Highlights

  • Using an imaging device called ThermoFace, researchers identify facial regions where temperatures are linked to aging and disease.
  • Data suggests that nose temperatures decrease while eye and cheek temperatures increase with age and that participants with metabolic conditions have higher eye area temperatures.
  • The research team found that jumping rope for two weeks reduced biological age by five years, as measured with ThermoFace.

Han and colleagues from Peking University in Beijing created ThermoFace, a thermal facial imaging technique used to estimate biological age. Their findings were published in Cell Metabolism.

To develop ThermoFace, the researchers used artificial intelligence (AI) to predict biological age based on the temperatures of various facial regions, including the nose, eyes, and cheeks. They found that a warmer nose and cooler eyes and cheeks were associated with a younger predicted biological age compared to chronological age, measured in years. Overall, this was suggestive of a decelerated rate of aging. Conversely, a cooler nose and warmer eyes and cheeks indicated an older biological age, indicative of accelerated aging.

(Yu et al., 2024 | Cell Metabolism) Temperatures in the nose region declined with age. Top graph: The nose region temperatures declined with age, especially between 50 and 60 years of age. Bottom image: The nose region is highlighted in white while the rest of the face is in gray.

Age-Related Metabolic Diseases Like Diabetes and Hypertension Linked to Facial Temperature Profiles

Human core body temperature has been shown to decline with age. However, whether facial temperature has the potential to predict biological age or age-related diseases has remained uncertain. In this study, Han and colleagues analyzed over 2,800 participants aged 20 to 90 using ThermoFace to attain data suggesting facial temperature can indeed estimate biological age and predict age-related diseases.

Han and colleagues analyzed ThermoFace imaging data to find if age-related metabolic conditions like diabetes are linked to facial temperatures indicative of faster aging. They discovered that people with diabetes showed faster biological aging and especially had higher eye temperatures. Similar results were found for participants with high blood pressure (hypertension), who had significantly higher cheek temperatures.

The Peking-based researchers also explored whether accelerated aging, as measured by ThermoFace, was linked to increased inflammatory pathway activation. Blood sample analyses showed that facial temperatures associated with accelerated aging also correlated with higher cellular activity related to inflammation. The activation of cellular pathways related to inflammation included DNA damage repair and antiviral responses.

Given the connection between metabolic conditions like diabetes and biological age, the team investigated if exercise could counteract aging. Exercise has known associations with improved metabolism. They therefore hypothesized that improved metabolism from exercise could lower biological age.

To test the effects of exercise, they had 23 participants jump rope for at least ten minutes and for at least 800 jumps daily for two weeks. Remarkably, this reduced their biological ages by an average of five years, as measured with ThermoFace.

The biological age of individuals who jumped rope for two weeks dropped about five years.
(Yu et al., 2024 | Cell Metabolism) The biological age of individuals who jumped rope for two weeks dropped about five years. Biological age as measured with ThermoFace remained stable after two weeks in participants who did not jump rope (Control Group). Those who jumped rope (Jump Rope Group) saw about a five-year decrease in biological age after two weeks.

ThermoFace Provides a Non-Invasive Strategy to Predict Age-Related Diseases and Biological Age

The promising results from Han and colleagues have generated excitement about technologies like ThermoFace that can non-invasively measure biological age. Such advancements could help prevent age-related diseases and cognitive decline, as accelerated aging can increase the risk of age-related conditions and mortality.

To lower biological age, incorporating regular exercise like jumping rope into your routine can help. Consulting with a doctor about potential supplements is also advisable. According to the researchers’ findings, daily rigorous exercise could reduce biological age by about five years in as little as two weeks.

In the future, the researchers plan to explore if ThermoFace can predict other conditions like cardiovascular problems or sleep disorders, according to a press release. If successful, ThermoFace could become a diagnostic tool for multiple age-related conditions, all the while offering patients a way to estimate their biological age.

“We hope to apply thermal facial imaging in clinical settings, as it holds significant potential for early disease diagnosis and intervention,” concludes Jing-Dong J. Han.