Other names: Protein Total, PROTEIN, TOTAL, Protein Total, Serum, Protein, Total, Serum
Optimal Result:
6 - 8.5 g/dL,
or
60 - 85 g/L.
What is the total protein marker?
Total protein is the sum concentration of all individual serum proteins (g/dL). There are many hundreds of different protein species in serum, including straight polypeptides as well as glycosylated and lipid-associated forms.
Since total protein consists mainly of a composite of albumin and globulins, the result is not interpreted in isolation, but rather is interpreted in context of the changes in albumin and globulins (independently and in relation to each other). Albumin generally accounts for about half (~50%) of the total protein concentration in plasma.
What is the total protein test?
The total protein marker measures the total amount of protein in your blood and specifically looks for the amount of albumin and globulin.
The total protein test is performed as part of an bi-annual health checkup. It is usually part of a test panel that is called Comprehensive Metabolic Panel.
The total protein markers may also be ordered if you experience:
- unexplained weight loss
- fatigue
- edema, which is swelling caused by extra fluid in your tissues
- symptoms of kidney or liver disease
Having too many or too few proteins can lead to unexpected weight loss, fatigue, or inflammatory disease. The total protein test can help diagnose liver and kidney diseases, along with other conditions.
What are proteins?
→ Proteins are important building blocks of all cells and tissues.
→ Proteins are necessary for your body’s growth, development, and health.
What are albumin and globulin?
Blood contains albumin and globulin.
→ Albumin proteins keep fluid from leaking out of your blood vessels.
→ Globulin proteins play an important role in your immune system.
Albumin and globulin are two types of protein in your body. The total protein test measures the total amount of albumin and globulin in your body. It’s used as part of your routine health checkup. It may also be used if you have unexpected weight loss, fatigue, or the symptoms of a kidney or liver disease.
Albumin:
Albumin protein accounts for 50% of the total protein found in your blood plasma. It regulates oncotic pressure [= the osmotic pressure generated by large molecules (especially proteins) in solution] in the plasma to prevent water from leaking out of the blood vessels.
Albumin is made mainly in the liver. Albumin also helps carry some medicines and other substances through the blood and is important for tissue growth and healing.
Globulin:
Globulin proteins vary in size, weight, and function. Serum globulin can be separated into several subgroups by serum protein electrophoresis that include α1, α2, β and γ fractions (aka: alpha, beta, and gamma types). They include carrier proteins, enzymes, complement, and immunoglobulins (also called antibodies). Some globulins are made by the liver, while others are made by the immune system. Certain globulins bind with hemoglobin. Other globulins transport metals, such as iron, in the blood and help fight infection.
What is the normal reference range for total protein in serum?
The normal range for total protein is between 6 and 8.3 grams per deciliter (g/dL). This range may vary slightly among laboratories. These ranges are also due to other factors such as:
- age
- gender
- population
- test method
Your total protein measurement may also increase during pregnancy.
If total protein is abnormal, additional tests must be performed to identify which specific protein is low or high before a diagnosis can be made.
What is a urine protein test?
A urine total protein test detects the amounts of protein present in the urine. The kidneys filter albumin and other proteins from the blood so that the urine may contain small amounts of protein. However, problems with the urinary tract, such as chronic kidney disease, can cause large amounts of protein to leak into the urine. Usually, a person’s body eliminates less than 150 milligrams (mg) of total protein and less than 20 mg of albumin through the urine every 24 hours.
Sources/Links:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/total-protein-test/
https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/tests/total-protein
https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003483.htm
https://www.ucsfbenioffchildrens.org/medical-tests/003483
References:
Busher JT. Serum Albumin and Globulin. In: Walker HK, Hall WD, Hurst JW, editors. Clinical Methods: The History, Physical, and Laboratory Examinations. 3rd edition. Boston: Butterworths; 1990. Chapter 101. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK204/
Nagra N, Dang S. Protein Losing Enteropathy. [Updated 2022 Jun 21]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK542283/
Bruck E. Laboratory tests in the analysis of states of dehydration. Pediatr Clin North Am. 1971 Feb;18(1):265-83. doi: 10.1016/s0031-3955(16)32538-x. PMID: 25868190.
High protein in blood (called hyperproteinemia) means you have abnormally high levels of protein in your blood plasma. If your blood protein levels are unusually high, a healthcare provider will order more tests to determine the condition or issue that caused your high blood protein levels.
High serum total protein levels can indicate the following health conditions:
- inflammation or infections, such as viral hepatitis B or C, or HIV
- bone marrow disorders, such as multiple myeloma or Waldenstrom’s disease
- dehydration
- chronic kidney disease
- liver disease (including chronic active hepatitis and cirrhosis)
- tropical diseases (eg, kala-azar, leprosy, and others);
- granulomatous diseases, such as sarcoidosis;
Diseases in which total protein is sometimes high include:
Collagen disease [eg, lupus erythematosus (SLE), and other instances of chronic infection/inflammation].
What are high blood protein symptoms?
High blood protein levels do not cause symptoms. You may learn you have high blood protein if a healthcare provider orders a comprehensive metabolic panel. The results will show your total protein levels, albumin levels and the ratio of albumin to globulins, or A/G ratio. (A normal A/G ratio is 0.8 to 2.0.) If your blood protein levels are unusually high, a healthcare provider may order more tests, such as protein electrophoresis or total immunoglobulin levels.
Import lab results from multiple providers, track changes over time, customize your reference ranges, and get clear explanations for each result. Everything is stored securely, exportable in one organized file, and shareable with your doctor—or anyone you choose.
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Low serum total protein levels can indicate various health conditions, including:
Agammaglobulinemia: A genetic disorder characterized by very low immunoglobulin (antibody) levels, increasing the risk of infections.
Common Variable Immune Deficiency (CVID): A condition with low antibody levels, also heightening the risk of infections.
Malnutrition or Starvation: Insufficient protein intake, as seen in conditions like kwashiorkor or eating disorders.
Malabsorption Syndromes: Conditions such as celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, or chronic ulcerative colitis that impair protein absorption.
Liver Disorders: Impaired protein synthesis, common in cirrhosis or hepatitis.
Kidney Disorders: Protein loss in urine, such as in nephrotic syndrome or glomerulonephritis.
Protein-Losing Enteropathies: Protein loss through the gastrointestinal tract.
Extensive Burns or Severe Skin Disease: Loss of protein through damaged skin.
Chronic Inflammatory Conditions: Increased protein breakdown or loss.
Congestive Heart Failure: Can cause dilution of protein levels due to fluid overload.
Bleeding (Hemorrhage): Protein loss through blood loss.
Cancer (Neoplasia): Increased protein breakdown or loss.
Hyperthyroidism: Accelerated protein catabolism.
Chronic Alcoholism: Contributes to malnutrition and liver dysfunction.
Pregnancy: Increased plasma volume may dilute protein levels.
Receiving Intravenous Fluids: A dilutional effect on protein levels.
Prolonged Immobilization: May contribute to protein loss in certain cases.
Very low total protein levels (especially albumin levels <4 g/dL) can lead to edema, as seen in conditions like nephrotic syndrome and other severe protein-losing states.
Laboratories
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Import Lab Results from Any Source
Easily upload lab results from any provider, whether it's a hospital, independent lab, or home testing service. We support PDFs, scanned documents, and JPEGs from patient portals. No need to log in to multiple platforms — everything is centralized in one secure space.
Easily upload lab results from any provider — we support PDFs, scans, and images. Keep all your reports organized in one secure place.
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Every lab result is automatically organized on a chronological timeline, giving you a complete picture of your health journey. Whether you're tracking a condition, managing treatments, or staying proactive, the timeline helps you and your doctor understand how things progress over time.
Every lab result is automatically organized on a chronological timeline, giving you a complete picture of your health journey.
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Whether it's a blood test, GI panel, urinalysis, or something else, lab reports measure numerous biomarkers that reveal what's happening inside your body. Our extensive database covers over 10,000 biomarkers, providing clear, simple explanations of what each result means and how you can take action—no matter your membership level. Say goodbye to confusion and get the insights you need to better understand your health.
Our database covers over 10,000 biomarkers with clear, simple explanations—so you can finally understand your results and what to do next.
Enter Your Lab Reports Yourself — Always Free
Enter Your Lab Reports — Always Free
If you'd like to handle inputting your health data into your account, you can do so with our easy-to-use data entry forms. Our user-friendly form is designed to guide you through the quick and easy submission process, making it simple to keep track of your health metrics. This is available to both Complete plan and Unlimited plan members.
Our user-friendly form guides you through a quick, simple submission process, making it easy to enter your health metrics.
Add your results anytime with our easy entry form. It's quick, guided, and helps you stay organized — free for all members.
Visualize Your Results
View your lab data through easy-to-read graphs and tables. Quickly spot patterns, track changes, and compare results across different dates — all without digging through multiple reports. You can also select and compare graphs of specific biomarkers side-by-side to better understand how they relate and change over time.
See your lab reports in clear graphs and tables. Spot patterns, track changes, and compare results over time — all in one place.
Export Your Complete Lab History in a Single File
Export Your Complete Lab History
After collecting lab results from different providers, you can download your entire history combined into a single file. Choose from PDF, Excel, or CSV formats to easily review, share, or get a second opinion—no more juggling multiple reports.
After collecting lab results from different providers, you can download your entire history combined into a single file.
Comprehensive Data Entry Service for Your Reports
Data Entry Service for Your Reports
Our inclusive service handles the data entry for your lab reports. Just submit your information and we'll take care of the rest. Complete plan members receive one report entered for free, then $15 per report after that. Unlimited plan members receive ten report entries for free, then $15 per report after that.
Our inclusive service handles the data entry for your lab reports. Just submit your information and we'll take care of the rest.
Securely Share With Anyone You Trust
Whether you're working with a doctor, nutritionist, caregiver, or wellness coach, you can securely share your complete lab history by sending an invite link to anyone you trust. You have full control over who sees your information and for how long, ensuring your privacy and peace of mind at every step.
Share your full lab history with your doctor, nutritionist, or coach using a secure invite link.
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I have been using Healthmatters.io since 2021. I travel all over the world and use different doctors and health facilities. This site has allowed me to consolidate all my various test results over 14 years in one place. And every doctor that I show this to has been impressed. Because with any health professional I talk to, I can pull up historical results in seconds. It is invaluable. Even going back to the same doctor, they usually do not have the historical results from their facility in a graph format. That has been very helpful.
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As a PRO member and medical practitioner, Healthmatters.io has been an invaluable tool for tracking my clients' data. The layout is intuitive, making it easy to monitor trends and spot patterns over time. The ability to customize reports and charts helps me present information clearly to my clients, improving communication and outcomes. It's streamlined my workflow, saving me time and providing insights at a glance. Highly recommended for any practitioner looking for a comprehensive and user-friendly solution to track patient labs!
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Healthmatters is a personal health dashboard that helps you organize and understand your lab results. It collects and displays your medical test data from any lab in one secure, easy-to-use platform.
With a Healthmatters account, you can:
Professionals can also analyze client data more efficiently and save time managing lab reports.
Healthmatters.io personal account provides in-depth research on 4000+ biomarkers, including information and suggestions for test panels such as, but not limited to:
You can combine all test reports inside your Healthmatters account and keep them in one place. It gives you an excellent overview of all your health data. Once you retest, you can add new results and compare them.
If you are still determining whether Healthmatters support your lab results, the rule is that if you can test it, you can upload it to Healthmatters.
While we work with many popular labs, we welcome reports from lots of other places too.
It's as simple as this: if you can get a test done, you can upload it to Healthmatters and we can interpret results from any lab out there. If laboratories can analyze it, we can interpret it.
If you're on the hunt for a specific biomarker, contact us and we'll add it to our database. Anything from blood, urine, saliva, or stool can be uploaded, understood, and tracked with your Healthmatters account.
The Complete Plan ($15/month) is perfect for individuals who want ongoing access to their health data. It includes unlimited lab imports, visual tracking, custom ranges, result explanations, full account exports, and secure sharing — all with a simple monthly subscription. You can cancel anytime and restart your plan whenever you're ready — your data will still be there waiting for you. You can also upgrade to the Unlimited Plan at any time, with the cost prorated based on what you've already paid.
The Unlimited Plan ($250 one-time) is also designed for individuals but offers lifetime access with no ongoing subscription. You'll get all the same features as the Complete Plan, plus a larger initial data entry allowance (10 reports), making it a great choice if you prefer a one-time payment and long-term use without monthly fees.
In short:
There are two ways to add your test reports to your Healthmatters account. One option is to input the data using the data entry forms. The other method is to utilize our "Data entry service."
Our data entry forms offer an easy, fast, and free way for you to input the reports yourself. Self-entry allows you to add an unlimited number of reports at no cost. We make the self-entry process user-friendly, providing dozens of templates that pre-populate the most popular laboratory panels and offering instant feedback on entered values.
For those who prefer assistance, we offer a "Data entry service" to help you input your data. Simply attach an image or file of your lab test results, and a qualified team member from our data entry team will add the results for you.
We support various file types, including PDFs, JPGs, or Excel. This service is particularly useful if you have many reports to upload or if you're too busy to handle the data entry yourself.
Our Data Entry Service is for when you don't want to manually type in your lab results yourself. You simply upload your report (PDF, image, or screenshot), and our trained team enters the information into your Healthmatters account for you — accurately and neatly organized, ready to view in graphs, tables, and timelines.
The $15 per report covers the time and care it takes for a real person to review your file, make sure each result is entered correctly, and double-check for accuracy. This ensures your health data is precise and easy to work with — without you having to spend the time doing it yourself.
Prefer to do it yourself? You can always use our free self-entry tool to add results manually — it just takes a bit more time and attention.
For users on the Complete monthly plan, the first report is entered free of charge, and each additional report incurs a fee of $15.
Unlimited account holders enjoy the entry of ten reports without charge. Subsequent reports are subject to a $15 fee per report.
Additionally, users on the Complete plan can upgrade to a yearly subscription from the account settings. The annual subscription includes a data entry service for five reports.
All professional accounts allow you to import and onboard an unlimited number of clients and their lab results. The distinction between professional plans lies solely in the data entry service.
The Pro Monthly Plus plan is priced at $75 per month and includes a data entry service for five reports each month. Additional reports can be self-entered at no extra cost or, if preferred, you can use our data entry service for an additional fee of $15 per report.
The Pro Monthly plan is priced at $45 per month and does not include a data entry service. Self-entry is free for an unlimited number of reports, and you can opt for the data entry service at a fee of $15 per report.
You also have the option to upgrade to higher monthly or to annual plans, which come with substantial discounts. All upgrades can be done directly from your account.
Simply log in and navigate to your account settings to cancel your subscription. Scroll down to locate the 'Cancel' button at the bottom of the page. Ensure you cancel at least one day before the renewal date to prevent any charges. Once cancellation is requested, the subscription remains active until the conclusion of the current billing cycle.
Our goal has been to make your Healthmatters account as intuitive as possible.
We've crafted multiple ways for you to navigate your data, whether you're glancing at a single report or delving into your historical test reports.
1. Graph View:Dive into a visual journey with our biomarker graphs, showcasing over 40 data points. Combining years of results unveils trends, empowering you to make informed decisions. Our visualization tools make it a breeze to compare and understand changes over time, even if your results are from different labs. A search function and filters simplify the exploration of extensive data, allowing you to focus on what needs attention.
2. All Tests ViewExplore neatly organized reports on a timeline, highlighting crucial details like dates, critical results, and lab/panel names. Each report opens up to reveal in-depth descriptions and additional recommendations for each biomarker. The history of previous results is just a click away, and you can download a comprehensive report for deeper insights. Color-coded and user-friendly, it's designed for easy reading, understanding, and navigation.
3. Table View:For a holistic view of all biomarkers side by side, our table view is your go-to. Results are neatly displayed in a categorized and dated table, ideal for those with an extensive test history. Utilize sorting, filters, and color-coding to enhance your analysis and gain extra insights.
Yes, you can download your information anytime. We offer two easy ways to export your lab data:
This makes it simple to save, back up, or share your health data whenever you need.
Yes, you can print your report. To do so, navigate to "All tests" and open the report you wish to print. You'll find a print button in the right corner of the report. Click on it, and your browser's print window will open. If you prefer to print in a bigger typeface, adjust the scale using the print window settings.
Yes, you can! We highly recommend activating Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for your account. To do so, please navigate to the "Profile and Security" section of your account, where you will find instructions for activating 2FA.
Yes, you can. When entering values for the biomarker, you will see an "Edit Range" button. Click this button, and you'll have the option to enter a custom range.
A personal account is all about keeping your own lab test results in check. It's just for you and your personal use.
The professional account is designed for health professionals who wish to track and organize their clients' laboratory results.
To learn more about Healthmatters Pro, please refer to the professional page.
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