The Genova NutrEval FMV is a functional nutritional analysis that reads nutrient status at the cellular and metabolic level rather than as a simple circulating concentration. FMV stands for First Morning Void — the test combines a blood draw with a first-morning urine collection, because the two samples together reveal how your body is actually using nutrients, producing energy, and handling oxidative stress.
The blood draw is standard; the urine is collected at home first thing in the morning and shipped with the kit. Results return in roughly three weeks as a detailed map of functional nutrient status, not a list of in-or-out-of-range serum values.
NutrEval reads several interlocking systems, each of which speaks to how you feel day to day:
Metabolic byproducts measured in urine that act as functional markers — showing whether specific vitamins and cofactors are doing their job inside the cell, and where a pathway is backing up for lack of a nutrient.
NutrEval reports amino acids in two separate ways, and they answer different questions. One is a set of functional nutrient-need assessments, translating metabolic patterns into where your body is signaling demand. The other is the direct measurement of individual amino acid concentrations. We read these as two distinct datasets, not a single blended number — conflating them loses information, and the interpretation depends on which one you're looking at.
The balance of omega-3 to omega-6 and related fatty acid markers that shape neuronal membrane health, inflammation, and mood regulation.
Functional indicators of oxidative damage and antioxidant reserve — including markers of glutathione status, your body's master antioxidant system.
Functional indicators of the one-carbon and methylation machinery that drives neurotransmitter synthesis, detoxification, and gene expression — complementing, at the functional level, what genetic variants only suggest as tendency.
Organic-acid readouts of energy production — where in the citric acid cycle your cellular energy machinery may be struggling, which often maps directly onto fatigue and cognitive slowing.
Functional markers of B-vitamin sufficiency, which reflect whether these cofactors are actually available to the enzymes that depend on them — a different question than how much is in your serum.
Free 15-minute consultation to discuss your situation, answer your questions, and determine if we’re a good fit.
The brain is metabolically expensive, and it depends on a steady supply of nutrients, functioning mitochondria, and controlled oxidative stress. When any of those falter at the cellular level, mood, energy, and cognition are among the first things to suffer. Oxidative stress in particular is measurably elevated in depression across systematic review and meta-analysis, with markers of oxidative damage higher in depressed individuals than in controls [1] — and NutrEval reads exactly that class of marker. Mitochondrial function is harder to measure but increasingly recognized as relevant to psychiatric symptoms, and blood-based biomarkers are one of the practical ways to assess it [2].
This is where a “your labs are normal” story often finally makes sense. The functional gaps NutrEval surfaces — a stalled methylation pathway, depleted glutathione, a struggling Krebs cycle, a B-vitamin that isn’t reaching its enzyme — explain symptoms that standard serum panels leave unexplained. And these findings routinely corroborate what shows up elsewhere: the oxidative stress on NutrEval and the inflammation on other testing are usually the same story told from two angles.
Your results turn supplementation from guesswork into precision. Organic acid patterns show which specific cofactors your cells are short on, so repletion targets the actual gap. The methylation and B-vitamin markers guide which forms of folate and B12 to use and how aggressively. Fatty acid ratios shape omega-3 dosing. Oxidative stress and glutathione markers determine whether antioxidant support — NAC and its relatives — belongs in your plan and at what intensity. Mitochondrial markers tell us whether to prioritize energy-pathway support, and how gently, so we don’t overwhelm a depleted system.
NutrEval is one of seven tests in our standard mental health bundle. It works alongside [comprehensive blood biomarkers], [gut microbiome assessment], [DUTCH hormone testing], [food sensitivity testing], [environmental toxicant screening], and [genetic analysis] to give the complete biological picture.
NutrEval reads functional and cellular nutrient status — a deliberately different job than the [comprehensive blood panel], which reads circulating serum levels. The two are designed to complement, not duplicate: the blood panel tells us what’s in circulation, and NutrEval tells us whether it’s actually working where your cells need it. If you’ve done organic acid or micronutrient testing before, send it — we’ll fold it into the picture, though NutrEval stays in the bundle for the breadth and functional depth it provides.
NutrEval is high-yield for nearly everyone in the program, but especially for:
A note on the limits of functional nutrient testing. NutrEval is a rich dataset, and richness cuts both ways — a single abnormal marker is rarely meaningful in isolation, and over-reading one value invites chasing noise. Functional markers also reflect a moment in your metabolism, influenced by recent diet, sleep, and activity. We interpret NutrEval as a pattern across systems, cross-checked against your blood panel and clinical picture, rather than treating any one marker as a verdict.Full structure of the program: see our
Free 15-minute consultation to discuss your situation, answer your questions, and determine if we’re a good fit.