What Is a DUTCH Test and What Can It Tell You About Your Hormones?
If you have had standard blood work done for fatigue, mood swings, poor sleep, weight gain, or irregular cycles and been told your hormones are normal, but you still do not feel like yourself, you are not alone. Standard blood tests measure a single snapshot of hormone levels at one point in time. They do not show you how your hormones are being produced, used, and cleared throughout the day, and they often miss the patterns that actually explain how you feel.
This is one of the most common frustrations we hear at Wave Functional Health. A patient will bring in blood results showing cortisol, oestrogen, or testosterone sitting within the reference range, yet they are dealing with daily exhaustion, anxiety, disrupted sleep, or a cycle that no longer feels predictable. Blood testing was never designed to capture hormone rhythm or metabolism, only a single point in time. This is where DUTCH testing becomes useful.
What DUTCH stands for and how the test works
DUTCH stands for Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones. It is an advanced functional test that measures sex hormones, adrenal hormones, and their metabolites using dried urine samples collected across a full day, rather than a single blood draw taken at one moment.
The test works by having you collect several small urine samples at set points throughout the day, usually on a small filter strip, using an at-home collection kit. This captures your cortisol pattern from waking through to bedtime, along with a detailed picture of how your body is producing and breaking down hormones such as oestrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. The dried samples are sent to a specialised laboratory, and the results are then interpreted by a practitioner trained in functional hormone testing.
Because this test measures hormone metabolites and daily patterns rather than a single circulating level, it needs to be ordered and read by a practitioner familiar with the report format. This is part of why comprehensive hormone testing in Australia has become more available through functional and integrative clinics rather than standard pathology alone.
What it measures
A DUTCH test provides a far more complete hormonal picture than standard blood work. Depending on the panel, it typically evaluates all of the following.
What each marker reveals and why it matters
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| Marker | What it reflects | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Free cortisol pattern | Daily rhythm of your primary stress hormone | Flat, elevated, or reversed patterns are linked to fatigue, poor sleep, and burnout — and are completely invisible to a single blood draw |
| Cortisol Awakening Response | The morning cortisol surge in the first 30 to 45 minutes after waking | A blunted response is common in chronic stress and adrenal dysregulation. An exaggerated response is linked to anxiety and hypervigilance |
| Oestrogen metabolites | How oestrogen is being broken down and cleared from the body | Certain metabolic pathways are linked to higher inflammatory load and oestrogen dominance symptoms even when total oestrogen levels appear normal on blood testing |
| Progesterone | Levels relative to oestrogen across the cycle | Low progesterone relative to oestrogen is one of the most common drivers of PMS, anxiety, breast tenderness, and sleep disruption |
| DHEA-S and androgens | Adrenal reserve and androgen output | Low levels are linked to fatigue and reduced resilience to stress. High levels can drive acne, hair thinning, and irregular cycles |
| Melatonin | Sleep hormone production overnight | Low melatonin helps explain difficulty falling or staying asleep even when cortisol appears normal on a standard blood test |
| Organic acids | B12 status, glutathione, and oxidative stress markers | Identifies nutritional gaps and cellular stress load that blood testing typically misses — and that directly affect hormone production and metabolism |
Who should consider a DUTCH test?
How Wave uses the results to sequence a hormone repair protocol
A DUTCH test on its own is only data. What matters is how it is interpreted and applied. At Wave Functional Health, results are read alongside your symptom history and, where relevant, other functional testing such as a comprehensive stool analysis or blood chemistry — since gut health, adrenal function, and hormone balance are closely connected rather than separate systems.
Sequencing matters. Trying to correct oestrogen or progesterone levels while cortisol remains dysregulated is one of the most common reasons hormone protocols fail to hold. The order of the protocol is as important as the protocol itself.
The result of your DUTCH test is combined with your full clinical picture to build a protocol that reflects your actual physiology rather than a generic hormone balancing approach.
Stabilise the adrenal and cortisol pattern
A dysregulated stress response will undermine sex hormone balance regardless of what else is addressed. Cortisol and sex hormones compete for the same precursors — and cortisol wins every time. This is always the starting point.
Address gut health and oestrogen clearance
The gut directly influences how oestrogen is metabolised and cleared. Elevated beta-glucuronidase from gut dysbiosis drives oestrogen recirculation and dominance patterns — addressing this is often a necessary prerequisite to any hormone protocol.
Support specific hormone pathways
Once the adrenal and gut picture is stabilised, support the specific hormone pathways that are underperforming or being metabolised unfavourably — using targeted nutrients, herbal support, and dietary interventions based on what the DUTCH results show.
Targeted support for sleep, mood, and cycle regularity
With the upstream drivers addressed, targeted support for melatonin production, neurotransmitter pathways, and cycle regulation is introduced — with the foundation in place to actually hold the change.
Retest and adjust throughout
Progress is monitored through follow-up DUTCH testing and clinical reassessment. The protocol is adjusted as results evolve rather than applying a fixed timeline — because your physiology changes as the protocol works.
Frequently asked questions
No. DUTCH testing is not a Medicare rebated test in Australia. It is ordered privately through a functional medicine practitioner. Dr Matt will discuss the cost and what the test is likely to reveal before ordering it so you can make an informed decision.
A blood test measures circulating hormone levels at a single point in time. A DUTCH test measures hormone metabolites and daily patterns across a full day — including how hormones are being produced, used, and cleared. Blood testing cannot show you your cortisol rhythm, your oestrogen metabolite pathways, your melatonin production, or your oxidative stress markers. These are simply different tests measuring different things.
No referral is required. The test is ordered directly through Wave Functional Health as part of your initial consultation and investigation plan. You do not need to see your GP or get a specialist referral before booking.
Results typically take two to three weeks from the time the samples are received by the laboratory. Dr Matt will book a Report of Findings appointment with you once results are back to walk through everything in detail and present your protocol.
Not at all. It is a simple at-home collection using dried urine samples on filter strips at set points during the day. There is no blood draw, no fasting, no bowel preparation, and no clinic visit required for the collection itself. The kit comes with clear instructions and is posted directly to the laboratory once completed.
For women with a regular cycle, testing is usually timed around day 19 to 22 to capture peak progesterone in the luteal phase — the most clinically useful window for assessing the oestrogen-to-progesterone ratio. For irregular cycles, perimenopause, or post-menopause, timing is adjusted based on your individual pattern and Dr Matt will advise on the best timing for your situation.
If you have been told your hormones are fine but you know something is still not right, a DUTCH test may be the piece that finally explains it. At Wave Functional Health in Robina on the Gold Coast, we combine advanced functional hormone testing with a structured, sequenced approach to hormone repair, so you are not left guessing at supplements or generic advice without knowing why.
If your hormones have been told they are fine
but you know they are not — it is time to look properly.
At Wave Functional Health we combine advanced DUTCH hormone testing with a structured, sequenced approach to hormone repair so you are not left guessing at supplements or generic advice without knowing why.
Book a ConsultationDr Matt le Roux is a chiropractor and functional medicine practitioner at Wave Functional Health, Suite 326, 34-36 Glenferrie Drive, Robina QLD 4226. Consultations available in clinic in Robina Gold Coast and worldwide via telehealth.