How can I measure my biological age?

Epigenetic clocks measure how far your biological age deviates from your calendar age, based on methylation patterns in your DNA. If that methylation age runs ahead of your actual age, it points to a higher risk compared with people of the same age in the general population. Two large analyses confirm that association, but it reflects an average pattern across thousands of people, not a personal prediction about your future.

Measuring is practically straightforward: commercial providers send out a saliva or blood kit and you do not need a doctor. The market varies widely in quality, however. Choose a provider that is transparent about which method is used and that reports multiple clocks simultaneously, because different clocks each measure something slightly different and sometimes produce divergent results for the same person. One number from one clock therefore says considerably less than when multiple clocks point in the same direction.

The most useful way to use such a measurement is as a reference point for tracking trends over time, not as a statement about your future. Whether your epigenetic age actually decreases when you change your lifestyle, and whether that decrease also lowers your health risk, has not yet been proven. The test itself is harmless; the main risk lies in placing too much weight on a single number, or in the rejuvenation products that are often sold alongside it.