New Tool Can Calculate Heart Age and Reveal Hidden Cardiovascular Risks: JAMA - Video

Your heart could be aging faster than the rest of your body, according to new research published in JAMA Cardiology. The study, conducted by researchers at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, found that many U.S. adults have a "heart age" several years older than their actual age. The age gap, the researchers noted, is even more pronounced in men than in women.

To make these findings more accessible and actionable, the research team developed a free online tool called the PREVENT Risk Age Calculator. This tool estimates a person’s heart age based on key health information such as cholesterol levels, blood pressure, BMI, medications, smoking habits, and diabetes status. Instead of presenting risk as a percentage, the calculator expresses it as an age, making it easier to understand.

"Heart age, or PREVENT age, may be particularly useful for patients and clinicians and be more effective in preventing heart disease," said senior author Dr. Sadiya Khan, the Magerstadt Professor of Cardiovascular Epidemiology at Northwestern. "It translates complex information about the risk of heart attack, stroke or heart failure over the next 10 years into a number that is easier to understand and compare with one we are all familiar with – your actual age."

To validate the tool, researchers analyzed health data from over 14,000 adults aged 30 to 79 who had no prior history of cardiovascular disease. They calculated heart ages and compared them to the participants’ real ages. The findings showed that the average heart age among women was 55.4, nearly four years older than their chronological age of 51.3. Men, on the other hand, had an average heart age of 56.7, seven years higher than their chronological age of 49.7.

While Dr. Khan noted that a one- or two-year gap may not be significant, a difference of five years or more could be cause for concern. “We hope this new heart age calculator will help support discussions about prevention and ultimately improve health for all people,” he said.

Researchers acknowledged that the definition of “optimal risk” could affect results and that wider testing is needed to determine how easily the tool is understood and adopted in clinical settings.

Reference: Krishnan V, Huang X, Perak AM, et al. PREVENT Risk Age Equations and Population Distribution in US Adults. JAMA Cardiol. Published online July 30, 2025. doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2025.2427