Biohacking Britain: How the UK Is Searching Its Way to a Longer Life

In one sentence: Biohacking has gone mainstream in the UK, and our analysis of five years of UK Google Trends data shows that Britons are moving away from the buzzword "biohacking" and towards specific, measurable habits, with searches for biological age, VO2 max, NAD+ and Zone 2 all rising sharply and each taking off around a clear celebrity or cultural moment.

Longevity used to be a fringe interest. Today it is a national conversation, spanning gym floors, pharmacy shelves, wearables and dinner tables across the UK. To measure how far it has travelled, we tracked how often people in Britain search for the ideas at the heart of the movement.

This study analyses five years of relative search interest from Google Trends for five defining terms.¹ We then matched the biggest rises to the cultural moments that appear to have triggered them, from bestselling books to a Netflix documentary. The result is a clear picture of what "biohacking Britain" is actually searching for, and when each obsession took off.

How popular is biohacking in the UK right now?

Biohacking is now firmly mainstream in the UK, and the appetite is still growing. Every one of the five longevity terms we tracked reached its five-year peak in 2025 or 2026, which means interest is at or near record levels, not fading.¹

The scale is easiest to grasp in market terms. Grand View Research values the global biohacking market at about 29 billion US dollars in 2025, projected to more than quadruple to roughly 125 billion by 2033.² Britain is part of that wave, and the trend fits a country that is slowly getting more active: Sport England's Active Lives Adult Survey reports that 64.6% of adults in England now meet the physical activity guidelines, up by 859,000 people in a year.³

"What strikes me in this data is not that biohacking is popular, we knew that, but how the interest is maturing. People are not just searching for a trendy word any more. They are searching for a test they can take, a number they can track and a supplement they can buy. That is a much more serious, and much more useful, kind of curiosity."

Yusra Serdaroglu Aydin, MSc RD, Head of Nutrition at Vivere

Which longevity trends are growing fastest in UK search?

Biological age is the fastest-growing longevity search in the UK, followed by VO2 max and NAD+.¹ The chart below indexes each term to its own five-year peak, so it shows the shape and timing of each rise rather than which term is biggest overall.

The table below gives the underlying figures and ranks the terms by five-year growth. Biological age leads because it started from the lowest base and rose the most, while VO2 max is the highest and steadiest performer.

Growth compares the 2022 average with the 2026 year-to-date average. Recent momentum compares 2025 with 2026 to date. Values are relative interest (0 to 100), not absolute searches.

Because Google Trends shows relative interest rather than volume, we cross-checked the scale against Exploding Topics, which estimates worldwide monthly searches. It confirms the same picture and puts real numbers on it, including a striking 7,700% rise for "zone 2 cardio".⁴

Exploding Topics figures are global monthly search estimates, used to corroborate the UK direction of travel rather than as UK figures.⁴

"The plateau in 'biohacking' is the most telling line on that chart. When a word stops growing but the things it describes keep climbing, it usually means the idea has been absorbed into normal life. People do not need to ask what biohacking is any more. They already know, and now they want the specifics."

Yusra Serdaroglu Aydin, MSc RD

When did each health obsession take off in the UK?

Each trend accelerated around an identifiable cultural moment, usually a book, a podcast or a documentary featuring a high-profile figure. The timeline below pairs those moments with what we can see in the UK search data.

The Bryan Johnson signal is worth pausing on. In our biological age data, "bryan johnson", "bryan johnson biological age" and the test brand "glycanage" all appear as breakout-related searches, which is strong evidence that a single documentary can move a nation's health curiosity.

Why has NAD+ become one of the UK's fastest-growing longevity searches?

NAD+ has climbed steadily since 2021 and shows the strongest recent momentum of any term we tracked, up about 43% from 2025 to 2026 so far.¹ NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) is a coenzyme every cell uses to make energy and to power the sirtuins involved in cellular repair, as a 2021 review in Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology explains, which is why it sits at the centre of longevity science.¹¹

The rising searches around it are strikingly commercial and hands-on. In our UK data, "nad injections" is up 1,450%, "best nad supplement" is up 1,250%, "NMN" is up 1,000% and "nad supplement" is up 900%, with "nad drip", "nad iv" and "nad clinic" all climbing too.¹ We compare these options in our guide to NAD+ delivery methods, and explain how NAD+, NMN and NR differ.

A word of caution is needed here. It is fascinating cell biology, but the human evidence for NAD+ supplementation is still developing: a 2025 review in Nature Metabolism notes that oral supplements can raise circulating NAD+ while clear functional benefits in people remain limited.¹² The only authorised UK health claim for this vitamin family is that niacin (vitamin B3) contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism and the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.¹³ The NHS similarly notes that niacin helps the body release energy from food.¹⁴ If you are considering NAD+, our clinicians can help you weigh whether it suits you; you can read the balanced picture in our guide to NAD+ and healthy ageing, or explore the two formats in the Vivere NAD+ range: liposomal NAD+ capsules and NAD+ injection pens.

"The surge in searches for NAD+ injections and drips is exactly where I want people to slow down and think. Rising cellular energy is plausible and the science is genuinely interesting, but no NAD+ product reverses ageing, whatever a clinic's website says. Buy from a regulated source, keep your expectations realistic, and treat it as support on top of sleep, movement and diet, not a shortcut around them."

Yusra Serdaroglu Aydin, MSc RD

What is biological age, and why are Britons searching for it?

Biological age is a measure of how well your body is functioning compared with your actual years, and it is the fastest-growing longevity search in the UK. Unlike your chronological age, which only counts birthdays, biological age tries to estimate wear and tear using biological markers, which makes it a practical entry point to healthy ageing.

The most established approach uses an epigenetic clock, a method first described by Steve Horvath in 2013 that reads chemical marks on your DNA to estimate age.¹⁵ The search data shows clear buyer intent: the two top related queries are "biological age test" and "test biological age", and "biological age blood test" is up 250%.¹

This is the trend most tied to famous faces. Chris Hemsworth's 2022 series Limitless put brain health and biological ageing in front of a huge audience,⁸ and Bryan Johnson's 2025 Netflix documentary pushed it further still.¹⁰ Consumer biological age tests vary in quality, so treat any result as a rough guide, and see our guide to seven ways to slow biological ageing for the habits that genuinely help.

Why are VO2 max and Zone 2 suddenly everywhere?

VO2 max and Zone 2 have surged because two forces collided: bestselling longevity books and mainstream fitness wearables. VO2 max is the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during hard exercise and is a widely used measure of cardiorespiratory fitness, while Zone 2 is a moderate, conversational training intensity used to build an aerobic base.

Peter Attia's 2023 book Outlive made both concepts central to longevity training,⁹ and wearables did the rest. In our VO2 max data, the top related searches are "garmin vo2 max", "garmin" and "vo2 max apple watch", with "vo2 max by age" up 250%.¹ VO2 max also spikes every January, a clear New Year fitness pattern.

Zone 2 tells a similar story once you look past the noise. The raw "zone 2" series is partly inflated by London travel-zone searches, but the fitness signal is unmistakable in the rising queries: "zone 2 cardio" is up 4,500% and "what heart rate is zone 2" is up 1,150%. Exploding Topics tells the same story, estimating around 74,000 searches a month worldwide for "zone 2 cardio", up 7,700%.⁴ This all aligns with NHS physical activity guidelines that adults should aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week.¹⁶

Interest is genuinely UK-wide rather than a London-only fashion, with Scotland leading on NAD+ and VO2 max.¹ Zone 2's England lead should be read with care, since London travel-zone searches concentrate there.

How much research actually backs each trend?

The credible science sits in the specific mechanisms, not the buzzword. NAD+ and biological ageing are backed by large or fast-growing bodies of peer-reviewed research, while "biohacking" as a term has almost none, which mirrors the shift we see in search.⁵

This is the clearest evidence yet for the study's central theme. "Biohacking" appears in only around 20 PubMed papers in total, and never more than four in a year, whereas NAD+ attracts more than 2,000 papers a year. The science lives in the specifics, so that is where sensible attention belongs.

Counts are PubMed publications by year of publication. NAD+ was searched in the title and abstract; the others in the title, which is why "VO2 max" and "Zone 2" should be read with care.⁵

"It is important to check the science behind every approach described as biohacking. Without proper studies to support them, new therapies may not be safe or effective. Always expect realistic results and be cautious."

Yusra Serdaroglu Aydin, MSc RD

What does this mean for people in the UK?

The clearest message is that Britons are becoming more evidence-minded about longevity, not less. They increasingly want to measure something specific and act on it, which is healthier than chasing a vague trend, provided the measuring and acting are grounded in real evidence. Vivere's own gut microbiome test is built for exactly that kind of measurement, turning a longevity goal into specific, trackable data.

How did we carry out this study?

We analysed relative search interest from Google Trends for Great Britain across five terms: NAD+, biological age, biohacking, VO2 max and Zone 2.¹ For each term, we exported the monthly time series from September 2021 to August 2026, the regional breakdown, and the top and rising related queries.

We then calculated annual averages, five-year growth and each term's peak month, and cross-checked the direction of travel against Exploding Topics, which estimates global monthly search volume and growth, and against the volume of research on PubMed, using publication counts by year of publication (NAD+ searched in title and abstract, the others in the title).⁴⁵ Finally, we matched the largest rises to dated public events. All medical explanations were sourced separately from the NHS, GOV.UK, NICE and peer-reviewed research, and reviewed by a nutritionist.

What are the limitations of this data?

Search data is powerful for spotting cultural shifts, but it has real limits, and being clear about them matters on a health topic. The table below sets out the main ones and how we handled each.

Frequently asked questions

Final Thoughts From Our Experts

"If you take one thing from this study, let it be the direction of travel. Britain is not just chasing a buzzword any more; people are searching for tests they can take, numbers they can track and habits they can build, and that is genuinely encouraging. At Vivere, our goal is to keep that curiosity honest. Improving your VO2 max through regular movement has excellent evidence behind it, a biological age test can be a helpful nudge if the result is properly explained, and NAD+ is fascinating cell biology that still needs to prove itself in people.

What none of these things are is a shortcut. The unglamorous basics - sleep, movement, a good diet, and not smoking - still do the heavy lifting for a longer, healthier life. People who take their health seriously treat the tests and supplements as support on top of those foundations, never as a replacement for them. Measure what matters, buy from regulated sources, keep your expectations realistic, and speak to a professional before starting anything new. Do that, and you are not just following a trend, you are making genuinely informed choices about your health."

Yusra Serdaroglu Aydin, MSc RD, Head of Nutrition at Vivere