Biohacking is a fairly new perspective on health and wellness. The practice empowers us to understand our own biology so that we can self optimize our bodies into achieving peak health and performance. This involves finding targeted approaches to solving health problems and optimizing our current mental and physical state. Unlike western commercialized approaches such as picking up a prescription or fueling your body with sugary energy drinks to “defeat mental fog,” biohacking fosters a relationship between the self and our bodies to holistically self-enhance based on what works for us. In short, biohacking is medicinal approaches created by us, and for us. After all, who knows our own bodies better than we do?

Biohacking and self-optimization can mean a few different things, depending on the context. One touches upon the Do It Yourself biology movement which involves making biology experiments and labs available to everyone or refers to people who are conducting these experiments in their homes. The other is a holistic approach to one’s personal health. It is the process of finding targeted approaches to solving health problems and optimizing our current mental and physical state. It involves both mind and body – science and technology are then used to improve each of these areas from a holistic perspective using nutritional, physical, or other performance-enhancing techniques.

The role of technology in biohacking goes beyond the technology itself, but rather what it stands for. Technology is cutting edge, efficient, analytical, and can even be personalized. It seeks to find solutions that are faster and better.

Biohacking does not have to involve complicated technologies. Rather, it is common to use known applications and supplemental tech in biohacking. Some examples of exceptional and accessible tools to aid your efforts are the Apple Smart Watch, the Health App on iPhone, sleep and period tracking applications.

Thanks to the advent of technology and artificial intelligence, we no longer have to rely on blanket solutions to health problems, but rather approaches tailored to our specific needs. We are in a time now where doing our own research and finding alternatives that work for us due to our unique biology and needs is no longer a one size fits all solution it is a series of changes that need to be made to tailor our goals to fit to the lifestyle and health objectives that we set for ourselves. We now easily have access to a number of solutions that range from age-old traditions, that western medicine was based off of to new technology and apps that can aid us in our journey for self-optimization in an easy process.