Order interleukin 6 (IL-6) blood testing online

In the majority of US states you can order interleukin 6 testing online and have the blood drawn at a local blood draw center (see my general overview of the process).

I'd suggest ordering from Life Extension because they have the cheapest price I know of ($75), and I've been happy with their service. You can also compare the other 2 interleukin 6 test providers I've found.

Take a look at my state-specific issues page if you're in AZ, MD, NJ, NY or RI.

Understanding the results

The American Association for Clinical Chemistry has helpful pages for understanding the test and answering common questions.

A few of my notes on IL6:

• Usefulness as a marker: SelfHacked has a nice article on IL6 arguing for its usefulness as a test.
• Healthy levels: that SelfHacked article summarizes some studies on healthy levels (perhaps 6pg/ml or less is a good rule of thumb, which is well below the reference ranges I've seen).
• Reducing IL6: the SelfHacked article also has a big list of ways to influence it.
• Variability: Normal biological variability is probably pretty low (perhaps 15-30%): Pre-analytical and biological variability in circulating interleukin 6 in healthy subjects and patients with rheumatoid arthritis. It may increase after meals, but that variability in some studies is probably due to the collection method: Measurement of postprandial interleukin-6 by using a catheter: what does it tell us?.
• Sleep apnea: I found this clinical review (full text) interesting, suggesting that elevated IL6 is a good marker for detecting sleep apnea.