    Hair analysis and nutritional balancing science can benefit professional and amateur athletes in many important ways. This can mean the difference between a mediocre season and a winning one.
    Benefits include enhanced strength and stamina, better mental clarity, awareness and focus, prevention of injuries and burnout, rapid and more complete recovery from injuries, better weight control and improved general health. Nutritional balancing is also an excellent way to guide diet and supplement recommendations for athletes.
    The current normal values used by ARL were developed by working with athletes in peak condition. Additional studies also found the hair must not be washed at the laboratory and the principles of nutritional balancing science must be applied to interpret the test. Many thanks to Dr. Michael Jabalee for help with this bulletin.

Strength and Stamina
    Balancing the oxidation rate enhances the efficiency of energy production in the body cells. This is essential for muscular strength and stamina. A very slow or very fast oxidation rate is similar to running a car or bicycle in the wrong gear, producing poor energy efficiency.
    Different sports require different metabolic attributes. For example, a fast oxidizer may do well as a sprinter. However, a slow oxidizer will often succeed better as a long distance runner.
    Minerals including iron, copper, manganese, magnesium and others are intimately involved in cellular energy production. The proper combination is the key. Identifying and eliminating excess toxic metals is also most helpful for energy, flexibility and stamina.
    Stabilizing carbohydrate tolerance also contributes to stamina. A balance of many nutrients including calcium, magnesium, manganese, zinc and chromium are required for the proper metabolism of glucose to generate sustained energy.

Mental Clarity and Focus
    Coordination, clarity, awareness, judgement and a quick response time are a major part of all athletic performance. The brain is a chemical organ and requires a vast array of nutrients for proper functioning.
    All toxic metals interfere with the central nervous system, leading to impaired mental functioning. Correcting biochemical imbalances invariably leads to improved mental focus and functioning for athletes.
    An important problem in athletics today is the behavior of team members, on-field and off. Nutritional balancing helps enhance emotional clarity and stability, leading to better attitudes and behavior.

Improved Health and Avoiding Burnout
    Especially later in the season, many athletes go into burnout. Chronic fatigue and related problems are common among athletes. Nutritional balancing programs are excellent to help prevent and correct chronic fatigue and burnout among athletes.
    Colds, flu, pneumonia and other illnesses often plague athletes, especially those who travel and train hard. The immune system and resistance to infection depend on a balanced chemistry and the availability of a variety of vital nutrients. Nutritional balancing permits monitoring and correction of imbalances before one gets sick to help maintain excellent health during the rigors of training, as well as during while traveling.

Injury Prevention
    Nutritional imbalances cause weak joints, tendons and ligaments, excessive inflammation and muscle tears. Prescription drugs including antibiotics weaken tendons and ligaments, usually by depleting nutritional elements. Cipro, for example, carries a warning that its use can result in the rupture of tendons.
    Nutritional balancing can help avoid injuries by maintaining stronger ligaments. It can also help reduce the need for antibiotics and other drugs by improving the immune system and general health.

Enhanced Recovery
    One of the author's most impressive uses of nutritional balancing is to speed up recovery from fractures, sprains and other injuries. Many nutrients including zinc, manganese, copper, calcium, magnesium and a variety of vitamins are required for healing of injuries. When these are provided in the correct amounts and combinations, the results are most impressive.
    A low sodium/potassium ratio or an abnormal phosphorus level in an unwashed hair sample are associated with excessive protein breakdown or catabolism. A chronic catabolic state can impair or even prevent the normal healing of sports injuries.
    Nutritional balancing methods are also helpful for reducing the duration as well as the frequency of colds, flu and other annoying problems.

Weight Control
    Stubborn problems with food cravings and weight control plague some athletes. Nutritional balancing offers a scientific and individualized method of approaching this issue in a safe and effective manner. Nutrition programs can assist with both weight gain and weight loss.

Proper Supplementation
    Most athletes take a variety of supplements, some of which are incorrect and perhaps even dangerous. Nutritional balancing is very helpful to assess the adequacy of the diet and to guide the use of supplements to balance and enhance body chemistry. Once again, nutritional balancing requires that the mineral testing laboratory does not wash the hair and that the test is interpreted by the method developed by Dr. Paul C. Eck.