Olivia Falcon discovered her true age with the new Real Age Test from Omniya Clinic.

Body Language: How To Achieve Longevity After Lockdown

I did my fair share of naval gazing in lockdown and although the view wasn’t pretty – my belly button retreated into a new layer of paunch faster than a Florida sinkhole – there were some silver linings. On day 19, I got the results of my Real Age Test from the Omniya Clinic, which is a blood test that measures your telomeres. These, simply explained, are the end caps of your chromosomes that carry genetic material responsible for cell division. When telomeres shorten, cells no longer replicate properly and die – ageing in motion. Gulp. By measuring your telomeres you can get a pretty accurate gauge on your true biological age. Forget wrinkles and jaws; this is the important stuff that’s happening inside.

To rewind, my quest to uncover my true age started pre-Covid craziness when I found myself with a stonking cold, stocking up on Altrient C Liposomal Vitamin C at the forward-thinking Omniya Clinic in Knightsbridge. Part high-tech pharmacy, part beehive of consulting rooms packed with a proactive team of multi-disciplinary doctors, it’s a place of wonder for the worried well.

Browsing through the menu of treatments the Real Age Test stood out. The first of its kind in the UK, it is administered by Dr Sohére Roked, a GP who is one of only a handful of doctors here in Britain who has studied age management medicine in the US. Dr Roked told me diet and exercise have a huge impact on the length of telomeres. Bankers and shift workers usually score older beyond their years as good quality sleep is critical and stress has the same withering effects as smoking, which does not bode well for me as I am a walking pressure cooker.

I let off a whoop of steam, though, when the results from the Omniya Clinic came back saying I’m apparently biologically 18 months younger than my birth age. Hurrah. Scores can be further improved with lifestyle changes and supplements that can range from the TA65 supplement, which activates an enzyme called telomerase that helps to lengthen telomeres, and contains vitamin D and omega 3 fatty acids that do a similar job.

Since we’ve all been thinking more about life’s bigger picture of late I am launching forth into this brave new world with a spring in my step and dining out on the fact that, actually, I’m in my early forties again. Hurrah.

Real Age Test, from £299. omniya.co.uk

Featured image: Getty Images