You know your age, but do you know what your ‘Real Age’ is? You might be older or younger than your actual calendar age based on lifestyle habits. The Real Age website is a wonderful tool to help you learn the many ways you can improve your health. We can learn the steps to guide us through all stages of life from before menopause to beyond.

For the past decade, Dr. Mehmet Oz (as seen on Oprah) and Dr. Michael Roizen have been explaining that each of us has a real age; the age of our body due to good or bad habits. Their philosophy is that each of us has certain factors in our lives that we cannot control but that there are many factors we can control. Taking their Real Age test is a way to discover the habits that may be aging us beyond our years, or keeping us actually younger.

The Real Age test is no substitute for consulting with your doctor to discuss your personal medical health history. But it can be a great starting point to understanding how that after dinner cigarette is harmful, or how all those hours spent on the treadmill are paying off. Their test results try to put numbers to those areas that we can’t measure. Is all that healthy eating and daily exercise paying off? Are those less than stellar habits catching up with you? The Real Age test lets you ‘see’ whether you are adding years to your life and by making changes you can become more proactive in your health.

The following are some pros and cons to think about when taking the Real Age test:

Pros:
The site is great for instant feed back and gives you a very detailed plan based on your answers. It not only points out that you might need more exercise. The test will give you practical advice on what that means. You can learn the types of exercise that will benefit you most and how often they should be done for maximum results.

Real Age also provides weekly updates with interesting items and tips to help ‘slow down’ (notice I did not say ‘stop’) the aging process. These aren’t miracle cures, but real common sense matters such as how to cut out hidden calories or get more fiber in your diet.

Cons:
As with any advice, it is just that – advice. There may be things you need to consider before loading up on those extra vitamins or heading out for a three mile jog.

Some of the advice sounds great in theory but may not work for you in reality. Suggestions such as getting a dog to feel younger or drive a different size vehicle may not be practical for you at all.

Though the test is somewhat personalized, it is still not a substitute for your health care professional. He or she knows your health history far better than an anonymous test.

Still, the Real Age test is a good starting point to learn about the many ways you can improve your health. Seeing a numerical figure can give you a clearer picture of how your lifestyle choices are affecting you. We have heard the mantra about smoking being bad, but knowing that smoking is making you ten years older just might give you better perspective. Or learning that you have a younger real age, there is some incentive to keep on making those healthy choices.

Dr. Oz and Dr. Risen cannot and should not take the place of your personal physician. But their Real Age test is a great way to consolidate your lifestyle patterns into a report that you can take next time you see your doctor. With your proactive approach to health and your doctor’s advice, together you can ensure yourself the best odds for being the healthiest you can be.

Want to learn more or take the Real Age test? Please visit www.realage.com.

This website has been reviewed by the Menopause Editor at BellaOnline solely out of interest to provide information to readers. No compensation was received for this review, nor was the editor approached by anyone connected to Real Age.