Why is Biological Age so Important? 

It’s not just about lifespan or how long you live. It’s about healthspan. It’s about living the longest life without the age-related health problems. TruAge is a single metric that takes all the important health data (weight, sex, cholesterol level, exercise frequency, etc.) about an individual and reports back how healthy you are.  

This test won’t help with ancestry, but it will help tell you what your body is actually doing and what that means. Traditional genetic tests like ancestry.com and 23andMe tell you your DNA sequence. They give you information about the genes you have (i.e., the BRCa gene for breast and ovarian cancer), but cannot tell you whether those genes are “turned on.” This is like looking at a light bulb and its components but not knowing if the bulb is producing light. Epigenetics lets us know if the light bulb is turned on or off!  

Gene expression happens when the information coded by our DNA is converted into an instruction for making a specific protein. The information stored in our DNA must be converted into a usable message that our body can read and translate if that part of the DNA wants to show itself.  It’s not enough that something is written into our DNA. The gene must express itself before there will be an effect. For example, two siblings can both carry a gene for a particular disease, but only one actually develops the disease. In one sibling, the faulty gene expressed, while in the other sibling, it did not. 

TruAge, however, is a different type of DNA test. TruAge is an epigenetics blood DNA test.  It  lets you know if genes are expressing so you can take actionable steps to prevent, stop and even reverse disease.