They told you it was just your age.Science has broken it down into twelve processes.
They are the 12 hallmarks of ageing, the way science has summed up since 2013 why we age. We explain them in plain words, with their sources, and show you how we work with them at ELYSIA.
Hover over each hallmark to see what it is. Click it to read it in full.Tap a hallmark to read it in full.
Chapter 1
So what is ageing?
For centuries it was seen as inevitable wear and tear, like an old machine. In recent decades science has seen something different: ageing is a set of biological processes that can be studied, partly measured and partly influenced.
That is why “it's your age” is not an explanation.
It is the name of twelve processes, and several leave signals that can be measured today.
Five moments that changed how we think about ageing
1993
One gene, twice the lifespan
A mutation in a single gene makes a tiny worm live more than twice as long. The pace of ageing is also regulated by biology: it is not just wear and tear.
Kenyon et al. · Nature · 19932013
Nine common hallmarks
Carlos López-Otín and his team organise what was known into nine processes that appear with ageing in very different organisms, with a special focus on mammals.
López-Otín et al. · Cell · 20132014
The biggest risk factor
Leading researchers sum it up: ageing is the biggest risk factor for most chronic diseases. Understanding why we age is also understanding why we fall ill.
Kennedy et al. · Cell · 20142021
The hallmarks of health
López-Otín and Guido Kroemer describe the opposite: what keeps us healthy. They define health not as the absence of disease, but as a set of features that keep the body organised.
López-Otín and Kroemer · Cell · 20212023
Twelve connected hallmarks
Disabled autophagy, chronic inflammation and dysbiosis are added. All twelve are connected with each other and with the hallmarks of health.
López-Otín et al. · Cell · 2023
Chapter 2
One framework for understanding ageing
The twelve hallmarks do not carry the same weight or arrive at the same time. Their authors arrange them in three layers: first the damage, then the body's response and, finally, the consequences.1,2
Damage to DNA, telomeres, the epigenome, proteins and the cell's organelles. It builds up over time and its effect is clearly negative.
- 1. Genomic instability
- 2. Telomere attrition
- 3. Epigenetic alterations
- 4. Loss of proteostasis
- 5. Disabled macroautophagy
What it means for you: That is why prevention starts here: sun and tobacco add damage years before you notice anything.
All twelve are connected: none of them acts alone.
Chapter 3
The 12 hallmarks, one by one
What each one is, an image to grasp it, what the evidence says and what we can measure at ELYSIA.
Chapter 4
From knowledge to your plan
The 12 hallmarks are the map. At ELYSIA we use it to read your tests and design your plan with the ELYSIA Biological Precision Method: measure, optimise and recover.
And because the hallmarks are connected, our medical team reads all your tests together.
Chapter 5
The other side: the hallmarks of health
In 2021, López-Otín and Kroemer described the opposite: what keeps us healthy. They define health as a set of features that keep the body organised, not merely the absence of disease. It is the idea we work by: measure how you are working, without waiting for something to fail.5
Spatial compartmentalisation
Intact barriers
Skin, gut and blood vessels that keep out what should stay out.
Contained damage
A small problem stays small and does not spread.
Balance over time
Recycling and turnover
Old parts are taken apart and replaced in time.
Integrated circuits
The body's systems keep in step with each other.
Rhythms
Sleep, appetite and energy follow their daily clock.
Good responses to stress
Resilience
Getting back to balance after a knock.
Hormesis
A small, well-dosed stress makes you stronger; exercise is the classic example.
Repair and regeneration
Mending what is damaged and renewing tissue.
Your nutrition, training, rest and habits plan is designed with them in mind.
Chapter 6
Our commitment to evidence
- 1
Every figure, with its source.
If a number cannot be traced back to a published study, we do not use it.
- 2
People are not mice.
We always say whether something was seen in people or in the lab.
- 3
Linked is not the same as caused.
An observational study shows a relationship; it does not prove that one thing causes the other.
- 4
No promises to make you younger.
We do not sell years off. We measure how you are working today and help you look after it.
Behind it is a medical team that also publishes science. Dr Mehran Izadi, co-founder of ELYSIA, is first author of four reviews on longevity in GeroScience, Life Sciences, Nutrition Research Reviews and Biogerontology.10
Sources
Checked one by one on PubMed on 26 October 2026.
- 1López-Otín C, Blasco MA, Partridge L, Serrano M, Kroemer G. The hallmarks of aging. Cell. 2013;153(6):1194-1217. PubMed DOI
- 2López-Otín C, Blasco MA, Partridge L, Serrano M, Kroemer G. Hallmarks of aging: An expanding universe. Cell. 2023;186(2):243-278. PubMed DOI
- 3Kenyon C, Chang J, Gensch E, Rudner A, Tabtiang R. A C. elegans mutant that lives twice as long as wild type. Nature. 1993;366(6454):461-464. PubMed DOI
- 4Kennedy BK, Berger SL, Brunet A, et al. Geroscience: linking aging to chronic disease. Cell. 2014;159(4):709-713. PubMed DOI
- 5López-Otín C, Kroemer G. Hallmarks of health. Cell. 2021;184(1):33-63. PubMed DOI
- 6Flament F, Bazin R, Laquieze S, et al. Effect of the sun on visible clinical signs of aging in Caucasian skin. Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol. 2013;6:221-232. PubMed DOI
- 7Hughes MCB, Williams GM, Baker P, Green AC. Sunscreen and prevention of skin aging: a randomized trial. Ann Intern Med. 2013;158(11):781-790. PubMed DOI
- 8The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009: Elizabeth H. Blackburn, Carol W. Greider and Jack W. Szostak, “for the discovery of how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the enzyme telomerase”. NobelPrize.org. Website
- 9Higgins-Chen AT, Thrush KL, Wang Y, et al. A computational solution for bolstering reliability of epigenetic clocks: implications for clinical trials and longitudinal tracking. Nat Aging. 2022;2(7):644-661. PubMed DOI
- 10Izadi M, Sadri N, Abdi A, et al. Epigenetic biomarkers in aging and longevity: current and future application. Life Sci. 2024;351:122842. PubMed DOI
- 11The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2016: Yoshinori Ohsumi, “for his discoveries of mechanisms for autophagy”. NobelPrize.org. Website
- 12Selvin E, Steffes MW, Zhu H, et al. Glycated hemoglobin, diabetes, and cardiovascular risk in nondiabetic adults. N Engl J Med. 2010;362(9):800-811. PubMed DOI
- 13Robinson MM, Dasari S, Konopka AR, et al. Enhanced protein translation underlies improved metabolic and physical adaptations to different exercise training modes in young and old humans. Cell Metab. 2017;25(3):581-592. PubMed DOI
- 14Mandsager K, Harb S, Cremer P, et al. Association of cardiorespiratory fitness with long-term mortality among adults undergoing exercise treadmill testing. JAMA Netw Open. 2018;1(6):e183605. PubMed DOI
- 15Baker DJ, Wijshake T, Tchkonia T, et al. Clearance of p16Ink4a-positive senescent cells delays ageing-associated disorders. Nature. 2011;479(7372):232-236. PubMed DOI
- 16Englund DA, Sakamoto AE, Fritsche CM, et al. Exercise reduces circulating biomarkers of cellular senescence in humans. Aging Cell. 2021;20(7):e13415. PubMed DOI
- 17Leong DP, Teo KK, Rangarajan S, et al. Prognostic value of grip strength: findings from the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study. Lancet. 2015;386(9990):266-273. PubMed DOI
- 18Furman D, Campisi J, Verdin E, et al. Chronic inflammation in the etiology of disease across the life span. Nat Med. 2019;25(12):1822-1832. PubMed DOI
- 19Sender R, Fuchs S, Milo R. Revised estimates for the number of human and bacteria cells in the body. PLoS Biol. 2016;14(8):e1002533. PubMed DOI
- 20Wilmanski T, Diener C, Rappaport N, et al. Gut microbiome pattern reflects healthy ageing and predicts survival in humans. Nat Metab. 2021;3(2):274-286. PubMed DOI
- 21Wastyk HC, Fragiadakis GK, Perelman D, et al. Gut-microbiota-targeted diets modulate human immune status. Cell. 2021;184(16):4137-4153. PubMed DOI
Start with what can be measured
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This page is for general information and does not replace a medical consultation.