Vital Start Assessment

A two-hour longevity assessment that establishes your biological baseline through advanced blood and urine analysis, biological age clocks, DEXA body composition, cardiovascular stress testing, lung function measurement, grip strength, and cognitive performance evaluation, followed by three physician consultations to interpret results and build a personalised action plan.

The Vital Start Assessment at Chi Longevity is designed as the entry point into structured longevity medicine, compressing what would typically require weeks of separate specialist appointments into a focused two-hour clinical session. The programme begins with an extensive blood draw covering panels that go well beyond a standard health screening — advanced lipid subfractions, inflammatory markers, metabolic hormones, and micronutrient levels are all included, alongside a comprehensive urine analysis for kidney function and metabolic byproducts. Biological age estimation forms a central pillar of the assessment. Rather than relying on a single algorithm, the clinic uses multiple validated clocks that analyse different biological dimensions — epigenetic markers, metabolic indicators, and functional performance data — to produce a composite picture of how your body is ageing relative to your chronological age. This multi-clock approach helps identify specific systems that may be ageing faster than others, allowing targeted interventions. The cardiovascular component includes a stress electrocardiogram performed on a treadmill or cycle ergometer, measuring how the heart responds under graded exercise load. This test can reveal exercise-induced arrhythmias, ischaemic changes, and blood pressure responses that resting assessments miss entirely. Lung function testing via spirometry measures forced vital capacity and expiratory flow rates, both of which decline with age and correlate with all-cause mortality in population studies. DEXA scanning provides precise measurements of bone mineral density, lean muscle mass, and regional fat distribution — data points that are particularly relevant for longevity because sarcopenia and visceral adiposity are independent risk factors for metabolic disease and frailty. Grip strength, measured with a calibrated dynamometer, serves as a well-validated proxy for overall muscular function and has been linked to cardiovascular outcomes in large cohort studies. The cognitive assessment evaluates processing speed, working memory, and executive function, establishing a baseline that can be tracked over subsequent visits to detect early changes. Three physician consultations are included: one before testing to review medical history, one during the assessment day, and a follow-up session to discuss the complete results and agree on a personalised longevity strategy.