Blood Markers from the Perspective of Healthy Longevity

Fasting Insulin

Insulin is the only hormone in the body that lowers blood sugar. It is produced by the pancreas and helps regulate blood sugar by enabling cells to take up glucose for energy or storage. An insulin test helps diagnose diabetes, manage treatment, and investigate the causes of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia).

Preventive medicine specialists prefer this marker over fasting blood glucose because unfavorable insulin spikes often appear years earlier than changes in fasting blood glucose.

When fasting blood glucose is already very high and in the abnormal range, this often indicates that metabolic dysfunction is already present. Nevertheless, insulin is very often not included in a standard blood panel.

hsCRP

C-reactive protein (CRP) is a protein produced by your liver in response to inflammation. It is one of the most sensitive and commonly used blood markers for detecting acute infections, tissue injury, or chronic inflammatory conditions. Because it rises very quickly when something is wrong, it serves as an excellent early-warning indicator.

For preventive medicine specialists, CRP is also important for detecting chronic, low-grade inflammation (“silent inflammation”) in the body. This type of inflammation contributes to many age-related diseases.

Health-conscious people try to optimize this blood marker as much as possible, sometimes even toward 0 mg/dL. At very low levels, laboratories may no longer be able to detect any CRP proteins in the blood.

HbA1c

HbA1c, also known as “glycated” or “sugar-coated” hemoglobin, measures the percentage of red blood cells that have sugar attached to them. Since red blood cells live for approximately two to three months, this marker provides a highly reliable average of your blood glucose levels over that entire period. It is one of the most important measurements for diagnosing prediabetes and diabetes and for monitoring how effectively blood sugar is being regulated over the long term.

An acute-care physician will generally consider a value below 5.7% satisfactory because there are no indications of a disease such as type 2 diabetes.

However, because higher HbA1c levels may accelerate the aging process at the cellular level and increase the risk of cellular damage, preventive medicine specialists consider an HbA1c level of around 5% desirable.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D, often measured as 25-hydroxyvitamin D, is a unique nutrient that functions more like a hormone in the body. It is essential for calcium absorption and the development of strong bones, supports a robust immune system, and plays a role in regulating mood. Although small amounts can be obtained through food, the body primarily produces vitamin D itself when bare skin is exposed to sunlight.

While average vitamin D levels in the United States are around 20 ng/mL, the recommended normal range in European laboratories is generally above 30 ng/mL.

Vitamin D is particularly supplemented by people who want to optimize their health. A level of 40–60 ng/mL is often targeted for improved immune function, bone health, and long-term disease prevention. Some clinical reviews and expert groups support these “optimal” levels.

Lp(a)

Lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a) for short, is an LDL-like particle that transports cholesterol in the blood. Unlike standard LDL cholesterol, your Lp(a) level is determined almost entirely by genetics and is only minimally influenced by diet or lifestyle. It is considered an important independent risk factor because, due to its structure, it can be particularly prone to contributing to deposits in the arteries and the formation of blood clots.

Preventive medicine specialists particularly emphasize the fact that this single marker has the potential to significantly influence and alter overall cardiovascular risk.

If Lp(a) is high, all other cardiovascular risk markers need to be interpreted particularly strictly.

ApoB

ApoB is an important marker for estimating the risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. The number of ApoB particles reflects the number of potentially harmful cholesterol-carrying particles in the bloodstream.

An elevated ApoB level indicates a high number of atherogenic particles in the bloodstream. Since each of these particles can potentially become embedded in the arterial walls and contribute to plaque formation, high ApoB is a strong indicator of an increased risk of heart disease and stroke—even when your standard LDL cholesterol (often referred to as “bad” cholesterol) appears normal.

This marker is usually not included in a standard blood panel. However, many preventive medicine specialists consider it one of the most important indicators of atherosclerosis (plaque buildup in the arteries).

Healthy Longevity Is About More Than Individual Blood Markers

For healthy longevity, however, it is not enough to optimize individual blood markers. Health is a systemic process within the body, and longevity needs to be optimized as a system.

The fundamental principles are the same for men and women:

Strength, endurance, metabolism, brain health, sleep, nutrition, social relationships, and systemic prevention.

Measure. Understand. Act.