"When was the last time you thought about your serum albumin? You might have glanced at it the last time you got a lab panel at your doctor’s office, and as long as it was within the normal lab limits, you probably didn’t give it much thought. You should look at it a little more closely the next time you get a lab done because your serum albumin is a pretty good barometer of your overall health.

"Albumin is the most abundant protein in blood plasma."

read the rest here: http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/?p=786

Yeah I've read that low albumin in combination with other factors can predict death quite well. Like low cholesterol + low albumin together (search that on the net). Last time I checked my albumin I think it was 50g/l ( ref 35-50 ). Usually goes between 50-53g/l

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/e...Pubmed_RVDocSum

Nutritional vitamin D deficiency presenting as hemichorea.Fernandez R, Ashraf A, Dure LS.
Department of Pediatrics/Division of Pediatric Neurology, The Children's Hospital, University of Alabama at Birmingham 35233, USA. rfernandez~peds.uab.edu

The authors describe a pediatric patient with repaired hypoplastic left heart syndrome developing protein-losing enteropathy, hypocalcemia, vitamin D deficiency, and hemichorea. After correction of nutritional vitamin D deficiency with calcium and vitamin D supplementation, the chorea resolved. Hypoalbuminemia also improved after the correction of vitamin D deficiency without requiring albumin infusions. This report also raises the possible role of calcium or vitamin D in the intestinal loss of albumin in protein-losing enteropathy.

Hey Zuleikka,

Welcome back..this is the first post that I have seen from you in a while. Hope you are doing well

Yeah, it's great to see you back!

I went back over my blood tests and my ALB is generally right in the middle. I WANT MORE! WHAAAA! But I couldn't find my latest blood test to check it.

That article had more digressions than article! But it was interesting, the concept of albumin's role in maintaining proper osmotic conditions seems intuitively important. Glad to hear proper protein nutrition helps boost the level, if there's one thing I get no shortage of its protein. This is one instance where intuition works, eating more protein to gain protein. Doesn't work that way with fat.

Nancy you can't have more because you're a girl. :P

Oh! I wonder if my lab range takes my gender into account?

I was just needling you Nanc, I doubt the lab is even aware there is a gender difference. I didn't see what the actual difference in the averages was in this report, they only did the study on something like nine women I think. So it may be premature to say there is a gender difference.

If guys have more of this wonderful protective stuff, why do we die sooner?