The blood told the truth about the aging of the body

It’s no secret that lifestyle, heredity, and even ecology have different effects on the heart, lungs, brain, and other organs. A doctor may tell one person that his general condition corresponds to 40 years, but in fact his heart “feels good” at 50, and his immune system is only 35. For the first time, the new test allows you to see this picture clearly and in detail.

The method was based on thousands of medical data: blood tests, medical history, grip strength and other health indicators of 7.5 thousand volunteers. Using machine learning algorithms, this information was compared with so—called epigenetic tags, changes in DNA that turn genes on and off with age. As a result, we managed to build a system that reads information from a single tube of blood and outputs an “age profile” of the body.

The system was named Systems Age. It provides a separate indicator for 11 physiological areas — from the heart and brain to immunity and metabolism. This approach turned out to be much more accurate than the old epigenetic clock: for example, the age of the heart in this model better predicts the risk of heart disease than the general biological age.

It turned out that two people with the same Systems Age can have completely different “aging relief”. One looks healthy in all respects, except for the lungs, the other has problems only with immunity. This information gives doctors a chance to select treatments and recommendations precisely, and for people to find out in advance which weaknesses to pay attention to.

If, for example, the test shows accelerated aging of the heart, the doctor may suggest lifestyle changes or choose medications to support blood vessels. And if the immune system wears out the fastest, you can strengthen the body’s defenses in advance.

This approach can help us move closer to the personalized medicine of the future, where everyone will receive a detailed map of how their body is aging and strive to prolong their life.