Zinc
Zinc is an essential trace mineral vital for immune function, wound healing, taste, and smell. Deficiency can cause hair loss, poor wound healing, and weakened immunity. A fasting blood draw is preferred.
- DHA-licensed lab
- Includes Doctor Consultation
- Physician-reviewed
- Same Day Collection
24 hours
Turnaround
Blood
Sample
What the Zinc test tells you
Zinc is a trace mineral the body cannot manufacture and cannot stockpile in large amounts, so a steady supply from food is needed. It sits at the centre of hundreds of enzymes and of the proteins that read and copy DNA, which is why it matters most in tissues that renew themselves quickly: skin, the lining of the gut, hair follicles, and the immune cells that respond to infection. A serum zinc test measures the small fraction that is circulating in the blood at the moment the sample is drawn.
Most of the body's zinc is held inside cells, particularly in muscle and bone, and only a little travels in the blood, largely bound to albumin. That has two consequences worth understanding. The measured level falls when albumin is low, and it also falls during infection, injury or any inflammatory illness, because the body deliberately moves zinc out of circulation as part of its response. A sample taken during such an episode can read low even when total body stores are perfectly adequate.
Doctors usually order the test when a picture builds up over time: wounds that are slow to close, skin changes around the mouth or on the limbs, thinning hair, mouth ulcers, repeated infections, or a dulled sense of taste and smell. It is also considered in people whose intake or absorption is likely to be reduced, including those with long-standing bowel disease, surgery that shortens or bypasses part of the gut, heavy alcohol use, chronic kidney disease, restrictive diets, and periods of rapid growth or pregnancy. The result is read alongside the clinical picture rather than on its own, and your doctor may choose to repeat it once any acute illness has settled.
Ordered when zinc deficiency is suspected due to symptoms like poor wound healing, hair loss, frequent infections, or altered taste/smell sensation.
- Wounds healing slowly
Zinc drives the cell division and protein building that close a wound. Healing that drags on without another explanation is one of the more recognisable reasons to check it.
- Repeated or lingering infections
Immune cells depend on zinc to mature and respond properly. Infections that keep returning, or take longer than expected to clear, can prompt testing.
- Altered taste or smell
Taste receptor cells turn over quickly and need zinc to do so. A blunted, absent or metallic sense of taste is a classic reason to measure it.
- Risk of poor absorption
Bowel disease, gut surgery, heavy alcohol use and restrictive diets all reduce how much zinc reaches the bloodstream. Testing helps your doctor check status in these groups.
Reasons your doctor may request the Zinc test
Your doctor may order this test for any of the reasons below. Some are routine checks, others follow specific symptoms or an earlier result.
Skin, hair & healing
- Wounds, ulcers or surgical sites that are healing more slowly than expected.
- Skin rashes around the mouth, eyes or hands, together with thinning hair or brittle nails.
- A blunted, absent or altered sense of taste or smell with no other explanation.
Absorption & diet
- Long-standing bowel disease, coeliac disease, or surgery that shortens or bypasses part of the intestine.
- A strictly plant-based or otherwise restricted diet, particularly one built around wholegrains and legumes.
Delayed growth or puberty
- Delayed growth or delayed puberty in a child or teenager being assessed by a paediatrician.
Serum zinc, reported in µg/dL, measures the small fraction circulating in blood, most of it bound to albumin, while the bulk sits inside muscle and bone. A result in the Normal band is therefore an approximate guide to your stores. A Low result may reflect low intake, malabsorption, heavy alcohol use or increased demand in pregnancy and growth, but it also falls during any infection, injury or inflammatory illness, and when albumin is low, independently of nutrition. That is why albumin and an inflammatory marker are checked alongside, and why the test may be repeated once an acute illness has settled. A High result usually comes from a supplement or multivitamin taken shortly before the draw, or from contamination by a zinc-containing skin product or red cells breaking during collection, so it is often repeated. Your doctor interprets it with your symptoms and diet.
Medically reviewed by Dr Nirupama Sabhapathy
Ranges are a guide: your physician interprets your result alongside your symptoms and history.
What a higher result can point to
- Zinc supplements, lozenges or high-potency multivitamins taken shortly before the sample was collected.
- Contamination from a collection tube, needle or skin product that contains zinc.
- Breakdown of red cells during collection or transport, which releases the zinc held inside them.
- Occupational or environmental exposure, such as fumes from welding or metal work.
- Dehydration, which concentrates everything measured in a blood sample.
What a lower result can point to
- Low dietary intake, common on plant-heavy diets where phytates bind zinc and limit its absorption.
- Malabsorption from coeliac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, chronic diarrhoea or weight-loss surgery.
- Acute infection, injury, surgery or any inflammatory illness, which temporarily shifts zinc out of the blood.
- Chronic liver disease and sustained heavy alcohol intake, which increase losses in the urine.
- A low albumin level, since most circulating zinc travels bound to that protein.
- Increased demand during pregnancy, breastfeeding and rapid growth in childhood.
These are possibilities, not diagnoses. A single value outside the reference range is interpreted alongside your symptoms, history and other tests: your doctor decides what it means for you.
What this test cannot tell you
- Serum zinc represents a tiny share of the body's total zinc, so it is an imperfect mirror of tissue stores.
- Inflammation and low albumin both lower the measured value independently of nutrition, which is why albumin and an inflammatory marker are often checked alongside it.
- Levels drift through the day and after meals, so samples taken at different times are not directly comparable.
- Contamination is easy to introduce and usually pushes the result upward, so an unexpectedly high value is often repeated.
Risks of the blood draw
- Mild bruising or brief soreness where the needle went in.
- Occasional lightheadedness, which settles after a few minutes of rest.
- Bleeding or infection at the site, which is rare with sterile single-use equipment.
- 1Zinc is essential for immune defence, wound repair, taste, smell and normal growth.
- 2The blood carries only a small fraction of body zinc, most of it bound to albumin.
- 3Any acute illness can lower the reading temporarily, so the timing of the sample matters.
- 4A fasting morning sample, drawn before the day's supplement, gives the most comparable result.
- 5The value guides your doctor alongside diet, symptoms and other tests; it is not a diagnosis on its own.
Zinc also comes in these focused packages, which pair it with the tests usually read alongside it.
- BiochemistryAlbumin
Albumin is the most abundant protein in blood, produced by the liver. Low levels can indicate liver disease, kidney disease, or malnutrition. A…
15View - BiochemistryFerritin
Ferritin reflects your body's iron stores. Low levels indicate iron deficiency (even before anaemia develops), while very high levels may suggest…
55View - Immunology / SerologyC-Reactive Protein (CRP)
CRP is a protein produced by the liver in response to inflammation. Elevated levels indicate an active inflammatory process, which could be caused by…
60View - Vitamins & MineralsCopper
Copper is an essential trace mineral needed to make red and white blood cells, protect nerves and build connective tissue. Low levels can cause…
80View
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about the Zinc test. Can't find what you're looking for?
Talk to our team→Our laboratory reports 60 to 120 µg/dL as normal for serum zinc. A result of 0 to 59 µg/dL is reported as low and may affect immunity and healing, while 121 to 200 µg/dL is reported as high and usually comes from supplements. Because blood holds only a small share of body zinc, the figure is an approximate guide to stores.
Zinc deficiency typically shows as wounds that heal slowly, hair loss, frequent infections and a change in taste or smell. These symptoms have many other causes, so the test is used to check whether low zinc is part of the picture. Your doctor reads the result alongside your diet, any absorption problems and other tests.
A high result usually comes from a zinc supplement, lozenge or multivitamin taken shortly before the draw. It can also be caused by contamination from a zinc-containing skin product such as sunscreen or calamine, or by red cells breaking during collection. Occupational exposure, such as welding fumes, is a less common cause. An unexpectedly high value is often repeated.
Yes. Any acute infection, injury, surgery or inflammatory illness temporarily shifts zinc out of the blood, so the reading can be low even when your stores are adequate. That is why albumin and an inflammatory marker are often checked alongside, and why your doctor may repeat the test once the illness has settled. Tell the phlebotomist if you are unwell.
Ask your doctor first. A supplement, lozenge or multivitamin taken shortly before the draw can lift the result, so a fasting morning sample drawn before the day's dose gives the most comparable figure. Your doctor may ask you to pause them beforehand, but never stop a prescribed treatment on your own.
Yes. Absorption matters as much as intake, so bowel disease, gut surgery or chronic diarrhoea can produce a low result on a decent diet. Inflammation and a low albumin level also pull the measured value down without any change in what you eat.
Not always. Only a small fraction of body zinc circulates in the blood, and the body defends that fraction, so mild depletion of tissue stores can go unseen. Your doctor weighs the number against your symptoms, diet and any absorption problems rather than reading it alone.
Serum zinc has a daily rhythm and drops for a period after a meal, so an afternoon or post-meal sample can read lower than a morning one for reasons that have nothing to do with your nutrition. Standardising the timing makes repeat results comparable.
Sustained high intake can interfere with the absorption of copper and, over time, lead to copper deficiency. It can also cause nausea and an unpleasant taste. Dose and duration are worth agreeing with your doctor rather than deciding on your own.
Yes. Zinc is best measured on a fasting morning sample, taking nothing but water overnight, because levels dip after eating and drift through the day. Avoid applying sunscreen or any zinc-containing cream to the arm being used, as traces can contaminate the sample.
The zinc test is AED 85, including a physician-reviewed report, with results usually within 24 hours. Home collection anywhere in Dubai is free when your order reaches AED 300 or includes a package; below that, a AED 100 home collection fee applies (AED 50 for a lab walk-in).