At the risk of sounding like Brian May, who wants to live forever? If you’re asking me, there’s not much that would make me want to stick around for longer than necessary. According to scientists, we’ll have run out of water to drink in about 100 years, ChatGPT bots will have most likely become the superior species, prompting us to write their cover letters, and we will have borne witness to spray-on skinny jeans and low-cut, footsie trainer socks return on the trend cycle many a time. Quite frankly, the way things are looking right now, I’m scared to think what life on Earth will be like in a year’s time, let alone closer to doomsday. So, no, I don’t want to live forever, but that’s just me. As it transpires, there is a fervid flock of “biohackers”, who, by way of making their cells work harder for their bodies, hope to expand their lifespan by an indefinite number of years.

If the term “biohacking” sounds like a PR stunt to you, you’re not alone. A few quick group-chat polls later and the results are in: “That’s manosphere nonsense. It’s about men’s vanity, wanting to look young but instead of calling it beauty, they have call it science”. Ouch. Dr Vali – one of the world’s top cosmetic dermatologists and co-founder of LMS Wellness, a brand that offers inner and outer health optimisation – is quick to confirm my suspicion.

“Biohacking? It’s a buzzword,” she says. “It means using your cells to fix you and it’s actually been around for a long time. It’s synonymous with health optimisation, medical wellness, performance medicine and longevity medicine. ‘Biohacking’ itself is just a more PR-able word and interest has gained significant momentum since the pandemic.”

Turns out, ever since the global lockdown, preventive and performance optimising healthcare have become focal points in the medi-spa landscape. And business is booming. Being vulnerable to an unknown disease has provoked a collective shift of the wellbeing mindset – we no longer wait to see a health professional until we show symptoms of illness to be cured of, but instead seek to stop it before it begins.

However, preventing illness is not the be-all and end-all of biohacking. The element of optimisation – yes, we’re still talking about the human body, not your iPhone storage – is more far-reaching.

“We’re no longer satisfied with merely [preventing disease],” says Dr Mariel Silva, specialist in well-ageing medicine at SHA Wellness Clinic. “We want to optimise performance, slow down ageing and feel in control of our health. I also believe it’s a way of regaining control in a fast-paced world. We face high levels of stress, fatigue, insomnia, inflammation. And we’re looking for solutions that help us perform better, feel more vital, and make informed decisions about our wellbeing.”

So, what does biohacking look like? There are different levels of commitments. Low-level biohacking, as Dr Vali puts it, “is essentially do-it-yourself-methods – things you can comfortably perform at home”. This includes health and sleep monitoring, journalling, breathwork and taking ice baths. “These methods are especially appealing to men, who often appreciate metrics-driven approaches and visibly see progress in their health,” she says.

Mid-level treatments run the gamut from red-light therapy to reduce muscular fatigue, to cryotherapy for overall improved physiological and psychological health and better sleep, hyperbaric oxygen therapy for enhanced cognitive function, to muscle peptide treatments to battle inflammation.

“These are popular because the results can be pretty immediate, like enhanced energy levels, faster recovery, improved mood and reduced inflammation,” says Nikita Manduca, studio director at Repose Space Kensington, an integrative institution providing biohackings, fitness classes and holistic treatments in London. “Clients often tell us they feel more balanced, focused and resilient after just a few sessions.”

Last, there’s top-tier biohacking, which exceeds common treatments and moves into stem-cell territory, hormone therapy and gene editing. Or, put differently, it’s the hardcore stuff, not suitable for everyone.

But if all these things on offer promote prolonged health, what’s with the animosity towards staying healthy in my group chats? Are all my friends health-rejecting anti-hackers? I’d hope not. Instead, it’s down to an image problem, courtesy of diehard hackers like the eccentric multi-millionaire Bryan Johnson with his quest to live forever and to save the human race by way of his biohacking-based campaign called Don’t Die. On the nose, perhaps, but he’s trying to prove a point, routinely sharing his nighttime erection data, infusing himself with his own son’s blood and achieving a perfect score on his Don’t Die app. (The app is how you can become an early adopter of this, ahem, self-help group.) But is there such a thing as over-hacking it all?

“The key is finding balance,” Manduca says. “Biohacking should enhance your life, not create more stress or obsession. The line gets crossed when people chase optimisation to the point where it becomes unhealthy or unsustainable. The ultimate goal should be quality of life where you are left feeling good, performing well and ageing gracefully, not just hitting arbitrary numbers or trends.”

Dr Vali agrees. “You can’t overdo it, in the sense of hacking your body, but then I have seen patients who come in with 20 supplements that they are trying to swallow in a day,” she says. “So, yes, I do think you can take it to extremes, like Bryan Johnson. And if you look at his routine, it is not translatable, it is not practical. But there are key elements that we can take from it and do small versions of it that still have very significant outcomes.”

So, if your goal is to be around to see the sun explode, do it like Johnson. Otherwise, I’ll see you in the infrared sauna.