Four Lows repeated, ratios improving
Four Lows twice in a row, with the numbers underneath moving
The pattern workbook separates a Four Lows chart that is unchanged from one that repeats while its ratios, levels or phosphorus improve. It also records the two ways the pattern ends.
The pattern workbook Eileen reads charts against defines this retest pattern as a Four Lows pattern present on consecutive tests in which the calcium/potassium (Ca/K) and sodium/magnesium (Na/Mg) ratios, the macrominerals, or the phosphorus level improve. Four Lows means calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium all below ideal: below the Analytical Research Labs (ARL) Four Lows cutoffs of 40, 6, 25 and 10 mg%. Trace Elements' (TEI) ideal levels are 60, 6, 24 and 10 mg%.
The chart meets the Four Lows criteria on both tests.
| Reading | Ideal | Improvement on the retest |
|---|---|---|
| Ca/K (thyroid ratio) | 4 (ARL) to 4.2 (TEI) | Moves toward 4 to 4.2 from either side |
| Na/Mg (adrenal ratio) | 4 (TEI) to 4.17 (ARL) | Moves toward 4 to 4.17 from either side |
| Calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium | 40 to 60, 6, 24 to 25, 10 mg% | Rises toward ideal while still below it |
| Phosphorus | 16 mg% (TEI; implied by ARL's Ca/P of 2.5) | Rises toward 16 mg% |
The workbook describes the Ca/K ratio as relating to how efficient the body's energy production is, and the Na/Mg ratio as a measure of energy output. It notes that a low Na/Mg can be an indicator of copper toxicity. The Ca/K and Na/Mg articles cover each ratio.
The workbook describes phosphorus as an excitatory, high-energy mineral in the body's fuel system, with roles in bone, energy production, the nervous system, cell membranes, protein synthesis, blood pH buffering and osmotic balance. It reads a phosphorus under 15 mg% as a more catabolic state in which protein is not synthesized fast enough. ARL places low phosphorus below 12 mg%. Dr. Paul Eck held that either a high or a low hair phosphorus indicates impaired protein synthesis, and the workbook lists impaired digestion and copper toxicity as trends of a low phosphorus.
The workbook also records two retest movements. A sudden increase in phosphorus reflects the breakdown and release of old tissue and faster protein biosynthesis. A decrease can follow the elimination of lead, mercury or other metals that had displaced the phosphorus reading upward. It adds that phosphorus naturally moves up and down between tests.
ARL's All-Four-Low Document calls the pattern one of the most difficult mineral patterns to build a correction program for, and gives two reasons: a reduced ability to cope with stress, and tissue reserves depleted of calcium and magnesium for an extended period. It records that four-low cases can seldom handle a large supplement program, and lists fatigue that is worse at rest as the pattern's characteristic trend.
The same document records that calcium, magnesium and zinc, the minerals "sacrificed during stress," are given as stress buffers, and that "the first effect of giving calcium, magnesium and zinc is sometimes a temporary increase in fatigue," usually followed by an increase in energy. ARL's dosing rule for this pattern: the lower the calcium level, the less calcium is required, and when calcium is higher, though still below 40 mg%, more calcium is required. Magnesium follows the same rule: the lower the magnesium level, the less magnesium is generally given.
The workbook records two resolutions of Four Lows and reads them differently:
ARL's All-Four-Low Document states that normally "a reduction in sodium and potassium values causes calcium and magnesium to elevate as a buffer against further stress," and that in four-low cases this buffering does not happen.
Each hair reading averages 2 to 3 months of growth (ARL Glossary), and Eileen retests every 3 to 5 months. ARL's adrenal material puts recovery at "a matter of months" in mild cases and "several years" in long-standing ones, so a Four Lows chart is followed across several retests rather than one. The barely moved between tests article covers the retest where nothing shifts.
The four levels come first on both charts: calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium against their ideals, to confirm Four Lows on each test. Then the direction of Ca/K against 4 to 4.2 and Na/Mg against 4 to 4.17.
Next: each macromineral against its value on the previous chart, then phosphorus against 15 and 16 mg%. If the retest no longer shows Four Lows, the oxidation rate on the new chart decides which resolution it is: slow (Ca/K above 4 with Na/Mg below 4.17) or fast (Ca/K below 4 with Na/Mg above 4.17). The other two combinations are mixed oxidation.
A Four Lows pattern that repeats on a retest while the Ca/K and Na/Mg ratios, the macrominerals or the phosphorus level improve.
No. The workbook separates a repeat with improving ratios, levels or phosphorus from an unchanged repeat.
To slow oxidation. A change straight to fast oxidation is described as not the usual route and as likely to return to Four Lows.
ARL records that giving calcium, magnesium and zinc in this pattern sometimes causes a temporary increase in fatigue before energy increases.
A retest hair tissue mineral analysis reports the four macrominerals, phosphorus and the Ca/K and Na/Mg ratios on the same scale as the first test, so movement inside a Four Lows pattern is visible.
Published 2026-10-30 · Updated 2026-10-30
By Eileen Durfee — Practitioner, NBS (Nutritional Balancing Science), NASM-CPT; wellness educator, inventor and author.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Hair tissue mineral analysis is a screening test and is not diagnostic. This article is for educational purposes only. Wellness Shopping Online is operated by Nuco Enterprise Solutions LLC.
