Death test’ to tell you how long you will live

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• Image Credit: Supplied
• The clock is ticking, but would you like to know how long you've got?

London: A ‘death test’ that could tell you how long you have left to live is being developed by scientists.

The wristwatch-style device, which has been created to encourage users to stay healthy, uses laser beams to analyse crucial cells lining blood vessels under the skin.

These tiny endothelial cells are a key indicator of a person’s health, and the device’s inventors say that by monitoring them they can identify those who are ageing more quickly than normal.

But once the test has been refined, they claim it should eventually be possible to tell a person how many years they have left. For instance, someone could be told that if they do not change their lifestyle, they are likely to die in 20 years.

The analysis of the endothelium - the layer of endothelial cells in tiny blood vessels called capillaries - could also suggest whether someone has cancer or dementia.

The Lancaster University physicists who invented the technique hope people will use the information to improve their health.