Standard bloodwork tells you whether you’re sick. A longevity panel tells you how fast you’re aging. Here’s every marker worth ordering, organized by priority — from the non-negotiable foundation through the advanced add-ons that separate longevity medicine from standard care.
The annual physical blood draw — CBC, basic metabolic panel, lipid panel — was designed to catch disease, not prevent it. Its reference ranges are built from population statistics that include millions of people with early-stage metabolic dysfunction. “Normal” on a standard panel means you’re not yet sick. It says nothing about trajectory.
The leading causes of death in people over 40 — cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, neurodegenerative disease — share a common feature: they develop silently over decades. ApoB particles accumulate in arterial walls for 20 years before a cardiac event. Insulin resistance progresses through increasingly abnormal fasting insulin long before HbA1c crosses the prediabetes threshold. Subclinical inflammation drives vascular damage at hsCRP levels that a standard CRP test can’t even detect.
A longevity panel solves this by measuring differently. It uses tighter optimal ranges derived from centenarian studies and cardiovascular outcomes research, not population statistics. And it includes the markers standard care skips — the ones that predict where you’re headed, not just where you are.
Standard reference ranges answer: Are you sick? Longevity-optimal ranges answer: Are you aging faster than you should be? These are different questions, and the gap between “normal” and “optimal” is where most preventable disease begins.
These are the markers with the strongest evidence base for predicting cardiovascular disease, metabolic dysfunction, and all-cause mortality. If you have never been tested, this is where to start. If you’ve had standard bloodwork before, most of these were probably not on it.
| Marker | What it reveals | Optimal range | In standard care? |
|---|---|---|---|
| ApoB | Total count of atherogenic particles — a more accurate cardiovascular risk marker than LDL-C | <90 mg/dL | Skipped |
| Lp(a) | Genetically determined cardiovascular risk — elevated in 20% of adults, largely undetectable without testing | <30 mg/dL | Skipped |
| HbA1c | 90-day average blood glucose — early metabolic risk signal well before diabetes threshold | 4.8–5.4% | Skipped* |
| Fasting Insulin | Earliest marker of insulin resistance — rises years before HbA1c or glucose | <6 μIU/mL | Skipped |
| hsCRP | High-sensitivity inflammation marker — predicts cardiovascular events, cancer risk, and biological age | <1.0 mg/L | Skipped |
| Homocysteine | Cardiovascular and cognitive risk — modifiable with B vitamins; often dramatically elevated | <10 μmol/L | Skipped |
| Vitamin D (25-OH) | Deficiency linked to cardiovascular disease, cancer, immune dysfunction, and all-cause mortality | 50–80 ng/mL | Skipped* |
| Lipid Panel | LDL-C, HDL-C, triglycerides — cardiovascular baseline; interpret alongside ApoB | TG <100 mg/dL | Included |
| CBC + CMP | Blood cell counts, liver enzymes, kidney markers, electrolytes — organ function baseline | See individual markers | Included |
| TSH + Free T3/T4 | Full thyroid function — subclinical hypothyroidism is common and chronically underdiagnosed | TSH 1.0–2.0 mIU/L | Partial* |
* HbA1c is ordered for diabetics or prediabetics, rarely in healthy adults. Vitamin D is ordered when symptoms appear, rarely proactively. TSH alone is standard; free T3 and T4 are almost never included in routine panels.
All 10 Tier 1 markers are available individually or bundled through Ulta Lab Tests — no doctor’s order required. The Longevity & Healthy Aging Essential Panel covers most of the foundation for under $200. ApoB, Lp(a), fasting insulin, and homocysteine can be ordered à la carte for $20–55 each.
Once you have your Tier 1 baseline, these markers add meaningful depth. They’re not urgent on a first test — but they complete the picture and are essential for anyone actively optimizing rather than simply monitoring.
| Marker | What it reveals | Optimal range | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Omega-3 Index | EPA+DHA as % of red blood cell fatty acids — directly modifiable, strongly predictive of cardiac events | >8% | High |
| Ferritin | Iron stores — both deficiency and excess are harmful; elevated ferritin signals inflammation and oxidative stress | 50–150 ng/mL | High |
| Testosterone (Total + Free) | Muscle mass, energy, cognitive function, and metabolic health — declines predictably with age | Varies by age/sex | High (40+) |
| IGF-1 | Growth hormone axis — too low impairs muscle and cognition; too high may accelerate aging | 120–180 ng/mL | Medium |
| Cortisol (AM) | HPA axis function and chronic stress load — elevated cortisol disrupts metabolic health across every system | 10–18 μg/dL (AM) | Medium |
| GGT | Sensitive liver marker — elevated with metabolic liver disease and alcohol stress; predicts cardiovascular mortality | <20 U/L (M) / <15 U/L (F) | Medium |
| Uric Acid | Metabolic health and gout risk — elevated levels associated with insulin resistance, hypertension, and kidney disease | <5.5 mg/dL | Medium |
| Magnesium (RBC) | The most important micronutrient for enzymatic function — standard serum magnesium is an unreliable proxy; RBC magnesium is meaningful | 5.6–6.8 mg/dL (RBC) | Medium |
These markers are valuable — but only once you have context from Tiers 1 and 2. They answer specific questions about cardiovascular risk architecture, inflammatory pathways, and metabolic function that the foundation markers can’t resolve on their own.
| Marker | When to add it |
|---|---|
| NMR LipoProfile | ApoB is elevated or you want particle size data — LDL particle number is a more granular cardiovascular risk assessment than LDL-C |
| Fibrinogen | Clotting risk and chronic inflammation — useful when hsCRP is elevated to characterize the inflammatory picture further |
| Cystatin-C | Superior kidney function marker — less affected by muscle mass than creatinine; use when eGFR sits in the 60–90 range |
| DHEA-S | Adrenal function and hormonal aging — declines steeply after 30; low DHEA-S correlates with accelerated biological aging |
| IL-6 | Direct inflammatory cytokine — add when hsCRP is persistently elevated and you want to characterize the inflammatory source |
| Lp-PLA2 | Vascular-specific inflammation marker — high cardiovascular risk or family history with normal LDL-C |
| ApoA1 | HDL function proxy — more meaningful than HDL-C alone; useful when ApoB/ApoA1 ratio is needed for risk stratification |
| Vitamin B12 | Neurological health and methylation — essential for anyone on metformin, plant-based diet, or with elevated homocysteine |
The single most important thing to understand about longevity testing is that standard reference ranges and longevity-optimal ranges are not the same thing. Standard labs flag values that are statistically outlying in the general population. Optimal ranges are built from a different question: what levels are associated with the lowest all-cause mortality and the best healthspan outcomes in long-lived populations?
A few examples where the gap is clinically meaningful:
| Marker | Standard “normal” | Longevity-optimal | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| HbA1c | Below 5.7% | 4.8–5.4% | Metabolic disease is well underway at 5.6% |
| Fasting Insulin | Below 25 μIU/mL | Below 6 μIU/mL | Insulin resistance begins well below the “normal” ceiling |
| hsCRP | Below 3.0 mg/L | Below 1.0 mg/L | Cardiovascular risk rises meaningfully above 1.0 |
| Vitamin D | Above 20 ng/mL | 50–80 ng/mL | Most longevity-associated benefits appear above 50 |
| Homocysteine | Below 15 μmol/L | Below 10 μmol/L | Vascular and cognitive risk begins rising above 10 |
This is why uploading results to a tool that uses longevity-optimal ranges — rather than lab reference ranges — materially changes what you see. A standard lipid report might tell you everything is normal. A longevity-optimized analysis of the same data might flag elevated ApoB, borderline insulin resistance, and suboptimal Vitamin D simultaneously.
You have two primary options depending on what level of oversight you want built in.
For most people starting out, the practical approach is to order Tier 1 markers through Ulta — either as a bundle or individually — get a baseline, and use the AgelessLabs AI tool to interpret the results. If you find markers outside optimal range and want ongoing physician-guided management, Superpower is a natural next step.
See the full breakdown of both services (plus InsideTracker and Function Health) in the Ulta Lab Tests review.
The most valuable thing about longitudinal testing isn’t any single result — it’s the trajectory. ApoB trending from 95 to 82 mg/dL over two years tells a completely different story than a single value of 88. Build a record, and the data becomes increasingly useful over time.
Upload or paste your lab results and get a full longevity analysis in 60 seconds — every marker scored against optimal ranges, prioritized for action.