of rapid tests has improved over the years. Nowadays, the results of high-quality rapid tests can be compared in reliability to laboratory results.

During the coronavirus pandemic, almost all of us have used rapid tests at home. Determining ferritin, vitamin D, or celiac disease is no more difficult. "Instead of digging with a nasal swab, the sample is simply taken from a fingertip," states diagnostics expert Saramäki.

Source: K&F Lehdet