A new study published in The Lancet Digital Health suggests that biological age of different organs could predict a person's risk of diseases such as cancer, dementia, and heart disease than their actual chronological age. The research analyzed long-term data from Whitehall II study, which had been followed by over 10,000 British adults for more than 35 years. The blood plasma samples were collected between 1997 and 1999 from participants between ages 45 to 69. Researchers have now examined a follow up data from 6,235 participants, who were by then aged 65 to 89. This was done to see how aging of specific organ may correlate with the development of diseases over two decades. What Organs Were Studied?The study measured the biological age of nine key organs, including:HeartBlood vesselsLiverImmune systemPancreasKidneysLungsIntestinesBrainThe researchers were able to find that different organs aged at different rates in different people. In many of the cases multiple organs showed signs of faster aging within the same individual. What is important to note is that those with accelerated aging in certain organs had a higher risk of developing 30 out of the 40 age-related diseases the study had tracked. Organ Aging And Disease Risk Some organ-disease connections were expected—people with rapidly aging lungs were more likely to develop respiratory diseases, and those with aging kidneys had an increased risk of kidney-related conditions. However, the study also found less obvious associations.For example, individuals with fast-aging kidneys were more prone to diseases in other organs, such as the liver and pancreas. Additionally, multiple fast-aging organs were linked to an increased risk of kidney disease.One of the most surprising findings was that dementia risk was not best predicted by an aging brain but rather by the immune system’s biological age. This suggests that factors such as chronic inflammation and immune health may play a critical role in neurodegenerative diseases.What Is Organ Specific Blood Tests?The study also highlights the important of the potential of developing blood tests that could assess the biological age of specific organs. Unlike previous complex methods that measured the organ health, this new approach could make things simple to detect early signs of disease. The leader author of the study Mika Kivimaki, who is also a professor at the University College London's Faculty of Brain sciences pointed out that such tests could be helpful when it comes to guiding personalized healthcare. In a news release, Kivimaki said, "They could advise whether a person needs to take better care of a particular organ and potentially provide an early warning signal that they may be at risk of a particular disease."The study reinforces the idea that aging does not affect all organs equally and that looking beyond chronological age could offer better insights into disease prevention. By understanding which organs are aging more rapidly, medical professionals may be able to recommend targeted interventions for individuals at higher risk of specific conditions. Future advancements in organ-specific blood testing could revolutionize how we detect and manage age-related diseases, potentially leading to more personalized healthcare strategies.
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