Biohacker Bryan Johnson's £1.6m-a-year quest to live forever has been picked apart by UK university scientists, who say his extreme regime is heavily flawed. The 49-year-old millionaire has turned his body into a living laboratory by swapping blood plasma with his teenage son, icing his groin in daily saunas and swallowing up to 100 pills every day.
However, Johnson was previously forced to stop taking the anti-ageing prescription drug, rapamycin, after it triggered soft-tissue infections, spiked his blood sugar and ruined his cholesterol.
Outdated science and supplement risks
Dr David Clancy, Lecturer in Biogerontology at Lancaster University, has now warned that much of the tech mogul's regime relies on outdated science. Speaking exclusively to the Daily Star, he explained that popping stacks of antioxidant pills can actually block the natural benefits of a simple workout.
"Exercise is still way more effective than any known drug or treatment regime," Dr Clancy said. "If you take antioxidant supplements and are exercising, they will actually block most of the positive anti-ageing effects of that exercise."
Questioning the validity of wild stunts like groin-icing, Professor João Pedro de Magalhães, Chair of Molecular Biogerontology at the University of Birmingham, added: "I'm not aware of studies showing that placing ice packs on the groin during sauna sessions extends lifespan.
"Human biology and the genome are extremely complex, and given how little we know of the human body we cannot simply identify and fix individual bugs. Clearly the biggest concern is that supplements can cause adverse effects and interactions...more interventions does not mean better health."
Mental health and calorie restriction concerns
Prof Magalhães also warned that tracking every single metric can backfire mentally. He said "I think tracking multiple biomarkers can lead to anxiety and become counterproductive. Importantly, changing a biomarker does not necessarily mean that we are slowing ageing."
Both academic experts warned that Johnson's brutal method of calorie restriction is a hidden health risk. "In rodents it can extend lifespan, but it also has side effects, like suppressing the immune system and making it harder to fight infections," Prof Magalhães said.
Dr Clancy agreed, noting that in animal trials, "some died early from infections because fighting off an infection needs lots of immune system activity, which takes a lot of energy that was not readily available."
Simple fasting trick and free longevity advice
Instead of extreme daily starvation, Dr Clancy recommends a simple 6:1 fasting routine to help clean out damaged cells without wrecking your lifestyle. The variation of intermittent fasting involves eating a normal, balanced diet for six days of the week and completely fasting (or severely restricting food) for one day of the week.
The experts agreed the real secret to living longer costs virtually nothing. Prof Magalhães said: "The habits that I prioritise are exercise, a balanced diet and not smoking. Although this is advice my mother has been saying for decades, they are still the ones with evidence for having long-term health benefits."
