PSMD NEWSLETTER
The 4 questionable "biohacks"
August 24, 2025
You might remember I recently broke the internet when I said I wasn't a fan of methylene blue...
The biohacker community got super mad 🤣
But I think it’s important to question these trends because when you look at the literature…
You quickly realize a lot of these things can actually be harmful to humans and should be taken with a BIG pinch of salt.
So today, I'm calling out the 4 "biohacks" that I believe could be a net negative for you...
(Warning: potentially triggering content ahead!)
This whole thing stemmed from monkey studies that supposedly showed lifespan boosting benefits...
Completely misinterpreted.
The University of Wisconsin study showing lifespan extension was feeding the monkeys… monkey chow - basically the equivalent of Cheerios and vegetable oil!
But guess what happened when they replicated that same experiment with a species-appropriate diet? NO life extension benefit. Zero.
Conclusion: eating less garbage makes you live longer… NOT less calories.
This is the trap people fall into.
Because when you restrict real food, you run the risk of tanking hormones, inducing frailty and sarcopenia, ruining thyroid function and A LOT more.
"But Paul, the longevity experts practice caloric restriction!"
Right. Those same "longevity experts" use TRT and pop 100+ pills just to function normally... hardly optimal 🙄
As for fasting…
The literature around fasting and autophagy isn't as clear as I once thought…
Your body is ALWAYS doing autophagy - constantly recycling proteins whether you're eating or not.
You induce autophagy through sleeping (occurs during NREM/REM stages), exercise, and sauna - WITHOUT starving yourself.
Even eating glucose can trigger autophagy!
But here's what really concerns me: there's evidence IF could induce NEGATIVE cardiac remodeling - your heart literally gets weaker!
In humans, time-restricted eating under 8 hours/day was linked with a 91% higher risk of cardiovascular death, based on NHANES data analysis reported in 2024.
To make matters worse…
Emerging evidence suggests it may even push you toward cancer-related pathways (not conclusive yet, but concerning).
Bottom line: It’s more appropriate to give your body signals of ABUNDANCE through consistent, high-quality nutrition - versus piling on more stress through artificial scarcity.
With all due respect, a lot of these longevity compound pundits look like they’re aging in dog years…
And yet, people are popping resveratrol, NMN, metformin, and dozens of other compounds thinking they're "hacking" longevity…
My advice? Just stop.
These either lack long-term data or have clear side effects you don't want.
Take resveratrol - it's literally a xenoestrogen that can disrupt your hormones.
NR and NMN? Everyone's obsessed with boosting NAD+ with these expensive supplements…
But they increase NAM (nicotinamide), leading to consumption of methyl groups from SAMe (PMID: 32365524).
This can deplete methylation capacity and disrupt DNA methylation.
Not good!
The best way to achieve optimal NAD+ is to be METABOLICALLY HEALTHY, not supplement with expensive precursors.
And Metformin? Healthy people taking a diabetes drug? That is insane to me.
It's derived from French lilacs - essentially a plant toxin - with potential serious side effects:
#3: Running away from mTOR
🤦🏻🤦🏻🤦🏻🤦🏻🤦🏻 This might be the silliest one of all…
People are so scared of activating mTOR that they avoid protein or pop rapamycin (an immunosuppressant drug for transplant patients)...
Honestly? Many of them end up looking like they're wasting away…
Because here’s the reality… mTOR is ESSENTIAL for:
(a.k.a… the things that prevent injury or accidental death!)
And in order to build muscle through mTOR activation pathways, you need 3-4 grams of leucine per meal.
Which means getting enough REAL PROTEIN with the full spectrum of amino acids:
✅ That's 8 ounces of beef
🤢 or 1+ pounds of lentils (good luck)
I know what I'm choosing...
I'm not against these entirely…
But if you're already training hard, adding more stressors pushes you into overtraining territory (like doing too many pull ups).
Your body can only handle so much.
And you’re literally overfilling your "stress tank" with cortisol.
So, use these protocols sparingly.
Consider using objective metrics (hormone panels, HRV, etc.) to know if these are helping or hurting you.
To wrap up, there's a common theme that I think needs to be addressed…
Biohackers/longevity experts are obsessed with hacking their way to longer life...
But death is an intrinsic part of our human existence - we are NEVER going to hack our way out of that reality!
So, how about we reframe the question:
Instead of "how can we live longer?"...
Let’s ask ourselves, "how can we live BETTER?"
The "biohacks" might sound sexy...
But there are NO shortcuts to realizing optimal health.
If you are not doing what we've always done as a species, you're missing the forest for the trees...
Eat meat, organs, plants, fruit, honey, and raw dairy. Build strong social connections. Move your body regularly. Get sunlight. Sleep well.
Not as "instagrammable" as a blue tongue or 10-minute cold plunge...
But it's what humans have been doing for hundreds of thousands of years to thrive.
If anything, your ancestors were doing the real "biohacking" all along!
Welcome to the Remembering 🏹
Paul
