The test is targeting at users of healthy ageing supplements or currently making lifestyle changes to improve their health.
“The test is for people who want to understand how old they really are, but also can be used for individuals to observe if their healthy ageing regiment is showing results (taking three to six months apart to measure the impact),” said Jeffrey Duyvesteijn, co-founder and CEO at For Youth.
It takes a saliva sample from users which is then sent to a partner lab in California, US, and measures chemical changes to DNA based on epigenetics.
Epigenetics is the study of how the body adds and removes chemical tags to DNA through a process called DNA methylation, which turns specific genes on or off.
“Throughout life, the positioning of these tags will change to allow for growth, development, and learning. Epigenetic tags can also be influenced by what we eat, how we lead our lives, and the environment in which we live,” Duyvesteijn explained.
“For example, stress can cause a cell to adjust its epigenetic tags. While this may help the cell adapt in the short term, in the long run, it can contribute to disease and ageing,
“Epigenetic tagging is reversible, and if we can learn to control it, we will be able to develop novel approaches to improve health and quality of life for all of us.”
NMN supplement
For Youth is the first local NMN supplement company in Singapore, having released its nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) supplement in November 2021.
NMN is needed to make nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), which is the fuel for cells that helps repair damaged DNA and support the epigenome.
With advance age, NAD+ levels tend to decrease, resulting in lower energy levels, poorer cognition and deteriorating skin health.
One capsule of For Youth’s supplement contains 250mg of NMN, equivalent to the amount of NMN in 25kg of broccoli. The firm recommends a three-month intake to observe noticeable effects.
Duyvesteijn said: “Most scientific studies at this point are being conducted with 250mg of NMN, even though it has been tested for safety up to 500mg/day. In Singapore, only 400mg of NMN is allowed in food supplements.”
Its NMN supplement is sold as a food supplement in Singapore, initially on its website, but most recently launched on one of the larger e-commerce platforms, Lazada.
“We will consider other channels in the future, although we do feel that our own website is the best place to explain the story. We will also expand to other countries beyond Singapore,” Duyvesteijn said.
The firm currently only markets in Singapore, but can ship worldwide. It is looking to start marketing in Malaysia and Australia soon.
Currently the NMN supplement is sourced and manufactured in the US, and tested in Singapore for substance, purity and safety.
This NMN supplement targets four out of nine hallmarks of ageing, namely epigenetic alterations, mitochondrial dysfunction, stem cell exhaustion and altered cellular communication.
For Youth will soon launch a second supplement to cover the other five hallmarks of ageing which are genomic instability, telomere shortening, loss of proteostasis, nutrient sensing and cellular senescence.
