Guide

Peptides

The honest, evidence-graded dashboard on popular peptides: what each one is, the real evidence tier, legal status, and safety, not seller marketing.

Full peptide regulatory hub and tracker →

A few peptides here, semaglutide, tirzepatide, PT-141, and tesamorelin, are FDA-approved prescription drugs for a specific use, backed by large randomized trials. Most of the rest are sold as unregulated research chemicals with animal-only or very early human data. We grade every one the same way: by the evidence that actually exists, not by popularity or marketing.

FDA-approved for a specific use, strongest evidence

Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) FDA-approved for type 2 diabetes and chronic weight management; the strongest human evidence base of any peptide here, backed by large randomized trials. Prescription-only; gray-market compounded versions carry real purity risk.

Tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) FDA-approved dual GIP/GLP-1 drug for type 2 diabetes and weight management, backed by the SURMOUNT and SURPASS trial programs. Prescription-only; same gray-market sourcing risk as semaglutide.

PT-141 / Bremelanotide (Vyleesi) FDA-approved, but only for hypoactive sexual desire disorder in premenopausal women. Using it for general libido enhancement outside that population is off-label and far less studied.

Tesamorelin (Egrifta) FDA-approved, but only for reducing excess abdominal fat in HIV-associated lipodystrophy. Off-label use for general fat loss or anti-aging is not what its approval is based on.

Real but narrower evidence, largely unapproved for the popular use

Thymosin Alpha-1 Approved as a prescription immune-modulator in 30+ countries (Zadaxin) with real trial support for hepatitis B, but not FDA-approved in the US; sold here as an unregulated research chemical. Page coming soon.

GHK-Cu (Copper Peptide) Real double-blind human trial support, but only for topical skincare use; injectable or systemic anti-aging claims are not backed by comparable evidence. Legal as a cosmetic ingredient.

Sermorelin A GHRH analog with decades of use through compounding pharmacies, but its current wellness use (anti-aging, sleep, recovery) has essentially no controlled human evidence; its compounding-legal status needs independent confirmation.

Semax A Russian-registered nootropic peptide with real controlled human trial data (a 110-patient ischemic-stroke study raising BDNF), unlike most research peptides, but that evidence is Russian and unreplicated in Western trials. Not FDA-approved in the US.

Cerebrolysin A porcine-brain-derived neuropeptide mixture with real Cochrane-reviewed trial evidence: a small cognitive benefit for vascular dementia (reviewers stopped short of recommending routine use), and no survival benefit plus more adverse events for acute stroke. Not FDA-approved in the US.

Preclinical, anecdotal, or largely unproven, watch this space

BPC-157 The most popular peptide on this page and the least proven: human data is one currently-recruiting trial, not a completed result. Not FDA-approved; sold as a gray-market research chemical; banned at all times under WADA.

KPV A tripeptide fragment of alpha-MSH with real animal and cell data (blocks NF-kB inflammatory signaling, reduces colitis in mice) but zero completed human trials. Not FDA-approved; sold as an unregulated research chemical.

TB-500 Sold as a fragment of thymosin beta-4, but has essentially no dedicated human trial data of its own; the human data that exists belongs to the parent molecule, not this product. Not FDA-approved.

CJC-1295 A long-acting GHRH analog with no completed human RCTs for its popular uses. Reported on the FDA's restricted-compounding list pending review; banned under WADA. Huberman has cited a linked clinical-trial death.

Ipamorelin A ghrelin-receptor GH secretagogue with no completed human RCTs for its popular uses. Same reported compounding-restriction and WADA-ban status as CJC-1295.

MK-677 (Ibutamoren) A pill-form GH secretagogue, technically not a peptide; Merck ran Phase 2 trials but never sought approval. Documented to increase appetite and reduce insulin sensitivity in its own trial data. Not FDA-approved; WADA-banned.

Epithalon One small, short human study on melatonin metabolites; the telomerase and longevity claims it's marketed on have no human trial support. Not FDA-approved. Page coming soon.

MOTS-c Preclinical and mechanistic only; no completed human trial for its popular metabolic-health or performance uses. Not FDA-approved.

DSIP (Emideltide) More old human trial data than most peptides here: small double-blind trials from the 1980s and 90s reported improved sleep, but they are 40+ years old and never replicated at modern standards. An FDA advisory committee reviewed it and recommended against it. Not FDA-approved; no legal human-use pathway.

Humanin One of the least human-tested peptides sold; preclinical only, with little commercial or informational track record. Not FDA-approved. Page coming soon.

5-Amino-1MQ Not actually a peptide; a preclinical NNMT-inhibitor small molecule with no completed human trial for weight management. Not FDA-approved. Page coming soon.

SLU-PP-332 The earliest-stage compound here: an academic, rodent-only research tool with zero human data of any kind. Not an approved or legally marketed human product. Page coming soon.

Melanotan II Never approved for any use; multiple global regulators have issued public warnings against it. Can darken existing moles and skin lesions, masking early melanoma changes; this is a safety story first, not a promising-early-data story.

Peptides range from FDA-approved prescription drugs with some of the strongest evidence in medicine to unregulated “research chemicals” with little more than animal data and a marketing budget behind them. Most of what's popular online, BPC-157, TB-500, CJC-1295, ipamorelin, MK-677, and more, is not FDA-approved for the use people want and is sold outside any regulated supply chain. This page grades every popular peptide honestly by the actual evidence, not by how well it sells, so you always know what you're really looking at. This is educational information only, not medical advice; nothing on this page is instructions for use, and any decision about a prescription medication or an unregulated substance belongs with a licensed clinician.

Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy): Evidence and Safety

Tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound): Evidence and Safety

GLP-1 Companion Nutrition: Keep the Muscle

PT-141 / Bremelanotide: Evidence and Safety

Tesamorelin (Egrifta): Evidence and Safety

BPC-157: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

TB-500: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

CJC-1295: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

Ipamorelin: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

MK-677 (Ibutamoren): Evidence and Safety

GHK-Cu (Copper Peptide): Evidence and Safety

Sermorelin: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

Melanotan II: The Safety Risks and Legal Status

KPV: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

Semax: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

MOTS-c: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

DSIP (Emideltide): Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

Cerebrolysin: Evidence, Legal Status, and Safety

The Wolverine Stack: What Ben Greenfield Says, and the Honest Evidence Gap

Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy): Evidence and Safety

Tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound): Evidence and Safety

GLP-1 Companion Nutrition: Keep the Muscle

Experts behind Peptides protocols

Andrew Huberman

Peter Attia

Ben Greenfield

Kyle Gillett

Abud Bakri

Ania Jastreboff

Craig Koniver

Daniel Drucker

Derek (MPMD)

Jay Campbell