Na/K above 10
A sodium/potassium ratio four times its ideal, beside a calcium/magnesium ratio under ideal
The pattern workbook defines the Cliff by two ratios and records that it usually occurs on a three highs chart with low potassium. ARL places its strongest inflammation reading at the same Na/K line.
The pattern workbook Eileen reads charts against defines the Cliff as a calcium/magnesium (Ca/Mg) ratio between 4 and 6 and a sodium/potassium (Na/K) ratio greater than 10. It records that there is also usually a three highs pattern with low potassium: calcium, magnesium and sodium above ideal and potassium below.
The Na/K ideal is 2.4 (Trace Elements) to 2.5 (Analytical Research Labs, ARL), so an Na/K over 10 is four times the ARL ideal and above 4.1 times the Trace Elements ideal. The Ca/Mg ideal is 6.67 (ARL) to 7 (Trace Elements, 2010), so a Ca/Mg of 4 to 6 sits below ideal.
A ratio is one level divided by another. With potassium at 8 mg%, an Na/K over 10 needs sodium above 80 mg%; with potassium at 5 mg%, sodium above 50 mg%. The sodium ideal is 24 to 25 mg% and the potassium ideal 10 mg%, so in these two examples sodium reads two to more than three times ideal; the lower the potassium, the smaller the sodium that reaches an Na/K of 10.
On a three highs chart, calcium and magnesium are both above ideal. A Ca/Mg of 4 to 6 with both raised means magnesium is raised by a larger proportion than calcium: with magnesium at 16 mg%, calcium sits between 64 and 96 mg%, above both labs' calcium ideals across the whole window. The calcium ideal is 40 mg% (ARL) to 60 mg% (Trace Elements, since 2008) and the magnesium ideal 6 mg% at both labs.
ARL's "Understanding a High Sodium/Potassium Ratio" gives the normal Na/K range as 2.5 to 4 and describes a high ratio as relatively greater secretion of aldosterone in relation to cortisol. It records that the inflammation tendency is particularly true when the ratio is greater than about 10 to 1, naming arthritis, bursitis, colitis and tendinitis trends. ARL's trend table in "Ratios and Their Meaning" reads an Na/K of 6 and above as a severe elevation.
The same ARL document records that a high Na/K in a slow oxidizer is an acute stress response occurring within the exhaustion stage, and a common one. The workbook's three highs definition places that pattern almost always in a slow oxidizer under stress or a secondary alarm reaction.
Trace Elements' 2018 newsletter on stress and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis places the alarm stage at an Na/K above 5, driven by aldosterone, and reads an Na/K that stays above 5 as chronic alarm. The Cliff's line of 10 is twice that alarm line.
Trace Elements' 1993 endocrine table reads increased anabolic adrenal cortical activity from an Na/K above 5, an Na/Mg above 4 and a Ca/Mg above 10. The Cliff meets the Na/K criterion and not the Ca/Mg one, because its Ca/Mg sits between 4 and 6. Trace Elements' 2020 Slow Type 2 profile, elevated Na/Mg and elevated Na/K, is an alarm phase within a slow type in which pro-inflammatory adrenal hormones increase magnesium loss.
ARL records that a high Na/K frequently occurs in people who consume no salt, and names excessive aldosterone from stress and zinc or magnesium deficiency as the main causes. Zinc lowers sodium and raises potassium; magnesium lowers sodium.
ARL also records that hidden metals raise sodium and can create a high ratio even when the metal is not visible on the test: copper, which also depresses potassium, plus cadmium, mercury and nickel, and at times aluminum, manganese and iron. It states that hidden copper toxicity must be considered if potassium is below 4 mg%.
ARL's trend table in "Ratios and Their Meaning" reads a Ca/Mg of 3.3 to 6.67 as good, and Trace Elements' 2010 range is 3 to 11. ARL's 1990 document on obesity reads a Ca/Mg below 4.5 or above 8.5 as a carbohydrate intolerance trend, so the bottom of the Cliff's window, 4 to 4.5, falls under that line. ARL's 1987 blood sugar document places a hypoglycemia trend at a Ca/Mg of 3.6 to 4.5, which overlaps the bottom of the window.
| Reading | Cliff line | Ideal | Literature reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Na/K | Over 10 | 2.4 to 2.5 | Inflammation tendency particularly above about 10 (ARL) |
| Na/K in Trace Elements' stages | Over 10 | 2.4 | Twice the alarm line of 5 (2018) |
| Ca/Mg | 4 to 6 | 6.67 to 7 | Hypoglycemia trend band 3.6 to 4.5 at the bottom (ARL, 1987) |
| Levels | Usually three highs, low potassium | Ca 40 to 60, Mg 6, Na 24 to 25, K 10 mg% | Slow oxidizer under stress or secondary alarm (pattern workbook) |
A hair tissue mineral analysis is a screening test for nutritional and toxic-element patterns. It reports tissue mineral levels and ratios; it is not a diagnosis, it does not establish a cause, and it does not measure what is circulating in blood today. Each mineral reading reflects roughly 2 to 3 months of hair growth, and a retest 3 to 5 months later shows the direction of change. Where the laboratory literature describes a trend, that trend belongs to the mineral pattern rather than to any person reading about it.
The Na/K comes first, against 2.4 to 2.5 and the line of 10. Then the Ca/Mg against the 4 to 6 window and 6.67 to 7, then the four levels to check for three highs with low potassium.
Next: the copper, cadmium, mercury and nickel lines, the zinc and magnesium levels, and the oxidation rate from Ca/K and Na/Mg.
A calcium/magnesium ratio between 4 and 6 with a sodium/potassium ratio greater than 10, usually on a three highs chart with low potassium.
Four times ARL's 2.5 ideal and above 4.1 times Trace Elements' 2.4 ideal, and twice Trace Elements' alarm-stage line of 5.
ARL records that the inflammation tendency of a high Na/K is particularly true above about 10 to 1, and that a high Na/K in a slow oxidizer is an acute stress response within the exhaustion stage.
ARL records that a high Na/K frequently occurs in people who consume no salt, and names excessive aldosterone from stress and zinc or magnesium deficiency as the main causes. It records hidden metals that raise sodium as a further cause.
A full hair tissue mineral analysis reports the Na/K and Ca/Mg ratios with all four macrominerals and the toxic metals, which are the readings that define the Cliff and show what raised the sodium.
Published 2026-11-12 · Updated 2026-11-12
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.
