Featured Image Credit: Bryan Johnson/Instagram
Bryan Johnson has made a name for himself online for his mission to 'live forever', yet he jeopardized that recently by taking a flight, as he claims that jet lag increased his biological age by around 13 years.
Some people have miraculously managed to come back from the dead, but nobody has been able to officially cheat death and live forever — yet biohacker Bryan Johnson aims to change that.
Whether he's successful or not remains to be seen, yet he has employed a number of bizarre scientific techniques – including injecting his own son's plasma and measuring his erections during the night – in view of that lofty goal.
While he stringently avoids harmful habits like fast food and even exposure to the Sun, even Johnson isn't perfect as he recently sacrificed his own health in pursuit of love.
Advert
In order to visit the family of his girlfriend, Blueprint co-founder Kate Tolo, in Australia, Johnson took the lengthy flight even though he knew that it would come at a cost to his biological age.
Explaining the negative impact on social media, Johnson outlined: "Jet lag increased my biological age by ~13 years [...] Traveled across 7 time zones, Los Angeles to Australia."
Jet lag increased my biological age by ~13 years.
— Bryan Johnson (@bryan_johnson) June 3, 2026
> as measured by grip strength
> pre-travel: 141 lbs, grip age 48, ~98th percentile
> post-travel: 125 lbs, grip age 61, ~98th percentile
Traveled across 7 time zones, Los Angeles to Australia.
Grip strength predicts mortality… pic.twitter.com/QyqW3VLlFD
He indicates that grip strength measurements are one of the best predictors of mortality that you can find – especially for people that don't have access to high-tech tools – and his pre- and post-flight measurements show a noticable drop.
Before getting on the plane, Johnson's grip strength was 141 lbs, which gave him an estimated biological age of 48 in the 98th percentile. Following the lengthy flight, that dropped all the way down to 125 lbs, which is equivalent to a biological age of 61.
"A published study of a comparable eastbound flight found the same pattern, about a 7% morning drop," he explained, and it's likely due to the impact that shifting time zones has on your body.
Johnson does assert that this will recover after a few days once your body has adjusted to the time difference, but indicates that "the biological cost of travel is not a price tag that people are aware of.
"We're still awaiting results on other things we measured, however the data on travel-related biological insult is much greater than most assume."
It might be something you'll want to consider when you're next taking a long-haul flight, and that's bound to only increase further if you're stuck in uncomfortable seats and go a lengthy stretch of time without proper rest.
