Why are millennials, Gen Z people obsessed with biohacking?

Adesire for self-optimisation, natural curiosity, and being tech-savvy makes millennials, Gen Z people obsessed with `biohacking` – a wellness trend that seeks to enhance people`s lives by optimising bodies, behavioural experts said on Tuesday.

Biohacking is do it yourself (DIY) on your own biology, where people take charge of their own health, and make positive changes to their diet, fitness, lifestyle. Over the past 90 days, Google searches for `bio hacking` have skyrocketed by 900 per cent.

“Millennials and Gen Z are drawn to biohacking due to their desire for self-optimisation. Tech-savvy culture makes tracking and analysing various aspects of health easier, provides them empowerment and helps them take control of their health rather than relying on traditional healthcare systems.. Social media and influencers promoting the practices also play a huge role,” Dr Shambhavi Jaiman, consultant psychiatrist at Fortis Healthcare said.

“The millennial and Gen Z generations are fascinated by biohacking because of their natural curiosity and familiarity with technology. These generations are inherently inclined to seek out creative ways to improve their physical and mental health because they grew up in a time where digital knowledge was abundant,” added Dr Soumiya Mudgal, senior consultant – Mental Health And Behavioural Sciences, Psychiatry, Max Hospital, Gurugram.

The best example of biohacking has been the 45-year-old American millionaire Bryan Johnson, the founder of KernelCo and Blueprint, who stated that he is investing 2 million dollars per year to reduce his biological age.

Closer home, actor Suniel Shetty last year invested in healthcare startup The Biohacker that helps individuals address personal health gaps.