Schedule Your Appointment Today! Call or Text 318-423-7379
Genetic Testing for Personalized Health in Shreveport — What Your DNA Can Tell You About How Your Body Works
Dr. Kim Griggs, DC | Aligned with Dr. Kim | 8039 Line Avenue, Suite C, Shreveport, LA 71106
Dr. Kim Griggs, DC at Aligned with Dr. Kim in Shreveport offers genetic health testing through 3X4 Genetics — a clinical DNA analysis that translates your genetic variants into personalized recommendations for nutrition, exercise, stress management, and lifestyle. This is not ancestry testing. It is a functional health tool that explains why your body responds differently than others to the same diet, stress load, or exercise program. Genetic testing is $499.
You have probably noticed that health advice often works differently for different people. The diet that transforms one person's energy leaves another feeling no different. The exercise approach that is sustainable for most people exhausts you faster than expected. The stress management strategies that help your colleagues seem to have less effect on your nervous system than they should.
This is not a failure of willpower or effort. It is biology. Your DNA contains the instructions for how your body processes nutrients, responds to stress, regulates inflammation, detoxifies, and produces energy. Those instructions are not the same for everyone — and when health recommendations are built on population averages rather than your individual genetic profile, they are only going to be right for you by coincidence.
Genetic testing through 3X4 Genetics is the tool Dr. Kim uses to move beyond coincidence. It translates the specific variants in your DNA into a clinical picture of how your individual physiology actually works — and from there, into recommendations that are built for your biology, not everyone else's.
Dr. Kim offers genetic testing as part of her functional health approach at Aligned with Dr. Kim. For a broader overview of her practice, see Nervous System Chiropractic and Functional Health Testing in Shreveport.
The Foundation — How the Nervous System Governs Everything
Your nervous system is not just one system among many. It is the master system — the network through which your brain communicates with every cell, tissue, and organ in your body. Your heart rate, your digestion, your immune response, your hormonal regulation, your ability to sleep, your capacity to heal from injury — all of it is governed, directly or indirectly, by the quality of the signals moving through your nervous system.
The spine is the nervous system's primary pathway. Your brain sends signals down through the spinal cord and out through the nerves that branch from it at every vertebral level. When the spine is functioning well — when the vertebrae are moving freely and in proper alignment — those signals travel clearly. When a vertebra shifts or stops moving the way it should, creating what chiropractors call a subluxation, it creates interference in that signal pathway. The brain is still sending. But the message is getting distorted before it arrives.
The consequences of that distortion depend on which nerves are affected. And this is where Zone Technique's framework becomes clinically useful — because it gives Dr. Kim a map of exactly which systems are likely to be affected based on where the interference is occurring.
What 3X4 Genetics Is — and What It Is Not
3X4 Genetics is a clinical genetic testing platform developed specifically for health practitioners — not a consumer ancestry service. Where consumer tests like 23andMe focus primarily on ancestry, trait identification, and disease risk screening, 3X4 Genetics focuses on the functional genetic variants that influence how your body responds to nutrition, exercise, stress, environmental factors, detoxification, and metabolic processes.
The test analyzes over 100 genetic variants across multiple physiological pathways — not looking for disease markers, but looking for the patterns in your biology that explain why your body responds the way it does to the inputs you give it. The result is a detailed report organized around actionable themes: what your genetics say about how you process carbohydrates, fats, and proteins; how your stress response is wired; how efficiently you detoxify; how your inflammatory pathways are regulated; and what your body needs more or less of to function optimally.
Dr. Kim is certified in 3X4 Genetics interpretation — meaning she has been trained not just to order the test but to read the report in clinical context, integrate it with what she observes through Zone Technique assessment and HTMA, and translate the genetic data into specific, practical recommendations for each patient.
What Your DNA Reveals About Your Health
What Your DNA Reveals About Your Health
Your genetic variants influence how efficiently you absorb and metabolize specific nutrients — including folate, B vitamins, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, and antioxidants. They also influence how your body responds to different macronutrient ratios — whether you tend to thrive on a higher-fat or higher-carbohydrate diet, how your blood sugar regulation is wired, and how your body handles caloric restriction versus caloric sufficiency. For patients frustrated by weight resistance despite what seems like the right diet, the genetic picture often explains exactly what the standard nutritional advice was missing.
Stress Response and Cortisol Regulation
The way your nervous system responds to stress is significantly influenced by genetics. Variants in genes governing neurotransmitter production and breakdown — including COMT, which affects dopamine and norepinephrine metabolism — influence how quickly stress hormones clear from your system, how long you stay activated after a stressful event, and how much buffering capacity your nervous system has before stress begins to affect physical function. For patients who consistently feel that stress affects them more intensely or for longer than seems proportionate, the genetic picture often confirms a physiological basis for exactly that experience.
Inflammation Regulation
Chronic low-grade inflammation is increasingly recognized as a driver of fatigue, pain, metabolic resistance, and many of the symptoms that bring patients to Dr. Kim's practice. Genetic variants in inflammatory pathway genes — including those governing interleukin production and the NF-kB signaling pathway — influence how readily your body activates inflammatory responses and how efficiently it resolves them. Understanding your inflammatory genetic profile allows Dr. Kim to make specific dietary and supplement recommendations targeted at the exact pathways that are most active in your biology.
Detoxification Pathways
Your liver's ability to process and eliminate environmental toxins, medications, and metabolic byproducts is governed by a complex set of enzymes whose activity is heavily influenced by genetics. Variants in the cytochrome P450 enzyme family, the MTHFR gene affecting methylation, and the glutathione production pathway all influence how efficiently your body clears what it no longer needs. For patients with unexplained sensitivity to medications, environmental exposures, or dietary factors, the detoxification genetic picture is often highly illuminating.
Exercise Response and Recovery
Your genetic profile influences whether you are better suited to endurance or power-based exercise, how quickly your muscles recover from training load, your risk of soft tissue injury under high-volume training, and how much anti-inflammatory recovery support your physiology needs. This is clinically relevant not just for athletes but for any patient trying to understand why their exercise approach is or is not producing the results they expect — and what adjustments would bring their program into alignment with their biology.
Hormonal and Endocrine Patterns
Genetic variants influence the production, transport, and breakdown of key hormones including estrogen, testosterone, cortisol, and thyroid hormones. Understanding the genetic layer of hormonal function helps Dr. Kim interpret what she observes clinically — why certain patients have pronounced hormonal fluctuations, why others have difficulty with hormonal transitions like perimenopause, and what nutritional support is most targeted for their specific hormonal genetic pattern.
How Dr. Kim Uses Genetic Testing Clinically
Genetic testing is the deepest layer of Dr. Kim's functional health assessment — the foundation that does not change. Zone Technique assessment reveals the current neurological pattern. HTMA reveals the current mineral and stress pattern. Genetic testing reveals the underlying biology that those patterns are operating within.
This layered approach is what makes the care at Aligned with Dr. Kim genuinely personalized rather than protocol-based. Two patients presenting with the same symptoms — persistent fatigue, weight resistance, poor stress tolerance — may have completely different genetic pictures. One has a slow COMT variant producing an overactive stress response that is slow to clear. The other has MTHFR variants that are impairing methylation and folate metabolism, producing fatigue through an entirely different pathway. The Zone Technique assessment may look similar for both. The genetic picture tells Dr. Kim exactly what is different — and what each person specifically needs.
This is also why genetic testing is most valuable as part of an ongoing relationship rather than a one-time consultation. As Dr. Kim learns more about a patient through Zone Technique assessment and HTMA testing, the genetic data becomes progressively more useful — confirming patterns she has observed clinically and guiding the specific interventions most likely to produce lasting change.
Genetic Testing vs. Consumer DNA Tests — Understanding the Difference
Many patients who come to Dr. Kim for genetic testing have already done a consumer DNA test — 23andMe, AncestryDNA, or similar. These tests are useful for what they are designed for: ancestry, family connection, and broad disease risk screening. They are not designed for the kind of functional health optimization that 3X4 Genetics provides.
The difference is not primarily in the technology — it is in what is being measured and how it is interpreted. Consumer tests identify thousands of variants, many of which have no clear clinical significance. 3X4 Genetics focuses specifically on the variants with the most robust evidence for functional health impact — the variants that are most likely to explain why your body responds the way it does and what you can specifically do about it. And critically, the interpretation comes from a certified practitioner who can integrate the genetic data with everything else she knows about your physiology.
Raw data from a consumer test can sometimes be uploaded to third-party interpretation services, but without the clinical context — and without the Zone Technique and HTMA data that Dr. Kim integrates alongside it — the recommendations tend to be generic and difficult to prioritize.
Who Benefits Most from Genetic Testing
Patients frustrated by trial-and-error health approaches — who have tried multiple diets, supplement protocols, or exercise programs without consistent results and want to understand what their biology actually calls for
Patients with persistent unexplained symptoms — fatigue, brain fog, weight resistance, stress sensitivity — where standard testing has been unremarkable and the genetic picture may explain what conventional evaluation has missed
Patients managing chronic inflammation or autoimmune patterns — where understanding the specific inflammatory pathways most active in their biology allows for more targeted nutritional and lifestyle support
Patients navigating hormonal transitions — perimenopause, postmenopause, or other hormonal shifts — where genetic insight into hormone metabolism informs more personalized support
High-performance patients who want optimization — who are functioning reasonably well but want to understand their biology deeply enough to get ahead of the patterns that would eventually become problems.
Many of these presentations are also addressed in Why Your Body Isn't Responding — Fatigue, Weight Resistance, and Functional Health in Shreveport, which covers the full picture of what Dr. Kim looks for in patients whose bodies are not responding as expected.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is genetic testing the same as getting my genome sequenced?
No. 3X4 Genetics analyzes specific genetic variants — single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) — that have established clinical significance for functional health. It does not sequence your entire genome. The test is focused on the variants most relevant to nutrition, metabolism, stress response, inflammation, detoxification, and exercise response — the pathways most directly actionable through lifestyle and nutritional intervention.
Will the results tell me if I am going to get a disease?
No — and this distinction matters. 3X4 Genetics is not a disease risk screening tool. It does not tell you whether you are likely to develop cancer, heart disease, or other conditions. What it tells you is how your body's functional pathways are wired — which influences how you respond to your environment and lifestyle choices. The goal is optimization and personalization, not prognosis.
Does my DNA change over time?
Your DNA does not change — which means genetic testing only needs to be done once. This is what makes it the most foundational layer of Dr. Kim's functional assessment: unlike HTMA, which reflects what your body has been doing over the past few months and changes as your mineral status shifts, your genetic profile is permanent. Once Dr. Kim has your genetic picture, it informs her clinical thinking indefinitely.
How is the test done?
The test uses a simple saliva or cheek swab — no blood draw required. The sample is collected in the office and sent to the 3X4 Genetics laboratory for analysis. Results are typically returned within two to three weeks, after which Dr. Kim reviews the full report with you in a dedicated consultation.
Is genetic testing covered by insurance?
Genetic testing through 3X4 Genetics is offered on a cash basis at $499 and is not typically covered by insurance. It is a one-time investment that informs care indefinitely — unlike tests that need to be repeated regularly, your genetic profile does not change and does not need to be retested.
Related Articles
This page is part of the Aligned with Dr. Kim content series.
Related reading:
Nervous System Chiropractic and Functional Health Testing in Shreveport — Dr. Kim's full approach, credentials, and practice overview
Zone Technique Chiropractic in Shreveport — the neurological assessment layer that works alongside HTMA
HTMA Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis Testing in Shreveport — the mineral and stress pattern layer alongside genetic testing
Chiropractic Care for Stress and Nervous System Regulation in Shreveport — how chiropractic addresses the physical patterns of chronic stress
Why Your Body Isn't Responding — Fatigue, Weight Resistance, and Functional Health in Shreveport — for patients doing everything right but still not feeling their best
Chiropractic Care for Chronic Tension, Headaches, and Neck Pain in Shreveport — the specific patterns Dr. Kim works with most frequently
Book an Appointment
Dr. Kim Griggs is accepting new patients at Aligned with Dr. Kim, 8039 Line Avenue, Suite C, Shreveport, LA 71106.
Genetic testing through 3X4 Genetics is $499.
Same-week appointments typically available. Serving Shreveport, Bossier City, and the surrounding Ark-La-Tex region.
Call or text: (318) 423-7379
alignedwithdrkim.com
Blue Cross Blue Shield and Medicare accepted for chiropractic services. ChiroHealthUSA cash rates available.
How a Zone Technique Session Works
Chiropractic Care Revolves Around Your Nervous System
When you come in for a Zone Technique appointment with Dr. Kim, the session does not begin with a symptom checklist. It begins with an assessment.
Dr. Kim examines specific points at the back of the head that correspond to the six brain centers governing the six zones. These examination points — developed through decades of clinical observation and refined by generations of Zone Technique practitioners — reveal which brain centers are under stress and which zones are out of balance. The examination is quick, specific, and does not require imaging or laboratory tests to perform.
Once Dr. Kim has identified which zones need correction, she delivers precise adjustments to the corresponding spinal segments — the points where the nerve pathways for each zone are most accessible. The goal is not to force a structural correction but to restore the quality of the signal traveling from the brain center through the spinal cord to the affected zone.
The adjustment itself is often gentler than patients expect. Dr. Kim uses a combination of techniques depending on the patient and the presentation — traditional manual adjustments for patients who respond well to them, and instrument-assisted approaches using the Activator® or ArthroStim® for patients who prefer a lighter touch or whose anatomy calls for more precise delivery. Many patients are surprised at how relaxed they feel during and after the session.
Because the Zone Technique assessment is consistent — the same six zones evaluated at every visit — Dr. Kim can track exactly how each zone is responding over time. Progress is not guesswork. It is a documented pattern of which zones are balancing, which are still under stress, and what that tells us about how the body is responding to care.
Your Nervous System Includes
Chiropractic care starts with your nervous system — because it runs everything.
Your brain and spinal cord control every cell, tissue, and organ in your body. When the nervous system is out of sync, nothing works quite like it should.
That’s why we don’t just focus on pain or posture — we focus on restoring nervous system function so your entire body can heal, regulate, and thrive.
Whether you’re dealing with physical tension, emotional stress, or just feeling off, chiropractic care helps bring your system back into alignment — from the inside out.
Protecting Your Spine
Your nervous system includes your brain, spinal cord, and every nerve running from head to toe — from your fingertips to the soles of your feet. It’s what keeps everything in your body connected and communicating.
Chiropractic care is both a science and a philosophy.
It’s based on one simple but powerful truth:
When your nervous system is regulated, your body works better.
That’s why at Aligned with Dr. Kim, we focus on restoring balance to the nervous system first — because true healing happens when your body is in alignment on every level.
Chiropractic Care
Chiropractic care is the process of identifying areas where the spine and nervous system are out of alignment — and gently working to restore balance over time. By applying the right amount of pressure in the right place, spinal function improves and the body’s natural healing process is reactivated.
At Aligned with Dr. Kim, we believe the body is its own best doctor. Our role is to remove the interference — not force the outcome.
We use a variety of techniques to do that, including traditional manual adjustments as well as gentler tools like the Activator® and Arthrostim®. Not every adjustment involves a “crack,” and many of our patients are surprised at how relaxing their visit feels.
Whether you prefer the click of a tool or the familiarity of a hands-on adjustment, you’ll receive care that’s tailored to your nervous system and your comfort.
Because real healing happens when your body feels safe enough to receive it.
Why the Zone Technique gets results
There are six core systems in the body that impact how you feel, function, and heal:
GLANDULAR, ELIMINATIVE, NERVOUS, DIGESTIVE, MUSCULAR & CIRCULATORY These are known as the 6 Zones, and every symptom or struggle can usually be traced back to an imbalance in one (or more) of them.
The Zone Technique is a powerful method that helps us identify where your nervous system is stressed — and gently realign it so your body can return to a natural state of balance.
At Aligned with Dr. Kim, we use the Zone Technique to move beyond chasing symptoms.
Instead, we help your body reconnect to its own healing intelligence — so you feel better, think clearer, and experience alignment on every level.
Your body always knows what it needs.
We simply help clear the static so it can communicate clearly again.
We also offer nutritional and supplement counseling, be sure to let us know if this is something we can help you with. There are so many options out there, in the office we use only proven supplements and are happy to help you navigate what you need.
Call us today to schedule your appointment!
Please contact us by phone at 318-423-7379
Why Master Certification Matters
Zone Technique has several levels of practitioner certification. Dr. Kim holds Master Certification — the highest level available — which represents an advanced level of training, clinical application, and demonstrated competency in both the assessment and adjustment protocols specific to Zone Technique.
She is the only Master Certified Zone Technique practitioner in the Shreveport and Bossier City area. This is not a minor distinction. Zone Technique's effectiveness depends heavily on the precision of both the assessment and the adjustment. A practitioner who has invested in Master Certification has worked through a level of clinical training that significantly deepens both.
For patients in the Ark-La-Tex region who specifically want Zone Technique — whether because they have experienced it before, been referred by someone who has, or done their own research — Dr. Kim's office is the destination.
"Every time that I go I see improvement. I'm a lifelong client now. If you are on the fence about chiropractors, choose Dr. Kim." — patient review
"When I went in bent over after 2 back surgeries and walked out standing straight and in less pain, I was convinced that Dr. Kim Griggs truly knew what she was doing." — patient review
© 2026 All The Way Health - All Rights Reserved
8039 Line Avenue, Suite C, Shreveport, LA 71106
318-423-7379
© 2026 All The Way Health - All Rights Reserved
Frequently Asked Questions
Call or text: (318) 423-7379
Is Zone Technique the same as a standard chiropractic adjustment?
No — though it uses spinal adjustment as its primary tool. Standard chiropractic adjustments focus primarily on spinal alignment and structural correction. Zone Technique uses spinal adjustments to restore the quality of the nerve signals traveling from specific brain centers to specific body systems. The assessment is different — examining brain center stress points rather than just spinal mechanics — and the treatment targets are different. The result is a broader range of clinical applications than structural adjustment alone.
Does Zone Technique hurt?
No. Zone Technique adjustments are typically gentle — and often gentler than patients expect from chiropractic care. Dr. Kim uses instrument-assisted techniques including the Activator and ArthroStim for patients who prefer a lighter touch, alongside traditional manual adjustments for those who respond well to them. Many patients describe their sessions as deeply relaxing. The goal is for your body to feel safe enough to receive the adjustment — because, as Dr. Kim often says, real healing happens when the body feels safe.
How many sessions does Zone Technique take to work?
It depends on what is being addressed and how long the patterns have been established. For acute pain and tension, most patients notice meaningful improvement within two to four visits. For longer-standing patterns involving fatigue, hormonal irregularities, sleep disruption, or chronic digestive complaints, the improvement is typically more gradual — building over six to twelve weeks of consistent care as the nervous system recalibrates and the zone imbalances resolve. Dr. Kim tracks zone balance at every visit and can show you the documented progress over time.
I've never heard of Zone Technique — is it well established?
Zone Technique has roots going back to 1931 and has been practiced and refined by chiropractors for nearly a century. Dr. Peter Goldman's modern formulation has been taught to thousands of practitioners internationally. It is not a fringe approach — it is a well-developed chiropractic system with a substantial clinical history. That said, it is less widely practiced than standard diversified chiropractic, which is why patients who specifically seek it out often travel significant distances to find a qualified practitioner. In the Shreveport and Bossier City area, Dr. Kim's office is where they come.
Do you use Zone Technique for children or elderly patients?
Yes. One of Zone Technique's advantages is its adaptability. Dr. Kim adjusts the technique to the patient — using lighter, gentler instrument-assisted approaches for patients who need them, including children and older adults. The assessment is the same regardless of age. The delivery is calibrated to what the individual nervous system can comfortably receive.
Related Articles
- Nervous System Chiropractic and Functional Health Testing in Shreveport — Dr. Kim's full approach, credentials, and practice overview
- HTMA Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis Testing in Shreveport — the functional testing layer that complements Zone Technique
- Genetic Testing for Personalized Health in Shreveport — DNA-based analysis for individualized care
- Chiropractic Care for Stress and Nervous System Regulation in Shreveport — how Zone Technique addresses the physical patterns of chronic stress
- Chiropractic Care for Chronic Tension, Headaches, and Neck Pain in Shreveport — the specific structural patterns Zone Technique addresses most directly
© 2021 All The Way Health - All Rights Reserved
Book an Appointment
Dr. Kim Griggs is accepting new patients at Aligned with Dr. Kim, 8039 Line Avenue, Suite C, Shreveport, LA 71106. Same-week appointments typically available. Serving Shreveport, Bossier City, and the surrounding Ark-La-Tex region.
Call or text: (318) 423-7379
alignedwithdrkim.com
Blue Cross Blue Shield and Medicare accepted. ChiroHealthUSA cash rates available.
Website by Hemingway West