For decades, doctors have struggled to find a perfect way to measure how fast someone is aging. We often rely on existing metrics of dysregulation or epigenetic clocks, but these tools have limits. A new study challenges this by looking at the aging process itself, specifically increases in entropy, which is a measure of disorder or randomness in the body. Researchers analyzed data from older adults across the UK, the US, and China to see if this new approach works better.
The results were clear: this new measure, called DISCO, consistently outperforms existing metrics of dysregulation and matches the best-in-class epigenetic clocks. It strongly predicts frailty and the chance of developing age-related chronic conditions. This matters because it gives doctors a sharper tool to spot health risks before they become emergencies.
Interestingly, the study found that looking at the brain was key. Brain entropy was one of the strongest predictors for every cause of death. While organ-specific scores showed broad power, the most central and connected organs predicted health outcomes most strongly. This suggests our health is deeply linked, not just isolated parts failing separately.
