You track everything else. You've never measured this.
Sleep, HRV, glucose, VO2 max — all quantified. Meanwhile the bacteria that perform the first step of nitric oxide production have never been on the dashboard. One saliva sample, given at home, and you have the number.
$199 · one-time · ships free
Not yet available in AK, CA, CT, HI, MD, MA, NJ, NY, RI.
The pathway starts in your mouth — and it can stall there.
Certain bacteria in your mouth do something most people never learn about: they help turn the nitrate in leafy greens and beets into nitric oxide, a molecule your body uses for healthy blood flow and circulation. The conversion starts in the mouth. Without the right bacteria, the pathway stalls before your body can finish it.
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Dietary nitrate
Leafy greens, beets and similar foods are eaten.
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Concentrated in saliva
Nitrate is absorbed and concentrated back into saliva.
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Oral conversion
Your bacteria convert nitrate to nitrite. This is the step that depends on which organisms you have — and the one we measure.
The step we measure -
Becomes nitric oxide
Nitrite is swallowed and converted further into nitric oxide.
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Blood flow
Nitric oxide is associated in research with healthy blood flow.
What most products assume
That the oral step is working
Nitrate supplements, beet powders, and NO boosters all depend on this conversion happening in your mouth. None of them check whether it does. If your oral bacteria can't perform the step, more nitrate doesn't finish the job.
What we measure
The gene that does the work
We don't just check whether nitrate-reducing species are present — we target the narG gene that performs the conversion. Detecting that gene tells us the capability is actually there, not just that a related organism happens to be present. That's why we can describe this as functional capacity rather than a simple count.
The systemic links here are associations reported in research, not conclusions about any individual. What your score reflects is the oral step of the pathway. The Oral Balance Test measures your oral microbiome; it does not diagnose gum disease, cavities, or any medical condition.
A longevity input you can actually act on.
You can't feel your nitric-oxide capacity, and no supplement label tells you whether the pathway it depends on is working. Measuring the oral step gives you something specific to change — and a way to check whether the change took.
Capability, not a headcount
We measure the narG gene that performs the nitrate conversion — so the score reflects what your microbiome can actually do, not just which species happen to be present.
Your protective reserve
A healthy mouth isn't one without bad bacteria — it's one with enough good ones. Protective Capacity is part of why the same bacterial load affects two people differently.
Movable in 90 days
Most longevity markers you can watch but not change. Retest after an intervention and compare: each Detection Level step is roughly twice as much bacteria, so real movement is easy to read.
One sample. Four steps.
No appointment, no lab visit, no fasting.
Order your kit
Buy online and we ship a complete saliva collection kit to your door — free.
Collect at home
Follow the simple instructions to give a small saliva sample. About two minutes, no appointment, no swab and no blood.
Mail it back
Seal it in the prepaid return envelope and drop it in the mail. It heads straight to our CLIA-certified lab in Norman, Oklahoma.
Read your results
About a week from the day you mail it — most of that is transit, since your sample is processed within 2 business days of reaching our lab. Your full Balance Report lands in your private OraPath account.
A report built to be read — not decoded.
No wall of numbers. Your Balance Report turns the lab results into a clear picture and plain language — yours to keep, and worth bringing to your dentist or physician.
- Your Nitric Oxide System score Your functional capacity to convert dietary nitrate — the oral step of the pathway, measured.
- Your Oral Balance Score One headline number from 0 to 100. It weights the nitric-oxide side more heavily, because that capacity is harder to rebuild.
- Protective capacity and disruptive pressure Your defense on one side, your bacterial load on the other — the pairing is the part that actually explains your result.
- All sixteen organisms, individually Including the nitrate-reducing group — Rothia, Neisseria, Veillonella and Actinomyces — with a plain-language read on each.
Common questions
I already take a nitric oxide supplement. Why would I test?
Because the supplement can't do the step your mouth does. Nitrate — whether it comes from beet powder or a salad — has to be converted to nitrite by bacteria on your tongue before your body can finish making nitric oxide. If those bacteria aren't there, or aren't carrying the gene that performs the conversion, more nitrate doesn't complete the pathway. This tells you whether the step you're feeding is actually working.
Does mouthwash affect this?
It's a fair question to ask of any antiseptic rinse. Antiseptic mouthwashes don't pick favorites — they knock back the helpful bacteria right alongside the rest, which is one reason the “nuke everything” approach can backfire. Your report shows where your nitrate-reducing group actually stands, which is a more useful basis for a decision than a general rule.
Is this a diagnosis?
No. The Balance Test measures bacteria in your saliva. It doesn't diagnose gum disease, cavities, or any medical condition, and it isn't a substitute for a dental exam. The systemic connections described here are associations reported in research, not conclusions about you specifically. Your results are meant to be reviewed by a professional alongside an examination and your history — bring your report to your next appointment and go through it together.
Can I retest to see whether anything changed?
Yes — that's where the test earns its keep. Most people tracking an intervention retest at 60 to 90 days, then settle into roughly every six months once things are stable. Each Detection Level step is about twice as much bacteria as the one below it, so the comparison is readable rather than a matter of interpretation.
How long until I get results?
Your report is ready within 2 business days of your sample reaching our lab — about a week from the day you mail it, once transit both ways is counted. You'll get it in your private OraPath account.
How accurate is an at-home saliva test?
It's the same validated test dental practices order — run in our own CLIA-certified, COLA-accredited lab on the sample you collect. Saliva collection is simple and hard to get wrong, and the lab work is identical to an in-office order. The Oral Balance Test is a validated Laboratory-Developed Test; it has not been cleared or approved by the FDA.
Which states do you ship to?
We ship the at-home Balance Test to most US states, but not yet to AK, CA, CT, HI, MD, MA, NJ, NY, RI. Those states apply extra requirements to at-home lab testing, and we've held them back from this first launch rather than cut corners. We're working through them.
If you're in one of those states and want the test, ask your dental practice — they can order OraPath panels for you directly.
Also from OraPath
Ora-Protek daily oral probiotic
A daily dissolvable lozenge with 16 clinically studied probiotic strains, including BLIS K12 and M18. Ships to all fifty states — including the states the test can't reach yet. Multi-bottle pricing from $25.00 per bottle.
Add the marker you've been missing.
One saliva sample, collected at home, gives you a measured baseline for your nitric-oxide capacity, your protective reserve, and the bacterial load working against them — and something to measure the next ninety days against.
Results in your private OraPath account · not a diagnosis — meant to be reviewed with your dentist alongside an exam.