By Dr. Asnat Raziel, bariatric surgeon specializing in obesity treatment, metabolic health and healthy longevity; Director of the Multidisciplinary Center for Obesity Treatment, Assia Medical, Assuta Ramat HaChayal, Tel Aviv
Longevity technologies: from futuristic dream to measurable medicine
Longevity technologies are rapidly changing the face of medicine. Not so many years ago, “longevity” was a futuristic word. It hovered somewhere between science fiction, expensive supplements, dreams of eternal youth and biohackers who measure every breath. But the field is maturing. It is moving from glossy branding to data, and from the question “How do we live longer?” to a far more important one: how do we live many years in good health, with a sharp mind, a strong body and a balanced metabolism?
The big innovation is not one drug, one device or one app. It is a whole system. That system includes advanced blood tests, smartwatches and smart rings, continuous glucose monitors, imaging and biological age tests. On top of these sits artificial intelligence that pulls everything into one picture. So instead of a checkup once a year, doctors try to spot early where the body is starting to weaken.
Not anti-aging anymore, but healthspan medicine
It is important to separate two worlds. On one side stands the old world of “anti-aging”: creams, IV drips, supplements and hormones, some of them without a sufficient evidence base. On the other side, a serious field is emerging: healthspan medicine, which aims to extend the years we live in good health and function well. I compare this approach with the wellness world in my article on wellness and longevity.
The goal is not eternal life. The goal is to delay diabetes, heart disease, dementia, frailty, fatty liver, sarcopenia, sleep apnea and chronic inflammation. Put simply, it is not just about adding years to life, but adding life to years. Biotech, devices and software do not replace the doctor. Instead, they give the doctor a deep window into the body.
Biological age clocks: how fast is your body aging?
In the past, we settled for chronological age. Today, science is trying to measure how fast the body itself is aging. The best-known tests are epigenetic clocks, which read DNA methylation patterns. Alongside them, proteomics, metabolomics, and markers of inflammation and immunity are developing, and even estimates of “organ age”. For example, is the heart or the liver aging faster than the rest of the body?
Still, caution is in order. A biological age test is not a verdict, and it does not tell you how many years you have left. Nor does it prove that you have reversed aging. At this stage, its main value is in research and in tracking direction: are sleep, movement, weight loss and metabolic balance changing your biology for the better?
Wearables: when your watch becomes a medical tool
Smartwatches, smart rings and wearable sensors have become central tools. In the past, they counted steps. Today they measure sleep, resting heart rate, HRV (heart rate variability, the variation in time between heartbeats), oxygen saturation, temperature, training load and recovery. The Oura ring, for example, shows a “cardiovascular age” score.
The implications run deep. Instead of asking “How are you sleeping?”, we can look at trends. Is your heart rate high at night? Does your HRV drop during stress? Perhaps alcohol or a late meal hurts your numbers? Suddenly, “sleep well” is no longer general advice but a biological data point. A person can see that in a week of six-hour nights, their heart rate went up, their hunger grew and their workout felt harder.
Longevity technologies: continuous glucose monitors
Among longevity technologies, one of the biggest changes comes from continuous glucose monitors, or CGMs. For years they were meant mainly for people with diabetes who use insulin. In March 2024, the FDA cleared Dexcom Stelo, the first over-the-counter CGM. It is intended for adults who do not use insulin, including people without diabetes. In June 2024, the FDA also cleared two Abbott systems: Lingo, for general wellness, and Libre Rio, for type 2 diabetes without insulin.
Why does this matter? Metabolic health is a central axis of healthy aging. Insulin resistance, visceral fat, fatty liver and inflammation are all linked to heart disease, diabetes and cognitive decline. A continuous monitor shows people how their body really responds. The same bowl of rice spikes one person’s blood sugar and is well tolerated by another. A ten-minute walk after a meal changes an entire curve. However, not every healthy person needs a CGM all year round. Usually, a short period is enough to see, understand and change.
Preventive imaging and longevity apps
Companies such as Prenuvo, Ezra and Neko Health offer body scans, MRI, and checks of the skin, heart, blood vessels and body composition, with digital analysis and artificial intelligence. The vision is clear: don’t wait for a heart attack or a late diagnosis. But broad imaging is a double-edged sword. It uncovers harmless incidental findings that lead to anxiety and unnecessary tests. So the key question is: will the finding change a medical decision?
At the same time, new apps are turning the body into a dashboard. Function Health, for example, offers more than 160 lab tests a year with explanations. TruDiagnostic and Tally Health offer consumers epigenetic biological age tests. But the real value is not the number, it is the behavior. Does the result lead the person to sleep better, eat enough protein, do strength training and treat their blood pressure?
Longevity technologies and artificial intelligence
If one field is accelerating longevity, it is artificial intelligence (AI). It works on two tracks. The first track is clinical. AI reads hundreds of data points from one person: blood tests, sleep, activity, glucose, medications and medical history. In this way, it spots patterns the human eye misses, for example a rise in resting heart rate together with a drop in HRV and a rise in blood sugar. Within this model, longevity technologies become a practical system for monitoring and prevention. I also wrote about the clinical side of the field in my article on geroscience in the clinic, and about similar tools in obesity care in my article on AI in obesity treatment.
The second track is drug discovery. Biotech companies analyze multi-omics data, a combination of genetics, proteins and metabolites, to find treatment targets for aging. In May 2026, for example, Insilico Medicine and Human Longevity announced a joint effort to develop a foundation model for longevity. The model aims to predict disease risk and to detect age-related diseases early. This is a dramatic shift: instead of a drug for one disease, science is asking whether we can influence the underlying infrastructure of aging itself.
Reprogramming: the dream of rejuvenating cells
One of the most exciting fields, and also one of the most experimental, is partial epigenetic reprogramming of the cell. The idea is to return cells to a youthful state without erasing their identity and without turning them into dangerous stem cells. In January 2026, the FDA cleared Life Biosciences to start a human trial of a treatment called ER-100. The treatment is based on three of the Yamanaka factors: OCT4, SOX2 and KLF4.
In June 2026, the first patient received the treatment in a phase 1 trial in glaucoma and in ischemic damage to the optic nerve (NAION). This is a historic step, but it is important to be precise. It is an early trial, in a small area of the body, that mainly tests safety. It is not a “youth drug” for the whole body.
Senescent cells, mitochondria and muscle
Another field is senolytics. Over the years, senescent cells build up in the body: cells that have stopped dividing but do not go away. They release inflammatory substances and damage the tissues around them. Senolytic drugs try to clear them out, while senomorphic treatments try only to weaken the harmful secretions. However, most of these applications are still at the research stage.
At the same time, researchers are testing ways to improve the function of mitochondria, the cell’s “power plants”. One approach is mitophagy, the clearing out of damaged mitochondria. Urolithin A often comes up here, a compound that gut bacteria make from components of pomegranates and nuts. A randomized trial in 66 adults aged 65 to 90 found improved muscle endurance and improvements in several blood markers. However, walking distance and energy production in the muscle did not improve significantly. That is why larger studies are needed. In the meantime, the proven path is preserving muscle mass with protein and strength training.
Peptides, supplements and rapamycin: between research and marketing
Rapamycin and other drugs that inhibit the mTOR pathway are at the center of the conversation. mTOR is a pathway linked to cell growth and to autophagy, the cell’s cleanup mechanism. In mice, blocking this pathway extended lifespan. In humans, however, the picture is far more cautious. Rapamycin is not approved as an anti-aging treatment, and it has side effects and risks.
Alongside it, peptides, exosomes, stem cells and NAD supplements are on the rise. Some of them are linked to real mechanisms. But marketing to the public sometimes runs ahead of the science. That is why it is important to distinguish between an interesting mechanism, early research, a treatment tested in a specific disease and a treatment that is safe for a healthy person.
What should a serious longevity center offer?
A serious center does not start with the most exotic longevity technologies, but with the things that change lives. The foundation includes cardiometabolic tests, blood pressure, HbA1c (average blood sugar over three months), blood lipids, and liver and kidney function. It also includes vitamins and nutritional deficiencies, body composition, grip strength, walking speed and cardiorespiratory fitness. Sleep, sleep apnea, nutrition, mood and medications are also part of the picture.
On top of this layer, you can add a CGM, biological age, proteomics, imaging based on risk, and an AI dashboard. But the foundation must remain medical, responsible and evidence-based. In the end, meaningful longevity starts with simple questions. Does the person sleep well, eat enough protein, maintain muscle and treat their obesity? Do they keep blood sugar and blood pressure in balance, move, relax and feel meaning in their life?
Bottom line: longevity technologies demand smart medicine
The next generation of longevity technologies will combine medicine, biotech, data and behavior. It will measure the body over time and detect when sleep is slipping, when blood sugar is climbing and when the heart is aging too fast. That is why I see the future as a personal health system, not a single product. But the more tests we have, the greater the responsibility. And the more powerful AI becomes, the more we need a doctor who understands the person behind the numbers.
This revolution does not promise eternal life. It promises something more modest and far more important: a chance to detect problems early, intervene in time and keep body, mind and spirit vital for years.
The information in this article is general and does not replace personal medical advice.
References
FDA Clears First Over-the-Counter Continuous Glucose Monitor
Insilico Medicine, Human Longevity Partner for Longevity Foundation Model
FDA clears first human trial of epigenetic reprogramming therapy
