Anti-ageing influencer Bryan Johnson left Nikhil Kamath’s podcast midway due to the poor air quality index.

US-based influencer Bryan Johnson, who is famous for his anti-ageing routine, was shooting a podcast with entrepreneur and influencer Nikhil Kamath and he got up and left the conversation midway.

© Instagram/Bryan Johnson

Later, Bryan issued a long statement on X, stating that the poor air quality index of India was the reason behind his exit.

Bryan wrote, “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, the AQI was 130 and PM2.5 was 75 µg/m³, which is equal to smoking 3.4 cigarettes for 24 hours of exposure. This was my third day in India and the air pollution had made my skin break out in rash and my eyes and throat burn. Air pollution has been so normalized in India that no one even notices anymore despite the science of its negative effects being well known.”

He added, “People would be outside running. Babies and small children exposed from birth. No one wore a mask which can significantly decrease exposure. It was so confusing. The evidence shows that India would improve the health of its population more by cleaning up air quality than by curing all cancers.

“I am unsure why India's leaders do not make air quality a national emergency. I don't know what interests, money and power keep things the way they are but it's really bad for the entire country. When I returned to the U.S., my eyes were fresh to see what is normalized to me.

“I saw obesity everywhere. 42.4% of American are obese and because I was around it all the time, I had been mostly oblivious to it. In many contexts, obesity is worse than air pollution in the long term. Why wouldn't American leaders declare a national emergency on obesity? What interests, money and power keep things the way they are but are really bad for the entire country.”

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

His post is getting mixed reactions from users, as some people are trolling him while others are saying that whatever he said is true.

One user commented, “With what you have stated ‘Inside, the AQI was 130 and PM2.5 was 75 µg/m³, which is equal to smoking 3.4 cigarettes for 24 hours of exposure’ every Indian would have died by the age of 30 itself. Don't over exaggerate!”

With what you have stated "Inside, the AQI was 130 and PM2.5 was 75 µg/m³, which is equal to smoking 3.4 cigarettes for 24 hours of exposure" every Indian would have died by the age of 30 itself. Don' over exaggerate!

— Meghnath 🩴 (@Meghnath_trader) February 3, 2025

Another user commented, “I love India and would like to live here. But every time I visit my hometown in NCR I am sick for days! It has become a gas chamber and people are not realising how bad it'll be in upcoming years for future generations.”

I love India and would like to live here. But every time I visit my hometown in NCR I am sick for days! It has become a gas chamber and people are not realising how bad it'll be in upcoming years for future generations. 🥲

— Rohit Aggarwal | Bhai from Dubai🇦🇪 (@RohitxNexus) February 3, 2025

I am Indian and can agree with you. However, the air pollution isn't consistently bad all throughout the country. Some cities are significantly better than others. And some cities have bad air quality because of natural seasonal (winter) factors which dissipate in the summers.…

— Mayur मयूर Thaker ठाकर (@freshjiva) February 3, 2025

I was there in the room during this podcast. At Zerodha/Rainmatter we are committed to solve the air pollution issue. If you're a scientist, engineer, entrepreneur keen to contribute and have a solution. Do reach out. We need to start doing & building things than just talking.

— Dilip Kumar (@kmr_dilip) February 4, 2025

Bro, just chill out. Stop measuring the air quality everywhere you go and start enjoying the place

— Rohit Sharma (@rohittales) February 3, 2025

Bryan Johnson claims to be an anti-ageing influencer who is famous for his tough fitness routine and diet. He founded and previously led Kernel, a company developing brain-monitoring devices, and also established OS Fund, a venture capital firm supporting early-stage science and technology startups.