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Bryan Johnson, a high-profile tech millionaire and anti-aging activist, walked out mid-podcast with Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath. The podcast was conducted in a five-star hotel; however, due to poor surroundings being unable to produce quality air, Johnson could not tolerate the quality of air there and left. He said the pollution was disturbing him.
The 47-year-old Bryan Johnson has long been well-known for funding anti-aging studies. He has frequently discussed the significance of achieving optimal health. However, he recently traveled to India and experienced firsthand the perils of the nation’s air pollution. Within a few days of arriving in the country, Johnson started to experience severe symptoms, including skin rashes, burning eyes, and a sore throat, despite wearing a N95 mask.
Bryan Johnson (@bryan_johnson) is one of the most talked about entrepreneurs globally because of his work on longevity and health. He visited India for the first time to participate in a podcast for Nikhil Kamath (@nikhilkamathcio)
Johnson was in Mumbai for this podcast and his… pic.twitter.com/WPG5qMmKm6
Advertisement · Scroll to continue— Prof. Varsha Eknath Gaikwad (@VarshaEGaikwad) February 4, 2025
The air quality in the room, with an AQI of about 130, overwhelmed Johnson while he and Kamath were recording the podcast at a posh hotel. The effects of his air purifier were negated because the air inside was circulating outside. According to Johnson, an AQI of 130 is the same as smoking 3.4 cigarettes in a 24-hour period. He claimed that he struggled with irritation as a result of the exposure and had to leave the podcast early.
He posted about the experience on social media, pointing out the depth of normalizing air pollution in India. “Air pollution has been so normalized in India that no one even notices anymore,” he said. “It was bizarre for me to see how people, from babies to toddlers, would be walking about, going about their daily routines, without masks on. It made me ask the question of why India’s leadership had not yet declared air pollution a national emergency.”.
When in India, I did end this podcast early due to the bad air quality. @nikhilkamathcio was a gracious host and we were having a great time. The problem was that the room we were in circulated outside air which made the air purifier I'd brought with me ineffective.
Inside,… https://t.co/xTkpW567Xv
— Bryan Johnson /dd (@bryan_johnson) February 3, 2025
The incident sheds light on an acute issue that India has long worried about. In most cities across the country, the air quality is so woefully inadequate it falls well short of what even global health authorities recommend. There are grave, long-term consequences for people’s health because of this. Says Johnson, “It may make more difference to India’s health to clean up this crisis than to cure all cancers.”.
As experienced by his podcast, Johnson commented on disbelief at how unaware and inactive people are concerning air pollution. With scientific evidence linking bad air quality to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and even premature death, the issue cannot be dealt with in the urgency it deserves. According to Johnson, air pollution in India has become so interwoven into everyday life that to most people, it has become almost invisible despite its destructive effect.
Johnson also likened India’s air pollution crisis to America’s obesity epidemic. As much as air pollution silently and deadly lingers in India, he noted that obesity has reached alarming levels in the U.S., with 42.4% of Americans now afflicted. “In many contexts, obesity is worse than air pollution in the long term,” Johnson said. He drew a parallel between the two crises and questioned why both issues have not been declared national emergencies in their respective countries, speculating about the role of power, money, and vested interests in maintaining the status quo.
Air Pollution in India
Air pollution in India is no new concern. The country constantly witnesses the danger levels of pollutants, particularly PM2.5 particles, that penetrate into the lungs and bloodstream and thus create extreme health problems. As reported by the World Health Organization (WHO), some of the world’s most polluted cities are located in India, and the effects are being felt by millions every day.
Asthma, bronchitis, heart disease, and stroke are the top five pollution-related diseases in the country. These impacts face a significantly vulnerable population—children, the elderly, and those with preexisting health conditions. Government initiatives in the form of air quality monitoring, the introduction of cleaner technologies, and a control on industrial emissions have not shown any substantial response to curbing the levels of pollution to a safe range.
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