Inside the cult of biohacking in India

If you were eavesdropping on conversations in Indian tech circles at, say, a café in Bengaluru or a swanky pub in Gurugram, you would realise there’s one hot topic common to these conversations apart from the usual chatter about valuations and acquisitions: how to optimise one’s health. When you have licensed medical practitioners doing it, it’s medicine.” Balakrishnan’s journey started with “hacking” his own health almost two decades ago. Health benefits Biohacking, the practice of using science, technology and lifestyle changes to optimise human biology and enhance performance, is a rapidly growing field around the world; some of the top biohacking practices include nutrigenomics, the study of how specific nutrients interact with our genes and how this interaction can impact health and well-being; sleep optimisation; using biofeedback devices that monitor and provide real-time feedback about physiological processes in the body; the use of nootropics, substances that are believed to enhance cognitive function, memory and creativity; and microbiome optimisation. For instance, India’s market for CGMs, a tool that can be used to “hack” metabolism, health and weight loss by controlling blood sugar levels, is poised to grow at a CAGR of 17% between 2022-27. “People these days are looking for new ways to improve and optimise their health,” agrees Rakesh Somani, co-founder of Decode Age, a Bengaluru-based longevity research company.