“Biohacking is about agency and empowerment. So much of modern medicine is about dependency and disempowerment.” - Dr Rangan Chatterjee

➡︎ Dr Rangan Chatterjee is one of the UK’s most influential medical doctors and a leading voice in lifestyle medicine. His mission is to help 100 million people around the world live better lives through practical, person-centred health. He hosts Feel Better, Live More, the most listened-to health podcast in the UK and Europe, reaching over eight million people each month. Rangan is the author of six international bestsellers, including Make Change That Lasts, a number one Sunday Times Bestseller. His TED Talk, How to Make Disease Disappear, has been viewed nearly six million times, and his BBC One series Doctor in the House has aired in more than 70 countries. He also serves as Professor of Health Communication and Education at the University of Chester and co-created the Royal College of GPs-accredited Prescribing Lifestyle Medicine course, training clinicians worldwide to deliver lasting behavioural change.

In this conversation, Tim and Rangan explore:

➡︎ Agency and Empowerment: Why medicine often creates dependency, how consultation styles shape patient outcomes, and the simple reframing that restores ownership of health.

➡︎ Stress and Blood Sugar: How emotional and psychological load can elevate glucose levels as powerfully as food, and what practical steps bring them back into balance.

➡︎ Wearables with Purpose: How continuous glucose monitors and other trackers help when used for insight, not identity, and why self-awareness matters more than data.

➡︎ The Hidden Cost of Optimisation: How chasing perfect metrics can disconnect us from relationships, purpose, and the joy that sustains long-term health.

➡︎ Daily Practice and Self-Trust: The 3 Ms, Mindfulness, Movement, and Mindset, as the foundation for consistency, balance, and meaningful progress.

💡 Highlights

0:00 Intro

1:18 Biohacking vs medicine: the clash of models

3:52 Agency and empowerment at the heart of true health

5:35 Two diabetic scripts that shape two different futures

7:26 Continuous glucose monitors as tools for awareness

10:55 Stress as the unseen driver of high blood sugar

13:07 Behavioural change through self-observation, not fear

15:05 Case studies: reversing glucose imbalance through stress control

18:00 The problem with over-optimising and losing connection

21:11 Redefining success: health that fits real life

25:59 The unmeasurables: compassion, forgiveness, and meaning

28:45 Emotional health as a biological process

33:57 Letting go and learning to forgive as medicine

36:40 Taking less offence to reduce internal stress

39:58 Edith Eger’s story: reframing the mind’s prison

44:10 Self-awareness as the foundation of behaviour change

47:54 Solitude and stillness as daily practice

52:10 The 3 Ms: mindfulness, movement, and mindset

55:42 Keeping small promises to rebuild self-trust

58:29 The true measure of optimisation: calm, clarity, and connection

🔎 Visit: https://www.drchatterjee.com & Podcast - Feel Better, Live More https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/feel-better-live-more-with-dr-rangan-chatterjee/id1333552422

A big thank you to Timeline Longevity for sponsoring this episode!

I’ve been taking Mitopure for years now - it’s the only clinically proven form of Urolithin A, a compound that recharges your cellular energy by restoring your mitochondria. It’s been developed over 15 years with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, and it works. Since taking it, I’ve noticed stronger workouts, faster recovery, and sustained energy. Try it for yourself now - head to Timeline.com and use code TIMBIOHACKER for 20% off.

Resources Mentioned in the Episode

Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM)

Whoop Tracker

Oura Tracker

Ellen Langer’s mindset research

Fred Luskin’s forgiveness studies (Stanford)

The Four Agreements – Don Miguel Ruiz

The Miracle Morning – Hal Elrod

The Health Optimisation Summit

Timeline Longevity

⚡️ Disclaimer: https://podcast.healthoptimisation.com/disclaimer/

The Secret Life of Debt Heads

Debt Heads

Shame, Its Harms, and the Depression–Debt Cycle

The AI-powered Podcast Player