Calendar Age vs. Biological Age: Understanding the Difference

“Baking is a science but cooking is an art”. You must have heard this saying quite often. Have you ever wondered why though? Baking mainly revolves around the near-perfect measurement of ingredients. Anybody can stick to the recipe and defined measures and bake stuff. But cooking? Cooking is a whole other story. Yes, there are defined recipes for cooking as well but there’s no obligation to thoroughly stick to them. It’s an art because the recipes are yours to play around and experiment with. You can discover an amazing new thing whilst modifying an existing basic and boring recipe. But most of all, the reason why cooking is an art is because even when following a recipe, there’s a personal touch added to the final dish no matter who’s cooking it.

A similar thing applies to your skin as well. In essence, if we compare a ‘recipe’ to age, then no matter who, their ‘resultant dish’ or fitness, should also be and/or look the same. Right?

For example, you may be X years old, but that doesn’t mean your skin or physical fitness would be identical to every other X-year-old.

Your calendar ages are ‘X’ but your body ages might be Y and Z.

Confused? Don’t worry! By the end of this article, all your confusion would be gone and you would have learned some new things about yourself.

Keep reading!

What is Calendar Age and What is Body Age?

Calendar Age: Calendar Age, also known as chronological age, is the total number of years you’ve been alive/lived since your birth. It’s a fixed measurement since it is solely based on how many ‘calendar’ years you’ve lived. It only accounts for the passage of time and not how physiologically or physically fit you are.

Body Age: Body Age, also known as biological age is the complete opposite. It doesn’t take into account the passage of time and instead measures how well or poorly your body is functioning in comparison to your calendar age. It accounts for the effects on the body due to factors like lifestyle, environment, genetics, etc. This biological age may be more or less or even the same as your calendar age based on your health and lifestyle habits.

How is Body Age Calculated?

Following are some of the methods through which you can calculate your biological age by assessing your body’s physiological condition:

1. Epigenetic Tests: DNA methylation levels are widely used to estimate biological age. These tests measure DNA methylation patterns that change with age. Epigenetic clocks, such as the Horvath clock, analyze changes in DNA methylation to determine how cells and tissues have aged.

2. Telomere Length: Telomeres are protective caps on the ends of chromosomes that shorten with each cell division. Their shortening can also be indicative of biological aging.

3. Body Fluid Markers: These body fluid-based markers can be measured in blood or other body fluids like cholesterol levels, blood sugar, hormone levels, etc. There are a set of 14 such markers. In addition, there are also ‘proteomic aging clocks’ that take into account the amount of protein levels in body fluids. Thus, these are also often used to assess a person’s biological age.

4. Physical Assessments: There are often tests available to measure your strength, flexibility, organ functionality, blood pressure, vision and hearing, and cardiovascular health which contribute to determining biological age.

5. CognitiveTests: Tests aimed at measuring cognitive functions like different areas of thinking like memory, attention, problem-solving abilities, information processing, etc. also help in figuring out someone’s biological age.

6. Skin Analysis: Skin’s biological age can be assessed by evaluating things like skin elasticity, hydration levels, and the presence of fine lines, wrinkles, and pigmentation.

7. Assessments of Lifestyle Choices: Certain tests that focus on your diet, exercise, drinking, and smoking as well as your social health and pet ownership can also be used to calculate your biological age.

8. Comparisons: Another way to calculate your biological age is by comparing the results obtained from your tests to others of the same age and same sex.

Differences Between Calendar Age and Biological Age

Success Stories: People with Younger Biological Ages

1. Jennifer Lopez: Watch Jennifer Lopez perform on stage and you’ll feel like her performance is still way more fun and energetic than any one of the recent or young generation artists. She still has that youthful appearance she did before and she has attributed all of this to her dedication to exercise, skincare, and a healthy diet.

2. Tom Brady: Tom Brady may have retired at the age of 45 from the NFL but his biological age maintained is much younger, credited to a fitness-focused lifestyle and proper nutrition.

3. Wim Hof: Wim, a Dutch motivational speaker, popularly known as The Iceman, is known for his extreme endurance to cold temperatures. His cold exposure therapy is known to have improved cardiovascular health and slow down biological aging.

4. Novak Djokovic: Novak, the tennis champion has credited his youthful biological age to a gluten-free diet, rigorous training, and mental conditioning techniques that keep him at peak performance.

5. Cristiano Ronaldo: He is a legendary footballer, aged 38, but has the biological age of a 23-year-old. This is attributed to his rigorous training regimen, strict diet, and disciplined lifestyle.

Factors Impacting Biological Age

Following are the factors responsible which contribute to your biological age:

1. Diet and Nutrition: Having a diet that is rich in nutrients, antioxidants, and healthy fats is known to slow down biological aging.

2. Exercise: Regular exercise or any kind of physical movement or activity improves cardiovascular health and reduces biological aging.

3. Quality Sleep: Having 8 hours of proper and restorative sleep aids in cell repair, slowing down biological aging.

4. Stress Management: Stress or improper management of it, leads to faster aging and hence should be reduced or avoided.

5. Genetics: While lifestyle choices have a major impact on the biological age, genetics contribute a small part to it as well.

6. Environmental Exposure: Exposure to environmental factors like pollution, toxins, UV rays, etc., also leads to premature aging.

Impact of Biological Age on Skin and How to Change Skincare Accordingly

An increase in biological age leads to the thinning of the skin. As a result, your skin becomes more prone to fine lines, wrinkles, sagginess, and dryness.

Adjusting skincare based on biological age rather than calendar age ensures optimal skin health. As biological age increases, skin undergoes changes that require targeted care.

• 20s and Early 30s: During this time, focus on hydration, lightweight moisturizers, and proper sun protection on a daily basis.

• Mid-30s to 40s: Start introducing retinol, products rich in Vitamin C, and richer moisturizers in your skincare routine to maintain the elasticity of your skin.

• 50s and Beyond: Use peptides, hyaluronic acid, and ceramide-based creams to restore hydration and firmness.

• Custom Approach: Instead of following age-based skincare blindly, assess your skin condition, hydration levels, and elasticity to curate a skincare routine that supports your biological age effectively.

How to Reduce Biological Age (Ayurveda Perspective)

• Balanced Diet: The balanced diet to be maintained should be according to Ayurvedic dietary principles with fresh, seasonal, and whole foods. Avoid processed foods and foods containing excessive sugar and healthy fats.

• Herbal Remedies: Use natural and healing substances like Ashwagandha and Brahmi to combat stress and aging. Herbs like gotu kola, holy basil, amla, ginger, and cinnamon are known for their anti-aging effects.

• Meditation & Yoga: Regular meditation can slow aging by 5-7 years. Practice yoga asanas like Setu Bandhasana and Pranayama techniques such as Nadi Shodhana. These practices not only help in physical rejuvenation but also aid in mental clarity and emotional balance. 

• Detoxification: First and foremost, you must balance your doshas (Vatta, Pitta, Kapha). Vatta is associated with dryness, Pitta causes inflammation and Kapha leads to oiliness. Panchakarma and other Ayurvedic detox methods remove the excessive doshas by eliminating toxins and promoting cellular rejuvenation.

Conclusion

Thus, understanding the difference between calendar age and biological age empowers us to take control of our aging process. While we cannot stop the clock on our calendar age, adopting a healthier lifestyle and practices like meditation and Ayurveda can significantly reduce biological age. By prioritizing our physical and mental well-being, we can not only extend our lifespan but also improve our quality of life, proving that age is truly just a number.

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