It runs in your veins. Researchers at the University of Vienna in Austria linked physical fitness in older adults to changes in blood markers, exploring whether simple blood tests can reflect how someone is aging, according to a new study published in Nature. They used machine learning models to analyze the blood tests of participants — separating active adults from less active ones with high accuracy and identifying key blood markers, including the amino acid aspartate.
Aspartate is essential for learning and memory, playing a role in brain function. The study found that monitoring it could help in early detection of dementia, and it builds the case that physical activity can reduce the risk of neurodegeneration.