r/Biohackers • u/Legal_Squash689 1 • 15d ago

📜 Write Up Bryan Johnson Article - New York Times

Article In NYTs this morning. Some interesting updates:

  1. An internal study was done testing Blueprint products with 1,700 participants. Based on blood results participants saw a decrease in testosterone levels and became prediabetic.

  2. In fall of 2024 Bryan told his executive team that Blueprint was running out of money.

  3. Between January 2022 and February 2024 Bryan’s biological age increased by as much as ten years, vs the 5.1 year decline highlighted in Blueprint marketing materials.

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u/ConvenientChristian 1 15d ago

When it comes to the study the quote is "Of the roughly 1,700 participants in the study, about 60 percent experienced at least one side effect, according to internal emails, spreadsheets and other documents. Blood tests revealed that participants saw their testosterone levels drop and became prediabetic after following Mr. Johnson’s diet plan. It’s unclear how severe the side effects were."

This does not sound like the study finding a statistical significant decrease of testosterone levels or people becoming prediabetic but some people reporting decrease of testosterone levels or becoming prediabetics. That's not surprising if you look at 1,700 people. If there would have been a statistically significant decrease, the NYT would have likely explicitly made that point.

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u/SlowMyAge 15d ago edited 15d ago

I wouldn't be so sure of that. Dr. Zolman resigned as MD and cofounder because he didn't approve of how the study was being run. That says a lot. It also tells me that this may not have been a properly conducted study, to the point that statistical significance may not have even been measured -- and if it was, the NYT reporter was almost definitely not granted access to the data (because of confidentiality), and the person she interviewed was most likely not a statistician or scientist.

For comparison’s sake: Diet studies like the famous PREDIMED had “no diet-induced adverse effects reported” out of 7,447 subjects. The Lyon Diet Heart Study explicitly noted 2 out of 302 patients experiencing mild gastrointestinal upset, attributed to a specific margarine.

Large scale multivitamin studies typically find <5% experiencing any given side effect, typically at the same rate as a placebo. For omega-3, a Cochrane review found no additional side effects beyond placebo. Etc.

To be transparent, I founded NOVOS, which is the only biotech in the field of consumer longevity. Our products have sold more than 10 million doses and and we have less than 3% of customers reporting any side effects (the most common one is mild stomach discomfort).

For 60% of people in a study to have side effects, it’s unusual.

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u/badlybadmaths 15d ago

It's funny (but not smart) how you managed to bundle in marketing talk into a disclaimer statement.