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Tara Loader Wilkinson

American entrepreneur turned biohacker Bryan Johnson is no stranger to esoteric self-experiments in the quest to live a longer life, from injecting Botox into his genitals to receiving blood plasma infusions from his teenage son.
But this month he took a trip of sorts, streaming live on social media his experience of taking psilocybin, a psychedelic ingredient found in magic mushrooms, as a longevity therapy.
The 48-year-old founder of the Don’t Die movement wore a brain activity monitor to record the effects when he took a 4.67-gram dose of dried Psilocybe cubensis (B+ strain) mushrooms containing 24.9mg of psilocybin, mixed with orange juice.
An Instagram post detailed the event.
“It felt like my consciousness was dialled up to 10/10. I felt hyper aware and alive and insatiably curious. The experience was exhilarating and positive in every way. I felt like a kid … exploring a new playground,” he said.
“It felt like my perception was returned to factory settings and dissolved my aged numbness.”

His brain monitor showed a “strong decrease” in activity in his prefrontal and premotor cortex – the brain’s control centre – and an increase in sensory, auditory and speech integration.
It also showed higher entropic brain patterns, suggesting his brain had become more open, flexible and exploratory – less constrained and more flexible than in “normal” waking consciousness.
How do these effects relate to longevity? Research shows that happy older people live longer, as do optimistic people, and that having a strong sense of purpose in life lowers the risk of heart attack and death.
Johnson notes on social media that he conducted this experiment under medical supervision, in a legal setting, and with a professional facilitator – to ensure his safety – and stressed that his posts were for educational purposes only.
Esoteric as Johnson’s work may be, his conclusions are backed by recent research findings that psychedelics, including psilocybin, “may prolong health and lifespan by improving mental well-being and rewiring the brain to a more positive, creative and curious state”.
A 2025 study by researchers at Emory University, in the US state of Georgia, and Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, that was published in the journals NPJ Aging and Nature, provided the first experimental evidence of psilocybin’s anti-ageing potential.
In laboratory experiments, human lung and skin cells treated with psilocin – an active ingredient of psilocybin – lived up to 57 per cent longer and displayed fewer age-related markers.

Mice aged 19 months – roughly equivalent to 60 to 65 human years – were given regular doses of psilocybin; 80 per cent survived the duration of the 10-month experiment. Only half of the control group did.
The treated mice also appeared healthier, with less grey fur.
The research, which Johnson referred to in his self-experiment, suggests psilocybin helps increase longevity markers by reducing oxidative stress, improving DNA repair responses and preserving telomere length.
Telomeres are the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes, which shorten with each cell division until they can no longer divide. Their shortening is a natural part of ageing.
Outside the lab, many people attest to psilocybin’s role in anti-ageing. Kayse Gehret, a US-based massage therapist and reiki practitioner whose clients include celebrities, professional athletes and executives, is one.
She is also a microdosing facilitator for those who take a very small amount of psilocybin mushrooms intermittently, on a schedule or when they feel it could be beneficial – without getting “high”.
“After working with thousands of individuals microdosing psilocybin over the last five years, there has been a pattern of enhanced vitality, youthfulness and radiance,” Gehret says.
“We’ve often wondered if it is the direct effect of the mushrooms, or derived from the more optimistic, aligned and grateful state of being the mushrooms foster. Maybe both.”

Tamsin Lewis, a British medical doctor, Ironman champion and founder of integrative medicine service Wellgevity, has followed this field of study for over a decade and is excited by the recently published research.
“Psilocybin is already being studied for depression, anxiety and trauma. This is the first clear evidence that psychedelics might extend life, not just improve it. The future of healthy ageing could include carefully guided psychedelic therapies,” she says.
From her perspective as both a longevity doctor and former psychiatrist, this idea is exciting because it brings together two areas that usually do not overlap: ageing in the body and ageing in the brain.
It addresses the fundamental physiological causes of getting older, such as reducing inflammation and helping cells cope with stress. It also addresses brain health by boosting neuroplasticity – the brain’s ability to reorganise and form new connections – which helps slow the mental decline often associated with old age.

Lewis suggests that Johnson’s posts be put into a proper scientific context. She notes that Johnson cites a high-dose anti-ageing hypothesis from the study of mice, and extrapolating animal doses to humans is unreliable.
“We simply don’t know yet whether the mechanistic signals observed in rodents translate meaningfully to humans. Only rigorously designed clinical trials can determine that,” she says.
She also cautions that a large dose of psilocybin, such as the one Johnson took, can have a negative effect, and can even be “profoundly destabilising for many individuals”.
Most current findings around psilocybin’s effects on the brain and body come from animal and cell studies, but its sanctioned use is growing in places such as the US as well as countries where it is legal or legal for therapy, including the Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Nepal, Brazil, the Netherlands, Australia, Canada, Switzerland and New Zealand.
Psilocybin is not legal in Hong Kong, though there is limited academic research being done at universities in the city.
Neil Markey is the chief executive of Beckley Retreats, which offers legal small-group five-day psilocybin retreats in the Netherlands and Jamaica.
“We believe psilocybin-supported programmes may contribute to healthier, more vibrant living, adding not just years to life, but life to our years,” he says.

He points to several ways in which psilocybin can influence healthy ageing and longevity, which he has heard from guests and which are reported in clinical trials.
It could improve how well we cope with stress and may promote neuroplasticity for greater cognitive flexibility.
“Current evidence points toward potential neuroprotective effects rather than any form of neurodegeneration,” he says, meaning psilocybin seems to protect the brain rather than harm it.
Many guests report lasting positive behaviour change.
“Many people naturally adopt healthier routines – meditating more, exercising more consistently, reducing alcohol use and becoming more mindful of what they consume,” Markey says.
“These shifts may be supported by psilocybin’s ability to temporarily loosen rigid thought patterns and open a window for more intentional behaviour.”

Psilocybin has been shown to boost emotional well-being and reduce depression and anxiety, he adds. It also enhances feelings of connection, empathy and openness.
“This is highly relevant for longevity: decades of research, including the long-running Harvard Study of Adult Development, show that the quality of our relationships is one of the strongest predictors of long-term health and lifespan,” he says.
“Experiences that help people reconnect with themselves and others may therefore support one of the most powerful levers of healthy ageing.”
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Could magic mushrooms help us live longer? What biohacker Bryan Johnson’s test showed

Recent research suggests psilocybin, the psychedelic found in magic mushrooms, could prolong life by improving mental health, reducing oxidative stress and improving DNA repair responses. Photo: Shutterstock

In an Instagram post, Bryan Johnson wears a brain activity monitor to record the effects of ingesting psilocybin. Photo: Instagram.com/bryanjohnson_

Psychedelics, including psilocybin, “may prolong health and lifespan by improving mental well-being and rewiring the brain to a more positive, creative and curious state”, according to researchers. Photo: Shutterstock

Kayse Gehret says her clients who microdose psilocybin report greater vitality, youthfulness and radiance. Photo: Instagram/kaysegehret

Dr Tamsin Lewis says that in the future, healthy ageing could include “carefully guided psychedelic therapies”. Photo: Dr Tamsin Lewis

Neil Markey is chief executive of Beckley Retreats. Photo: Beckley Retreats 

People take part in a Beckley Retreats retreat in the Netherlands. Photo: Petar Savic

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Lifestyle

Health & Wellness

Health

Johnson’s conclusions after taking magic mushrooms are backed by findings that psychedelics could extend life by rewiring the brain and more


Johnson’s conclusions after taking magic mushrooms are backed by findings that psychedelics could extend life by rewiring the brain and more.


Could magic mushrooms help us live longer? What biohacker Bryan Johnson’s test showed

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Johnson’s conclusions after taking magic mushrooms are backed by findings that psychedelics could extend life by rewiring the brain and more

Johnson’s conclusions after taking magic mushrooms are backed by findings that psychedelics could extend life by rewiring the brain and more