Scientists have created a new, simple test that might help predict how well you will age—and how long you might live. This test only needs a drop of blood or saliva and could become a useful tool to track your health over time.
The test works by measuring something called intrinsic capacity (IC). IC means how well your mind and body work, including how you walk, think, see, hear, and remember. Keeping a high IC is key to aging in a healthy way.
Before this new test, measuring IC needed special tools and experts. But now, using a method called DNA methylation, researchers can check your biological aging from a small sample. DNA methylation involves chemical changes in your genes that affect how your body works over time.
This new test is called DNAm IC. It can show how fast or slow your body is aging compared to your actual age. People with high DNAm IC scores tend to live longer, walk faster, have stronger bones, and feel healthier. The study found that people with high DNAm IC lived about 5.5 years longer than those with lower scores.
Experts say this test could help doctors suggest better lifestyle choices to slow aging. For example, eating oily fish like salmon helps because it has omega-3 fats that protect the brain and reduce inflammation. On the other hand, eating too much sugar can damage your body and speed up aging.
Even though the test is still being studied, it shows great promise. Doctors believe it could one day be used in clinics to check aging and give early warnings about health problems.
However, experts also say this test should be used along with other health checks, like physical tests and other age-related markers, for a full picture.
In short, this new test might soon help people take better care of their health and possibly live longer, healthier lives.
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