Convert lab numbers, drug labels, vitamin doses, and mineral salt mass to elemental amounts. Pick the form printed on the bottle. Educational only. Not medical advice.

Blood panel scores Roadmap blood targets. This page converts units only.

Labs — hormones & chemistry

  • Testosterone (total): ng/dL, ng/mL, µg/L, nmol/L — SI often nmol/L; US often ng/dL.
  • Free testosterone: pg/mL, pmol/L — Method-dependent. Approximate only.
  • Estradiol (E2): pg/mL, pmol/L
  • Progesterone: ng/mL, nmol/L
  • Cortisol: µg/dL, nmol/L
  • Free T3: pg/mL, pmol/L
  • Free T4: ng/dL, pmol/L
  • Prolactin: ng/mL, µg/L, mIU/L — mIU/L ≈ ×21.2 vs ng/mL (WHO; assay-dependent).
  • PTH (intact): pg/mL, ng/L, pmol/L
  • Total cholesterol: mg/dL, mmol/L
  • LDL cholesterol: mg/dL, mmol/L — Same mass↔molar factor as total cholesterol.
  • HDL cholesterol: mg/dL, mmol/L — Same mass↔molar factor as total cholesterol.
  • Glucose: mg/dL, mmol/L
  • Serum calcium: mg/dL, mmol/L
  • Serum phosphate (as P): mg/dL, mmol/L
  • 25-OH vitamin D (blood): ng/mL, nmol/L
  • Triglycerides: mg/dL, mmol/L
  • HbA1c: % (NGSP), mmol/mol (IFCC) — NGSP % ↔ IFCC mmol/mol (approx): mmol/mol = 10.93×% − 23.5.
  • Vitamin C (ascorbic acid dose): mg, g, µg
  • Lactic acid (lactate, blood): mg/dL, mmol/L — SI: mmol/L × 9.008 ≈ mg/dL (lactate MW 90.08).
  • Serotonin (5-HT, whole blood/serum): ng/mL, nmol/L — SI: nmol/L × 0.1762 ≈ ng/mL (serotonin MW 176.2).

Drugs — IU vs mass (form-specific)

  • Penicillin G (benzylpenicillin): IU, MU (million IU), mg, µg — ≈1670 IU per mg pure Na/K salt (USP-style). 1 MU ≈ 600 mg. Not interchangeable with penicillin V as “same strength”.
  • Penicillin V (phenoxymethyl): IU, mg, µg — ≈1600 IU per mg (common label factor). Oral tablets (125-500mg) top out under 1 MU, so no MU option here.
  • Insulin (IU only — not for dosing): IU, kIU (×1000) — Do not set an insulin dose from this page. Products and analogs differ. Only IU ↔ thousand IU scale helpers. No mg conversion.
  • Heparin (unfractionated): IU, kIU (×1000) — Labeled in IU only; mass varies by product. Converter keeps IU ↔ thousand IU.
  • Nystatin: IU, mg, µg — ≈4400–6000 IU/mg depending on product; using 4400 IU/mg (common oral). Check label.

Vitamins — dose (IU / mass / form)

  • Vitamin D dose (D2 / D3): IU, mcg — 1 IU = 0.025 µg. 1000 IU = 25 µg. Same mass convention for D2 and D3 labels.
  • Vitamin A (retinol ↔ β-carotene via IU): IU, µg retinol, µg β-carotene (supp.) — IU bridges forms: 1 IU = 0.3 µg retinol ≈ 0.6 µg supplemental β-carotene. Food RAE rules differ; not a pure bioequivalence claim.
  • Vitamin E (natural ↔ synthetic via IU): IU, mg natural d-α, mg synthetic dl-α — IU is the common currency. 1 IU ≈ 0.67 mg natural d-α-tocopherol ≈ 0.9 mg synthetic dl-α-tocopherol. Biological equivalence is not 1:1 by mg.
  • Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone): µg, mg — Usually mcg only; included for mg↔mcg label mixups.
  • Vitamin K2 (menaquinone, MK-4/MK-7): µg, mg — Mass-based label, same as K1; MK-4 and MK-7 are not IU-equivalent forms, this converts µg↔mg only, not between forms.
  • Vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin): µg, mg
  • Folic acid (label mcg): µg, mg — DFE rules differ for food folate vs folic acid; this is plain mass on the bottle.
  • Vitamin B1 (thiamine): mg, µg
  • Vitamin B2 (riboflavin): mg, µg
  • Vitamin B3 (niacin / niacinamide): mg, µg, g
  • Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine): mg, µg

Minerals — forms + mass units

  • Magnesium (salt forms ↔ elemental): mg elemental Mg, µg elemental Mg, mcg elemental Mg, g elemental Mg, mg oxide, mg citrate, mg glycinate, mg chloride·6H2O — Salt forms ↔ elemental (oxide ≈60%, citrate ≈16%, glycinate ≈14%, chloride·6H2O ≈12%). Also mg/µg/g elemental. Hydrates vary by product.
  • Calcium (salt forms ↔ elemental): mg elemental Ca, µg elemental Ca, mcg elemental Ca, g elemental Ca, mg carbonate, mg citrate — Carbonate 40% elemental; citrate ≈21%.
  • Iron (salt forms ↔ elemental): mg elemental Fe, µg elemental Fe, mcg elemental Fe, g elemental Fe, mg ferrous sulfate·7H2O, mg ferrous fumarate, mg ferrous gluconate — Ferrous sulfate·7H2O ≈20% Fe; fumarate ≈33%; gluconate ≈12%.
  • Zinc (salt forms ↔ elemental): mg elemental Zn, µg elemental Zn, mcg elemental Zn, g elemental Zn, mg zinc oxide, mg zinc sulfate·H2O — Oxide ≈80% Zn; sulfate monohydrate ≈36%.
  • Iodine (KI ↔ elemental I): µg elemental I, mcg elemental I, mg elemental I, µg KI, mcg KI, mg KI — ≈76.5% iodine in potassium iodide.
  • Copper (salt forms ↔ elemental): mg elemental Cu, µg elemental Cu, mcg elemental Cu, g elemental Cu, mg copper sulfate·5H2O, mg copper gluconate — CuSO4·5H2O ≈25.5% Cu; gluconate ≈14%.
  • Selenium (forms ↔ elemental Se): µg elemental Se, mcg elemental Se, mg elemental Se, µg selenomethionine, mcg selenomethionine, µg sodium selenite, mcg sodium selenite — Selenomethionine ≈40% Se by mass; sodium selenite ≈46% Se. Check label “elemental selenium”.
  • Lithium (carbonate ↔ elemental Li): mg elemental Li, µg elemental Li, mcg elemental Li, g elemental Li, mg lithium carbonate, mg lithium citrate — Li2CO3 ≈18.8% elemental lithium. Prescription doses are usually mg carbonate, not elemental.

How conversion works here

[edit]
  • Labs (cholesterol, hormones, glucose): SI versus conventional units for one analyte. Forms are not the issue.
  • Drugs (penicillin G versus V, nystatin): IU versus mass for that specific product family. Different drugs stay separate on purpose.
  • Vitamins (D, A, E): dose labels, often IU versus mass. A and E can bridge two labeled forms through IU.
  • Minerals: two needs at once. Salt form versus elemental amount, and mass units (mg, µg or mcg, g) for elemental dose. That is why minerals look more form to form than labs.

mcg and µg are the same unit (microgram). Labels mix the spellings.

Safety

[edit]
  • Do not set an insulin dose from this page. Insulin stays IU only here (scale helpers only). Products and analogs differ.
  • Drug IU factors are label math, not permission to swap products.
  • Mineral salt fractions are approximate. Hydrates vary. Prefer a label that already states elemental amount when dosing.

See also

[edit]