What can a biological age test actually tell you?
Experts weigh in on the tests’ current accuracy and usefulness.
Biological age tests have emerged as a way to gauge how your body is faring by comparing your blood test results to an age that your DNA methylation patterns most closely match. If your biological age exceeds your chronological age, you face a higher risk of adverse health outcomes, while a lower biological age than your chronological age suggests protection against such outcomes.
The pioneering method, the Horvath “clock,” published in 2013, estimates your age based on DNA methylation patterns, presenting you with an age akin to that of a 20-year-old or a 40-year-old. Subsequent generations of tests focus on methylation sites linked to mortality risk, offering another age gauge based on your mortality risk positioning.
The latest clock, DunedinPACE, assesses the rate at which you are aging rather than simply predicting it. While these tests have gained popularity among consumers willing to shell out for insights into their true age, experts caution about their accuracy and reliability. These tests' outcomes can be swayed by factors like time of day, last meal, and sleep quality.
Additionally, different tests measure varying aspects of biological age, leading to diverse results. Importantly, these tests don't pinpoint what might be going wrong in the body or how to rectify the issues causing a higher biological age. Researchers are exploring blood samples for thousands of proteins, aiming to provide a more comprehensive view of an individual's health.
Written by urgent.news from Channel News Asia's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
