Personal baselines are powerful because they give you a true sense of your “usual” or “typical” biomarker values—helping to smooth out one‐off fluctuations and highlight real trends. In the case of something like ApoB, which can vary with diet, exercise, and other lifestyle factors, a rolling‐median baseline makes it easier to see whether your current level is moving meaningfully above or below your longer‐term norm. Here’s why:
Less Noise
Traditional single‐point measurements are prone to outliers—maybe you tested on an unusually stressful week, or you’d recently changed your diet. A baseline dampens the effect of occasional spikes or dips, so you get a clearer picture.Short‐Term vs. Long‐Term Trends
3‐Month (Recent) Baseline: Captures immediate changes in your lifestyle or health. If you’ve made a major dietary adjustment to lower ApoB, for example, you’ll see it start to show up here first.
6‐Month (Seasonal) Baseline: Smooths out short‐term fluctuations—helpful for seeing whether changes persist through life’s normal ebbs and flows (vacations, holidays, work stress).
12‐Month (Personal) Baseline: Provides a comprehensive, year‐long view of your biomarker. It’s a “big‐picture” anchor that shows whether your ApoB levels are improving, holding steady, or trending unfavorably over an extended period.
Progress Tracking
Having multiple baselines lets you monitor whether a short‐term improvement is persisting or whether a seasonal spike is smoothing out. If you’re focusing on lowering ApoB, the 3‐month median shows early progress, while the 12‐month median confirms that your efforts are sticking long‐term.
Health isn’t just about getting “one dot” in the right place; it’s an ongoing pursuit. Consistently good health behaviors stack up over time and can lead to compounding benefits. Personal baselines help you track—and celebrate—this steady progress. Early wins show up in your short‐term median, while your 12‐month median reveals whether those healthier habits are truly becoming part of your long‐term lifestyle.