Vitamin and mineral testing has surged in popularity in recent years, especially among people who are committed to optimizing their health and longevity. The promise is simple: Identify what you’re lacking, and take action to feel and age better. And with the rise of personalized nutrition platforms and at-home testing kits, checking your nutrient levels is now more accessible than ever.
While these tests may offer some helpful insights, they may also have limitations, especially if you’re relying on them as your primary strategy for long-term wellness. At NOVOS, we support personalized, data-driven health. However, we also believe aging better is not just about isolated lab results but rather supporting your body consistently over time with products like NOVOS Core.
Let’s explore the pros and cons of testing for vitamin and mineral deficiency — and why tools like biological age testing may offer a more meaningful view of your health span and lifespan.
Why Nutrient Testing Is on the Rise
Around the world, there’s a growing demand for tailored health recommendations. The global personalized nutrition market is expected to reach over $23 billion by 2027, with individualized testing for vitamin and mineral deficiency playing a major role.
What’s fueling the interest?
- Convenience: At-home kits allow you to collect samples and get results without a lab visit.
- Data-driven culture: From ketone levels to sleep cycles, biohackers and wellness enthusiasts seek quantifiable information. Micronutrients are part of the trend, with many eating plans focused on balancing carbohydrate, protein, and fat intake.
- Real concerns: Many Americans consume more than enough calories but still don’t get enough essential vitamins and minerals. In fact, national data shows that about 13% of the U.S. population consumes more than 25% of their daily calories from added sugars, and those individuals tend to have much lower intakes of important nutrients like vitamins A, C, and E and magnesium.
So, testing for vitamin and mineral deficiency seems like a smart strategy, right? It may be one tool, but only if the information is accurate and actionable.
Are Vitamin Deficiency Tests Worth It?
A blood test for vitamin and mineral deficiency offers a snapshot of what’s circulating in your bloodstream. However, it will rarely capture your true nutrient status at the cellular or tissue level where these nutrients go to work. Consider the following examples.
- Vitamin B12 testing: Standard blood tests measure total B12, including inactive forms your body can’t use. As a result, levels may appear normal even when your cells are deficient, especially if there are absorption or transport issues.
- Magnesium: Roughly 99% of magnesium is stored in bones, muscles, and soft tissues, so blood levels often look “normal” even when there’s a deficiency.
- Vitamin D: Levels of vitamin D can fluctuate with sun exposure, season, and body composition, meaning test results may not always reflect one’s true, long-term status.
Another challenge is that nutrients interact in complex ways. A low level of one vitamin or mineral might be linked to another, but most tests don’t capture these relationships. They also overlook the deeper biological processes that affect how nutrients are absorbed and used, especially as we age.
Inflammation further complicates matters. When the body is inflamed — due to illness, stress, or aging — nutrients often shift out of the bloodstream and into tissues. Blood levels may then appear falsely low, even when stores are adequate. A 2022 review confirms that inflammation can skew results for nutrients like iron, zinc, vitamin C, and B12, making accurate interpretation more difficult.
NOVOS’ Longevity-First Approach
Simply put, a test for vitamin and mineral deficiency in blood may offer helpful information, sometimes offering insight or motivation to take action. However, it won’t always reflect your full nutrient status or aging trajectory.
At NOVOS, we focus on proactive, daily support that nourishes your biology at the cellular level. Rather than waiting for symptoms or lab results to guide decisions, we focus on daily support for the body’s natural aging defenses.
That’s the thinking behind NOVOS Core, a daily supplement that targets key aging pathways with ingredients backed by science. Here are just a few of the 12 ingredients in NOVOS Core, which work synergistically to support the systems that influence aging:
- Glycine: An amino acid, glycine supports mitochondrial health, protects against oxidative stress, and may extend lifespan.
- Alpha-ketoglutarate: This naturally occurring compound plays a key role in energy metabolism, mitochondrial function, and longevity.
- Magnesium (as magnesium malate): Magnesium is vital for numerous cellular processes, including DNA building, maintenance, and repair. Low levels may accelerate aging. Malate helps fuel mitochondria and improve energy levels.
- Hyaluronic acid: This naturally occurring molecule helps maintain healthy skin, joints, tissues, and immune function, areas that often show early signs of aging.
Together, NOVOS Core ingredients ensure a comprehensive, long-term approach to health that complements — and potentially goes beyond — what traditional tests can measure.
What About Biological Age Testing?
If you’re curious about how your body is really aging, biological age tests may offer a more complete and predictive view than blood tests. These tests reflect how lifestyle, environment, and nutrition are impacting your rate of aging, answering the deeper question: Am I aging slower than my calendar age? Below are some of the tests that NOVOS has to offer.
NOVOS Age
NOVOS Age uses advanced epigenetic algorithms — including DunedinPACE and Organ Age, developed by scientists at Columbia, Duke, and Yale — to reveal how your body is aging beneath the surface. With a simple at-home finger prick, you’ll get a comprehensive analysis of your biological age across over 150 biomarkers and 11 organ systems. We deliver results and guidance through the NOVOS Life app, helping you take meaningful steps to slow aging and live healthier for longer.
ENABL Age
As part of our commitment to accessible longevity, NOVOS offers the ENABL Age biological age clock free to the public. Developed at the University of Washington, ENABL Age uses survey-based inputs to estimate biological age with greater accuracy than older models like Horvath or GrimAge. While not as precise as the blood-based NOVOS Age test, it offers valuable insights into how your lifestyle may be influencing how you age.
FaceAge
Trained on over 12 million images and validated by dermatology experts, NOVOS FaceAge is a free tool that analyzes your skin’s health and reveals your facial age. It provides insights into features like eye age, wrinkles, pores, and redness to help you better understand how your skin is aging. While results are highly accurate, factors like lighting, camera quality, and temporary conditions (like fatigue or dehydration) can affect the outcome.
When Blood Tests Make Sense
Although nutrient blood tests have limitations, they can still be useful in certain situations, especially when guided by a health professional. Scenarios where a test for vitamin and mineral deficiency in blood may be appropriate include:
- You have persistent symptoms like fatigue, numbness, hair loss, or mood changes.
- You have a medical condition affecting absorption, such as celiac disease or inflammatory bowel disease.
- You’re following a specific diet, like vegan or keto, where certain nutrients may be lacking.
- You’re experiencing age-related changes in appetite, absorption, or hormone signaling.
In these contexts, blood tests can complement a proactive longevity strategy, not replace it. When paired with clinical insight and long-term habits, blood tests can help create a fuller picture of your health.
Build a Foundation With NOVOS
Testing for vitamin and mineral deficiency can offer helpful insights, but blood tests are only one piece of the longevity puzzle. True progress comes from building a consistent, science-backed foundation that supports your biology over time.
At NOVOS, we encourage a systems-level approach to aging well. That means nourishing your cells daily with proven ingredients, tracking your biological age with tools like NOVOS Age and ENABL Age, and making lifestyle choices that promote long-term health.
Ready to take the next step? Try NOVOS Core and take the free ENABL Age test to see how your daily habits may be shaping your biological age. With the help of NOVOS’ full range of longevity solutions, these tools can help you age well and target aging from within.
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