Anti-Aging Enthusiasts Are Taking a Pill to Extend Their Lives. Will It Work? “The New York Times”
In this article, The New York Times provides real-world examples of how rapamycin works in humans. The report explores the idea of a rapamycin anti-aging pill, drawing on the words and perspectives of doctors, researchers, and users themselves. This discussion closely mirrors broader analyses such as can rapamycin really help you live longer? and the growing question of whether rapamycin is an effective longevity drug. Let’s take a closer look at who said what.
Mr. Berger (who was interviewed for the article) said he hasn’t experienced any “‘Oh my God, I’m a different person’ kind of change” since taking rapamycin. However, his dentist noticed that his gums appeared healthier than they had in a long time, and Mr. Berger also feels he has more energy these days. Still, he admits, “it’s really hard to tell: How much is this placebo?”—a reflection echoed in many rapamycin user experiences and commonly discussed in biohackers examining rapamycin as a potential anti-aging drug.
Longevity influencers Dr. Peter Attia and Bryan Johnson are strong believers. Both say they’ve taken rapamycin for years and regularly cite research to their millions of followers showing that the drug can extend the lifespans of mice by more than 20 percent. These findings—frequently referenced in the youth pill: shocking scientific discoveries about rapamycin—have fueled intense interest in rapamycin for longer life among the broader longevity community.
Like Mr. Berger, some other users interviewed for the article said they believed rapamycin provided mild benefits, such as helping with weight loss, easing aches and pains, or even triggering the regrowth of dark hair years after going gray—observations that align with emerging research showing low-dose rapamycin may promote hair regrowth and other rapamycin aging benefits.
Dr. Dean Kellogg Jr., a professor of medicine and geriatrics at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, explained that other medications had been tested for potential anti-aging effects as part of a National Institute on Aging research program. However, “rapamycin was the first one that actually made a difference in longevity and health span in both male and female mice.” These findings helped spark what many now describe as the revolution that could extend life.
After that came studies in worms, flies, and additional mouse models—nearly all showing lifespan extension. “The demonstration that you could get the same effect across broad evolutionary distance—yeast, worms, fruit flies, mice—that really got people believing that this was something important and fundamental,” said Matthew Kaeberlein, who published the first study on rapamycin in yeast while at the University of Washington. His work helped establish rapamycin’s place in longevity science.
“If you look at the hallmarks of aging, you can find evidence in the literature that rapamycin affects all of them,” Dr. Kaeberlein added—an idea closely tied to rapamycin and mTOR as the hidden switch controlling aging.
According to rapamycin enthusiasts, the strongest human evidence doesn’t come from sweeping longevity claims, but from a 2014 study in which adults aged 65 and older who took another mTOR inhibitor, everolimus, showed a stronger antibody response to the flu vaccine than those who received a placebo. While limited, this finding is meaningful because immune function typically declines with age. The improved vaccine response suggests potential rapamycin immune system benefits, echoing themes explored in rapamycin in 2025: surprising new findings on aging, immunity, and women’s health.
“It really did suggest that in humans, these drugs, mTOR inhibitors, can improve something that becomes impaired with older adults,” said Adam Konopka, an assistant professor of geriatrics and gerontology at the University of Wisconsin, who was not involved in the study.
Is It Safe to Try Rapamycin?
“The way people are using rapamycin off label today—which is mostly once a week, not super high doses—the risks are pretty low,” said Dr. Kaeberlein, who has taken rapamycin himself. “But,” he added, “they’re not nothing.” This cautious optimism reflects ongoing discussions around off-label use of rapamycin from longevity to weight loss and the need for continued research into the future of healthy aging with rapamycin.
