These Plants Turn On 1,100 Healing Genes In 24 Hours (Ancient Biohacks) : 1346
The Human Upgrade: Biohacking for Longevity & Performance
Dave Asprey
4.6 • 7.3K Ratings
🗓️ 16 October 2025
⏱️ 62 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Most people try to “heal” their brain with supplements, mindset, or meditation—but this episode reveals the deeper protocol to actually grow a new brain, reverse stress damage, activate 1,100 healing genes, and unlock higher human performance at any age. You’ll learn how neuroplasticity, mitochondria repair, plant-based NRF2 activators, and energetic practices work together to rebuild the brain and extend longevity.
Watch this episode on YouTube for the full video experience:
https://www.youtube.com/@DaveAspreyBPR
Host Dave Asprey sits down with Alberto Villoldo, Ph.D.—medical anthropologist, neuroscientist, energy medicine pioneer, and founder of The Four Winds Society, the gold-standard school for modern shamans. He has spent 25+ years studying Amazonian and Andean healing traditions, led the Biological Self-Regulation Lab at San Francisco State University to explore psychosomatic medicine, and authored more than 25 bestselling books on neuroscience, functional medicine, and energy healing. Few people on earth bridge ancient biohacking and modern brain science at this level.
He also reveals the forms of nicotine that are safest (spoiler: it’s not vapes or cigarettes), how nicotine works at the receptor level, and what the science says about long-term health effects. This episode blends functional medicine, brain optimization, and biohacking into one powerful, myth-busting breakdown.
You'll learn:
• How to grow a new brain every 22 days using neuroplasticity and mitochondria support
• Why plant medicines and NRF2 activators can turn on 1,100 healing genes in 24 hours
• The surprising link between nootropics, psychedelics, serotonin, and endogenous DMT
• How mindset, belief systems, and placebo/nocebo shape immune function and metabolism
• Why RFK’s chronic disease warning connects to viral evolution and immune collapse
• The real reason carnivore diets work—and when they fail without gut repair
• Peptides, GLP-1 agonists, and the future of functional medicine hacking
• Why most people sabotage themselves and how to stop fighting your own biology
This is essential listening for anyone serious about biohacking, human performance, and longevity, and for those who want to understand how functional biology and mitochondrial science are redefining recovery, energy, and aging.
Dave Asprey is a four-time New York Times bestselling author, founder of Bulletproof Coffee, and the father of biohacking. With over 1,000 interviews and 1 million monthly listeners, The Human Upgrade brings you the knowledge to take control of your biology, extend your longevity, and optimize every system in your body and mind. Each episode delivers cutting-edge insights in health, performance, neuroscience, supplements, nutrition, biohacking, emotional intelligence, and conscious living.
New episodes are released every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday (BONUS). Dave asks the questions no one else will and gives you real tools to become stronger, smarter, and more resilient.
Keywords: NRF2 activation, Neurogenesis and hippocampus repair, Plant-based epigenetic triggers, Psychosomatic health, Serotonin to DMT conversion, Pineal gland methylation, Parasites and brain inflammation, Viral-driven evolution, GLP-1 agonists and longevity, Psilocybin lifespan extension, Autophagy and brain cleanup, Energetic medicine training, Functional peptides, BPC-157, Breathwork and CO2 tolerance, mTOR cycling, Cold exposure and dopamine, Mindset-driven immune function
Thank you to our sponsors!
• EMR-Tek | https://www.emr-tek.com/DAVE and use code DAVE for 40% off.
• Essentia | Go to https://myessentia.com/dave and use code DAVE for $100 off The Dave Asprey Upgrade.
• Timeline | Head to https://www.timeline.com/dave to get 10% off your first order.
• fatty15 | Go to https://fatty15.com/dave and save an extra $15 when you subscribe with code DAVE.
Resources:
• Learn more from Alberto at: www.thefourwinds.com and www.albertovilloldo.net
• Buy the book ‘Grow A New Brain’: https://a.co/d/5lVhrVy
• Business of Biohacking | Register to attend October 20-23 in Austin, TX https://businessofbiohacking.com/
• Danger Coffee: https://dangercoffee.com/discount/dave15
• Dave Asprey’s BEYOND Conference: https://beyondconference.com
• Dave Asprey’s New Book – Heavily Meditated: https://daveasprey.com/heavily-meditated
• Upgrade Collective: https://www.ourupgradecollective.com
• Upgrade Labs: https://upgradelabs.com
• 40 Years of Zen: https://40yearsofzen.com
Timestamps:
0:00 — Trailer
1:25 — Introduction & Ayahuasca Story
3:15 — Shamanism Beyond Plant Medicine
6:53 — Losing Your Mind to Evolve
10:45 — The 22-Day New Brain Cycle
12:53 — Plant Communication & Direct Knowing
15:35 — Parasites, Liver Failure & Brain Damage
20:25 — Remote Healing & CIA Research
22:40 — Tryptophan, Turkey Farmers & Brain Chemistry
25:19 — Viruses as Evolutionary Drivers
30:30 — Psilocybin & Life Extension
35:25 — Healing with Mindset + Biology
38:52 — Spirit, Purpose & Growing Gods
43:49 — Plants, Protein & mTOR
49:07 — Training the Four Brains
51:16 — Cold Exposure: Pain vs Suffering
54:40 — Who Am I? Living the Question
55:25 — Closing
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Some of my research was in a declassified CIA document. |
| 0:03.6 | We're here to talk about how to literally grow a new brain. |
| 0:07.4 | And this is something that you've done, and you've written your book about how to grow a new brain. |
| 0:12.2 | I had a dead liver, heart full of holes, and dead parasites in my brain. |
| 0:15.9 | I knew I could get a new liver, maybe even a new heart, but it's hard to find a good brain, these steps. |
| 0:22.0 | Today's guest was one of the youngest neuroscience professors in the country, until the limits of |
| 0:26.9 | the microscope hit, and he traveled to the Amazon to study how indigenous shamans grew their |
| 0:31.7 | brain without modern medicine. He later founded the Four Winds Society, now the leading school |
| 0:37.0 | for energy medicine, and has written over 25 best-selling books blending neuroscience and ancient recipes to regenerate a new brain. |
| 0:46.4 | You live in the Amazon, you've got to be a biologist. |
| 0:49.4 | Thomas were the first biologist. |
| 0:51.3 | So I reverted back to what I learned in the Amazon. We looked at the sacred plants. |
| 0:56.4 | The sacred plants all turn out to be switch on more than 1,100 genes that create health and silence. |
| 1:03.0 | About 600 genes within 24 hours that create disease. Are the plants actually hacking us? |
| 1:09.5 | You're listening to The Human Upgrade with Dave Asprey. |
| 1:17.4 | If your light environment isn't dialed in, your biology isn't either. |
| 1:21.8 | And if you're not using light as a performance tool, you're leaving results on the table every single day. |
| 1:27.3 | The right light wavelengths unlock recovery, energy, and clarity in ways most people never tap into. |
| 1:34.3 | EMR Tech's Krypton UV line puts that power in your hands with red, near-infrared, UVA, and UVB all in one system. |
| 1:42.3 | They have something for everyone. From the compact Krypton Micro and Mini to the modular 606 watt and 1612 watt, |
| 1:50.0 | each device lets you choose your wavelengths, your timers, and how deep you want to go with your setup. |
| 1:57.0 | I personally use the Ultron. It's a beast. |
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