RealAge, Inc. is an American media
corporation that provides health information to consumers. The company’s stated mission is to encourage consumers to maximize their health and wellness by making their "RealAge" younger. It was founded by Dr.
Michael Roizen, currently the chief wellness officer at
The Cleveland Clinic. RealAge.com serves as the official online home for both Dr.
Michael Roizen and
Mehmet Oz, MD., coauthors of the best-selling YOU Book series . On this website, users typically fill out a questionnaire about their health history, which is then used to generate personalized content, including highly targeted
advertisements. To individuals, it says it supports better and longer life through non-medical solution, but the bulk of its revenue comes from drug companies paying to advertise their drugs to individuals who have taken the website test and become members.
RealAge has fueled five New York Times #1 best-selling books, including
RealAge: Are You as Young as You Can Be?, which has been promoted by
Oprah Winfrey, .
RealAge is wholly owned by
Hearst Magazines, which purchased it for an estimated $60 million to $70 million in 2007, when the company had $20 million in revenue. As of 2009, the company is profitable.
The RealAge Test
The RealAge.com Web site features the patented RealAge Test, taken by more than 27 million people since 1999. The RealAge Test measures the "real age" of the test taker’s body based on a questionnaire pertaining to how well he or she maintains their physical health. Whereas calendar age reflects a consumer’s age since birth, the RealAge Test gauges the physiological age of the body and measures the true rate of an individual’s aging.
The RealAge Web site also features over 65 supplementary health-risk evaluations that provide customized results, solutions, and action plans to individual users for free. Additionally, consumers have access to advice, articles, blogs, and their personalized RealAge Plan, all designed to modify or expand lifestyle choices.
Books and publications
