The Grift That Never Dies
About this episode
The episode explores Bryan Johnson's controversial anti-aging practices and the science behind them.
Dr. Kaveh Hoda is joined by returning guests Kieran Hervold and Dr. Jason Rosenbaum (molecular pathologist) to dig into tech entrepreneur Bryan Johnson — the Silicon Valley figure who's turned anti-aging into a hyper-regimented, headline-grabbing lifestyle brand. The trio trace his path from Mormon missionary to Braintree/Venmo founder to self-proclaimed "longevity" evangelist, then pick apart his "Don't Die" blueprint: the $1,700-a-month supplement stack, 8:30pm bedtimes, cold showers, testicle icing, stem cell injections, and plasma exchanges with his own son. Jason breaks down the science (and overreach) behind the epigenetic methylation testing Johnson uses to claim he's aging in reverse, while the group debates whether his approach constitutes real health optimization, a quasi-religious philosophy, or an elaborate grift — money-making or not. They also cover his viral (and widely mocked) tweets about his girlfriend's vaginal microbiome and his son's nighttime erections, and close with a look at his recent autoimmune gastritis diagnosis and what it reveals about the limits of "hacking" biology. Enjoyed the episode?Please take 30 seconds to it makes a huge difference in…
People in this episode
Host: Dr. Kaveh Hoda
Guests: Kieran Hervold, Dr. Jason Rosenbaum
Topics covered
- anti-aging
- health optimization
- longevity
- biological hacking
- epigenetics
- lifestyle brand
Keywords
- anti-aging
- longevity
- epigenetic testing
- health optimization
- supplements
- biological hacking
- lifestyle brand
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Braintree, Venmo
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