Podcast Summary: "Hacking Our Health"

Podcast: Today, Explained by Vox
Date: August 17, 2025
Host: Jonathan Hill
Guests & Contributors: Adam Clark Estes (Vox tech reporter), Anahad O'Connor (Washington Post health columnist), Dr. Ruth Wood (Neuroscientist, USC), Various listener call-ins

Overview

In this episode of Today, Explained, the team dives into America's obsession with "hacking" health—exploring how technology, hormones, and supplements are used in the quest for wellness. Through firsthand experiences, expert opinions, and some critical skepticism, the episode looks at the promises and pitfalls of wearable fitness trackers, hormone therapies like testosterone replacement, and the booming supplement industry.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Tech-Driven Search for Wellness

(01:40–09:39)

• Wearables as Biohacking Tools
  Adam Clark Estes, who tested a variety of fitness and health trackers—including the Oura Ring, Whoop band, Apple Watch, and continuous glucose monitors—explains their role in shaping physical, mental, and digital wellness.

  • Estes' motivation: "I wanted to try to figure out what the right balance would be...if all of these futuristic monitors and trackers could tell me more about how what I was eating or how much I was exercising or sleeping, how that was, you know, really affecting my body." (03:28, Estes)
  • He found the Apple Watch and Oura Ring most useful, highlighting the value in their simplicity, comfort, and the immediate feedback they provide. The Apple Watch emphasizes standing, exercise, and movement "rings," while the Oura Ring adds personalized feedback, such as readiness and sleep scores.

• The Double-Edged Sword of Data Feedback

  • Many users (and the hosts themselves) shared experiences of obsessively tracking health metrics—sometimes to an unhealthy degree.

    "I did become fixated on closing my rings, meeting my calorie goals in a way that it did seem it was unhealthy. I constantly check my stats, calories, steps, everything to the point where I was using that data to justify whether or not I was allowed to eat that day." (06:56, Listener Call-In)

  • Estes connects with this:

    "By the end of it, that was the experience. The experience of being obsessed with checking these apps and of trying to make sure I closed my rings and got a good score here and a good score there. And it gets really out of control if you're doing it on multiple platforms." (07:37, Estes)

  • However, he also points out:

    "The data that health trackers can offer you is really feedback about how your body's doing...It can also tell you when you are feeling tired and would probably benefit from a less intense workout. And that's something I've taken away from this." (08:30, Estes)

• Limitations and Broader Problems
  Estes is candid about the outsized expectations:

  "I think that a lot of our problems with health in the United States have to do with our healthcare system and how it works. But I will say that health trackers are a very American solution. It is a gadget, it’s a product that you can buy that puts you in the driver's seat of looking after your health." (09:39, Estes)

  • He emphasizes that while trackers can be helpful, they aren't a substitute for a robust health care system.

2. Hormones and Biohacking: The Testosterone Craze

(12:31–21:00)

• Testosterone's Rise in the Mainstream
  The segment moves to the growing trend of hormone manipulation, especially testosterone therapy among men. Prescription rates have jumped from 7.3 million in 2019 to more than 11 million in 2024. (13:07)

  • Testosterone is described by guests as a "secret weapon":

    "I tried testosterone replacement and it just gives you so much virility." (12:47, O'Connor)

  • Dr. Ruth Wood explains:

    "Testosterone acts throughout the body, and it is muscle building...It works very well to increase muscle mass. And it's also lipolytic, which means it's fat metabolizing, so it produces more lean mass and less fat mass. And so this is what many people are looking for." (13:44, Dr. Wood)

• Distinguishing Anabolic Steroids and Therapeutic Testosterone

  • Anabolic steroids usually involve large, often abused doses for muscle gain.
  • TRT (testosterone replacement therapy) is prescribed, usually in lower doses, especially for aging men with naturally declining testosterone. There’s concern about “low T” clinics prescribing without proper tests. (14:39–15:45)

• Cultural and Media Influences

  • The idea that men need to be "cut":

    "There's a lot of media attention to the idea that men need to be really cut...The bodybuilders of that era in the 40s...really wouldn't even rate a second glance nowadays because that was as big as you could get at the time without exogenous steroids." (15:48–16:20, Dr. Wood)

  • The acceptability and ease of access now makes muscular physiques and use of substances "normal" in Hollywood and even the military:

    "The widespread availability of testosterone has made it seem normal to have relatively more muscular physique. And you see this particularly in Hollywood when you look at older stars and you think, you know, nobody puts on that kind of muscle mass just by themselves as they age. So it’s generally accepted that Hollywood as well as the military, there’s definitely a lot of low level use of performance enhancing drugs. Why? Because they work." (17:11, Dr. Wood)

• Risks, Downsides & Open Questions

  • Despite proven efficacy, there are health concerns:

    "They do cause changes in blood chemistry and they can cause liver dysfunction. And so there are definitely some health concerns...that need to be looked at." (17:53, Dr. Wood)

  • On longevity clinics and "optimization":

    “I don’t think we really know enough about the long term effects of testosterone replacement therapy...Does it improve quality of life though? I would say probably yes in terms of people’s sense of energy and their sense of strength, as well as their libido and perhaps zest for life.” (18:58, Dr. Wood)

  • Cautions for age groups:

    "I don't think that there's really any reason for young men to take TRT therapy at this point. They are at the peak of their own endogenous testosterone production..." (19:38, Dr. Wood) "For older men...once you start taking TRT, you're actually going to suppress your own endogenous testosterone production further. And that means that you really need to make a commitment to take this long term." (20:08, Dr. Wood)

3. Supplements: The Wild West of Wellness

(21:47–30:41)

• America’s Love Affair with Supplements

  • 60% of Americans use dietary supplements, with usage increasing alongside age. Many people take several at a time, some dozens. (23:58, O’Connor)
  • The apparent purpose is to “feel better,” but actual benefits are often ambiguous.

• Efficacy, Risks, and the Placebo Effect

  • Well-intentioned clinical trials often yield surprising results.

    "...People who we assign to take these supplements actually develop side effects and are more likely to develop, you know, cancer or heart disease, prostate cancer, things like that, and have been shocked. You know, in fact, what we know is that it's the dose that makes the poison." (24:40, O'Connor)

  • Overconsumption is more dangerous than most realize, as dietary supplements are delivered in concentrated forms.

• Poor Regulation & Loopholes in Oversight

  • The 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act has left the supplement industry "very loosely regulated," enabling easy market entry and unverified health claims.

    "...the supplement industry pushed for this law...which basically created what many critics call the Wild west of the supplement industry, where supplement makers can make all sorts of health claims. They don't have to undergo clinical trials...The FDA really can't do anything once they're on the market unless there are reports of severe side effects." (25:45, O’Connor)

    • An estimated 90,000 dietary supplements are currently on the market.

• Specific Supplements: Should You Take Them?

  • Multivitamins:
    "If you are eating a healthy diet, then it's very unlikely that you actually need a multivitamin. Although there have been some studies showing benefits...in older adults..." (27:42, O'Connor)

  • Probiotics:
    They can disrupt gut microbe diversity if taken as pills; better sourced through fermented foods like yogurt or kimchi.

    "If you take a probiotic in capsule or pill form, that can throw off the balance of your gut microbial ecosystem...But probiotics are good for you, and you can get them from fermented foods." (28:10, O'Connor)

  • Creatine:
    Proven benefit if combined with resistance training for muscle growth, but the effect is moderate and evidence for cognitive benefits is lacking.

    "There have been studies showing that when you take a creatine supplement in combination with resistance training...then you can get some benefits...But the benefits are not extraordinary." (29:09, O’Connor)

  • Bottom Line:
    Unless you have a diagnosed deficiency, target nutrition through whole foods.

    "...there is a multi billion dollar industry that wants the profit off of you..." (30:21, O’Connor)
    "You should be focusing on getting your nutrients and vitamins from your diet just by eating a lot of healthy whole foods, which is what human beings have been doing for millennia and has always worked." (30:35, O’Connor)

Noteworthy Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the psychological impact of wearables:

  "Knowing my hourly and daily step count did something weird to my brain that I couldn't turn off." (07:33, Listener Call-In)

• On the supplement industry:

  "You and I can easily create our own supplement company in five minutes." (26:51, O’Connor)

• On testosterone and its social normalization:

  "...When you look at older stars and you think, you know, nobody puts on that kind of muscle mass just by themselves as they age." (17:11, Dr. Wood)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Fitness Trackers & Tech Biohacking: 01:16–09:39
• Hormones, TRT, and Steroid Culture: 12:31–21:00
• Supplements & Regulation: 21:47–30:41

Conclusion

This episode is a comprehensive, skeptical tour of the modern American drive to “hack” wellness. Tech wearables can provide helpful data but risk fostering obsession. Hormonal therapies offer real but poorly understood trade-offs. The supplement industry, meanwhile, thrives amid loose regulation—encouraging potentially risky self-experimentation. The experts agree: the simplest, most time-tested path to wellness is eating whole foods and listening to your body, not to an app or a marketing claim.

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