Your biological age and chronological age might not be the same. Chronological age is the number of years you have been alive. Biological age is how old your tissues and cells are, based on physiological proof.
If you’re especially fit and healthy concerning your age, your biological age might well be lower than your chronological age. However, if you are inactive, in poor physical condition, or chronically ill, your biological age might be higher. Research recommends that biological age is more precise than chronological age for predicting the start of disease and death. Let’s try to clarify the differences between chronological and biological age.
Chronological Age: The Unavoidable Route of Time
Chronological age is the number of years, months, & days that have passed since birth. The chronological age is a vital reference point for several societal, legal, and cultural standards. It determines eligibility for voting, driving, and retirement, amongst other things. Yet, it doesn’t portray your health or overall well-being.
Biological Age: The Measure of Fitness & Strength
Biological age reflects a person’s physical & mental condition and overall health compared to chronological age. It considers factors such as lifestyle choices, genetics, and environmental effects to measure how well an individual has aged inside.
A person might be chronologically 70 years old but biologically nearer to 60, indicating that their body is in an enhanced state of health than what is normally expected at their chronological age. On the other hand, someone may be 50 years old chronologically but has a biological age nearer to 60 because of risk factors and unhealthy habits. Checkout the study of morphofunctional characteristics and biological aging in women over 60.
Why does biological age matter?
To understand your health profile, you have to know your biological age. Biological age specifies how much damage has happened to your body’s metabolic and cellular functions. It predicts age-related sicknesses, for example, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, & mortality risk, better than chronological age.
If your biological age is equal to your actual age, your body is aging at the correct pace. Yet, if your biological age is lower than your chronological age, it indicates that your body is aging sluggish than the body of a typical individual at your age. In contrast, if your physiological age is higher than the chronological one, it means your body is in a poorer state than it should be.
Chronological age or biological age: Which is a better pointer of health?
Though chronological age is still generally used in research to decide an individual’s risk for specific age-related situations and diseases, it is not the best pointer of health because everybody’s body ages at different rates.
Biological age, instead, reflects how rapidly or slowly an individual is aging. It is used as a metric of health by disclosing how well the body is functioning given the variety of lifestyle and genetic factors that can affect its function. Yet, the precision of a biological calculator age will depend on the measurement method used to determine it.
However, biological age is an evolving metric you can use to assess and optimize your health.
Is It Possible To Reduce Your Biological Age?
Lifestyle factors greatly influence how your genes are finally expressed, and your habits can even affect your biological age more than your genes do. By following a few healthy practices, you can lessen your biological age. For more personalized answers about how to reduce Biological age get help from Longevity AI. Here are a few tips to optimize your health & slow down the aging procedure using the pillars of health:
Eat nutritious foods
Eat a health-promoting food every day. Start with consuming a whole diet that is rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, good quality fats, lean quality proteins, low in processed foods, and free from diets that you are allergic to. Think of eating the rainbow and pack amply of color into every meal.
Include diets that are rich in B12 (fish, meat, some fermented foods), betaine (beets, ancient grains broccoli,), choline (legumes, eggs, cruciferous vegetables), and folate (dark green leafy vegetables, beans, sunflower seeds). Drink ample clean, filtered water to stay well hydrated. Your urine must be almost clear; if it is not, drink more water.
Take regular exercise
Exercise and remaining physically active lift the immune system, maintain a healthy body weight and lessen the risk of inflammation. Studies reveal that compared to people who lead an inactive lifestyle, those who exercise 150 minutes per week have aging indicators nine years younger. Scientists found that people who add aerobic exercise to their routine were about 5.5 years more youthful than inactive people.
Take routine sleep
Getting sufficient, quality sleep is essential to living a healthy life. Without adequate sleep, the body’s capability to repair is reduced. Poor sleep is connected to many negative health consequences like depression, obesity, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and eventually an increased risk of all-cause mortality. One meta-analysis of a combined 1.3 million participants found that short sleep duration (less than six hours) was related to a 12% greater risk of death than individuals who sleep between six and nine hours. The current study recommends aiming for seven to nine hours of quality sleep per night to lower mortality risk &disease.
Live stress free life
Chronic stress can cause disorder in our health and has been related to many negative health consequences, including raised glucose levels, weakened immune system, high blood pressure, and degradation of body tissues, including muscle. A recent cohort study of over 400 members found that stress was related to accelerated biological aging & insulin resistance. Yet, the same study found that partakers with stronger emotion regulation were capable of preventing any substantial effect of stress on their biological age.
These conclusions are in line with other studies that have related a positive mood with longevity& lower mortality risk. Study shows tools like mindfulness and meditation can be effective ways to lessen stress and its health effects.
Conclusion
An individual’s chronological age is a measure of their life span. The biological age is a pointer of how long somebody has to live and the probability that they might develop a chronic disease. Dissimilar to chronological age, biological age is adjustable. Biological aging can be affected by factors like exercise, nutrition, sleep quality, stress levels, smoking, and modifying behaviors can have a substantial impact.
FAQs
How do you slow down biological aging?
Researchers have identified five natural ways you can help slow down biological aging. These include physical and mental exercise, community, sleep, food, and supplements. If you are concerned that you are aging prematurely, get your biological age calculated and find ways you can improve your wellness choices to ensure you age well.
What is an example of a biological age?
You may have a calendar age, or chronological age, of 65. Still, owing to a healthy and active lifestyle—for example, by avoiding longevity factors like tobacco and obesity—your body is physiologically more like somebody with a chronological age of 55. Your biological age would, consequently, be 55.
What is the use of chronological age?
Chronological age is very significant when it comes to legal issues. Voting, getting a job getting a driver’s license, and having access to definite health care benefits all have a legal age necessity. Chronological age is also vital when it comes to getting informed consent from a customer.