Who Wants To Live Forever?

When Freddie Mercury belted out this famous line, little did he imagine that an entire generation would stand up to be counted. A far cry from the boons of sages or spells from fairy godmothers, eternal life may just be in your hands. Welcome to the world of biohacking.

- Shabana Patker-Vahi

Biohacking began as an underground movement in the early 2000s but is now practiced by millions across the globe. Simply put, it is a DIY, self-health approach to improving the quality and longevity of life. Self-health can be termed as foolhardy or even dangerous without the intervention of a medical expert. However, almost all biohackers find that a lack of answers from traditional medicine to chronic ailments prompts their foray into the self-health lifestyle, to hack their biology. While it sounds implausible, you’ve probably already bio hacked yourself. Ever gone gluten-free? Tried intermittent fasting? Meditated? Popped a multivitamin or a superfood supplement? Three biohackers tell us how their bodies are now not only their temples but also their labs.

THE LIFE HACK

Dave Asprey, bestselling author, founder of Bulletproof Coffee and Upgrade Labs, and widely considered the father of biohacking, began his foray into the field in 2010 when he hit a health wall. “At 30, I weighed 300 pounds, with aging diseases—arthritis, pre-diabetes, high risk of heart attack, brain fog, chronic fatigue, etc., despite eating a healthy diet and exercising six days a week. When I saw no change, I realised I had to hack my own biology,” he says. Now 48, Asprey takes between 100 and 150 supplements a day with a goal to live past 180 years. Married to a doctor, Asprey is clear that medicine is not the enemy, “If I break my leg, I go to the hospital. When I need diagnostics to know what’s wrong, I go to a medical lab. When I want to fix a chronic problem, I hack it.”