Aging is often thought of something completely out of our control. Not true.

We all have two distinctive ages: chronological and biological. Chronological age is the one we’re most familiar with. It’s the actual time in years, months and days since you were born. Biological age is the age your body acts or functions like.

“Chronologically, we all age at the same rate,” says Dr. Stephanie Maves, family medicine physician at Aurora Health Care. “But biologically, that’s where everyone ages at a different pace depending on lifestyle choices. For example, if you’re a nonsmoker, eat right and exercise, you may have a body or the abilities of a person 15 years younger. On the other hand, if you smoke, eat a lot of high-fat fast food and are physically inactive, your biological age may be 15 years older than your chronological age.”

Smoking, an unhealthy diet and other lifestyle choices can contribute to your risk for disease and early death. Doctors often use these factors to determine your biological age.

Researchers have found that grip strength may be another key factor to determine biological age.

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