A blood test for women in their 40s
Your 40s often bring changes in sleep, energy, mood and your cycle. Many of those overlap with things a blood test can check, like the thyroid, iron and vitamin D.
Why test now
Perimenopause usually starts in the mid-40s, but tiredness, poor sleep, brain fog and weight changes have plenty of other causes too. A screen helps you see whether something else, like the thyroid or low iron, is part of the picture.
It's also a good time to set a baseline. Cholesterol and blood sugar often move in the years around menopause, and a reading now gives you something to compare against later.
- Tiredness that sleep doesn't fix
- Heavier, more irregular or more painful periods
- Brain fog, low mood or poor sleep
- Weight gain that isn't explained by what you eat
- Hair thinning or feeling unusually cold
What the screen checks
Thyroid. TSH, FT3 and FT4. An underactive thyroid is common in women and causes tiredness, weight gain and low mood that are easily put down to age.
Iron and blood count. Iron, ferritin, TIBC, transferrin saturation and a full blood count. Heavier periods in the 40s can run iron stores down.
Vitamins. Vitamin D, active B12 and magnesium. Low vitamin D is very common in the UAE, where most of the day is spent indoors.
Cholesterol and blood sugar. A full lipid profile, fasting glucose, HbA1c and insulin. These often shift in the years around menopause.
Female profile. Prolactin, DHEAS and CA 125, measured from the same draw.
How to prepare
- Book the draw away from your period if you can, as CA 125 can rise during it.
- Fast overnight with water only and book a morning draw.
- Stop biotin supplements, including hair and nail blends, for 2-3 days beforehand.
- Keep taking any regular medicine, including the pill or HRT, and mention it at your review.
The screen or a consultation
Book the screen if you want to rule things in or out
The screen checks the thyroid, iron, vitamins, blood sugar and cholesterol in one home draw, and a consultant goes through every value with you.
Start with a consultation if you want a plan
If you'd like help with sleep, energy, weight or how you're feeling day to day, start with a consultation. Your consultant will say whether the screen should come first.
The consultation is AED 350, credited against your program if one is agreed within 30 days.
How the home test works
Baseline’s full blood screen covers 122 parameters across ten systems from one home draw, for AED 850, with results in 48 hours.
- Nurse comes to you. A licensed phlebotomist visits your home or office, 7 days a week, anywhere in the UAE.
- Accredited lab. Samples are processed by a CAP-accredited laboratory (College of American Pathologists), also accredited to ISO 15189, against clinical reference ranges.
- Reviewed with you. Results land in your account in Baseline format, and your consultant walks you through them on video, never a PDF dumped in your inbox.
Ranges are the lab’s own. Your consultant goes through what they mean with you.
Your results arrive in the Baseline app, every marker against the lab’s own range, checked by your consultant before you see them. The values above are an example.
Questions
- Does the screen test for perimenopause or menopause?
- No. It does not measure FSH or oestrogen. Those hormones swing a lot from day to day in perimenopause, so one reading often says little, and perimenopause is usually recognised from symptoms and cycle changes. The screen checks the other common causes of the same symptoms.
- Why check the thyroid in my 40s?
- Thyroid problems are more common in women and often start around this age. The symptoms overlap closely with perimenopause, so it's worth ruling in or out.
- Should I test on a particular day of my cycle?
- Away from your period is best. If that isn't possible, tell your consultant where you are in your cycle.
- Can I have the test at home?
- Yes. A nurse comes to your home or office, 7 days a week, anywhere in the UAE. Results are back in 48 hours.
Tests on the screen
This page is general information, not a diagnosis. If you feel unwell, or your symptoms are new or getting worse, speak to a doctor.
Find out whether this is appropriate for you
Reading is not a diagnosis. A consultation goes through your history with you and tells you plainly whether a program fits, including when it does not. AED 350, credited in full against your first order.