Peptide therapy is an innovative medical treatment that can help patients regain energy, strength, mental acuity, and an overall sense of well-being. At Revive HRT in Dare County, NC, we specialize in using bioidentical peptide hormones to address declining hormone levels, alleviate uncomfortable symptoms, and promote better health. In this comprehensive guide, we'll provide key information about peptide therapy, covering the basics and benefits, diagnosing hormone deficiencies, customized treatment protocols, frequently asked questions, and more.
Peptides are short chains of amino acids that act as messenger molecules in the body. They play a key role in vital functions like tissue and bone repair, immune defense, nerve signaling, and cell-to-cell communication.
Many peptides used for medical purposes are synthetic versions of hormones and growth factors that decline with age. These peptides bind to receptors on target cells, initiating signaling cascades that provide beneficial effects. They can help restore more youthful hormone levels, cellular function, gene expression profiles, and physiological processes.
Peptide therapy has gained popularity due to its targeted effects, safety, efficacy, convenience, legality, and cost-effectiveness. Studies demonstrate compelling results for diverse conditions, including increased lean muscle mass, strength, and exercise capacity, reduced body fat, improved memory, mood, and mental clarity, heightened libido and sexual function, strengthened immune function, and normalized vital biomarkers.
Properly administered peptides can help patients feel and function at more optimal levels, restoring balance, counteracting aging factors, and regaining health.
Tesamorelin is a growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) analogue used to elevate growth hormone and IGF-1 levels. It stimulates the patient's own pituitary gland for natural, pulsatile GH production, increasing lean muscle mass, muscle strength, memory, motivation, cognitive skills, bone mineral density, and more.
For anti-aging purposes, tesamorelin is commonly dosed at 1-2 mg per day by subcutaneous injection, with effects beginning within the first month and continuing to improve over six months.
Sermorelin is another growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) peptide used to boost declining growth hormone. It works by triggering the pituitary gland to increase natural production, promoting lean muscle gain, fat loss, sharper mental clarity, improved sleep quality, higher libido, and other benefits.
For anti-aging purposes, sermorelin is commonly formulated as a subcutaneous injectable dosed daily in the evening, with dosages ranging from 100 mcg to 300 mcg based on the patient's age, symptoms, and lab results.
Thymosins are naturally occurring peptides that regulate immune cell populations like T-cells. Thymosin alpha-1 (Ta1) mimics the effects of thymopoietin, increasing white blood cells and T-cells, while thymosin beta-4 (TB500) promotes tissue healing.
BPC-157 is a synthetic version of gastric juice peptide that plays a role in modulating gut-brain communication, balancing bacteria populations, and facilitating GI tract healing. It protects and heals the stomach lining, reduces gastric acid oversecretion, normalizes reflexes between the brain and gut, and minimizes inflammatory bowel conditions.
Kisspeptin-54 is a peptide hormone that powerfully stimulates GnRH-induced secretion of sex hormones critical for sexual function, heightening sexual arousal sensitivity in both men and women, restoring healthy libido, and more.
Epithalon (or epitalon) is a tetrapeptide derived from the pineal gland that stimulates melatonin production and regulates circadian-metabolic processes. Studies show it extends lifespan in animal models, protects telomeres, improves sleep patterns and mood, supports cognition and memory, and more.
Accurately diagnosing a hormone deficiency requires specialized blood, saliva, or urine testing, as symptoms alone are not definitive. Common indicators that prompt peptide hormone testing include fatigue, muscle loss, weight gain, hair thinning, hot flashes, erectile dysfunction, poor focus, memory lapses, irritability, metabolic issues, and more.
When interpreting hormone blood panels, it's essential to consider the full clinical picture, as ranges provided by commercial labs can be overly broad or misleading. The guide provides guidance on interpreting common peptide hormone markers from a functional medicine perspective.
One of the significant advantages of peptides is the flexibility in dosing formats, including injections (subcutaneous, intramuscular, or intravenous), oral routes (sublingual drops, pills, rapid-dissolve tablets), creams or gels (transdermal), nasal sprays, and pellets or implants.
Designing an individualized peptide protocol requires expertise. The clinicians at Revive HRT optimize each patient's protocol by prioritizing primary goals, selecting peptides to target those goals, choosing the administration method, starting low and titrating gradually, combining with lifestyle optimization, and monitoring progress.
The most common peptide stack for general wellness incorporates GHRHs (growth hormone-releasing hormones) to amplify growth hormone, immune modulators like thymosins, and tissue healers such as BPC-157. Additional tailored peptides can target libido, cognition, inflammation, injuries, skin quality, weight loss, and other parameters.
Peptide therapy is an innovative and promising approach to addressing declining hormone levels and their associated symptoms. By working with experienced clinicians at reputable clinics like Revive HRT, patients can benefit from customized, evidence-based peptide protocols tailored to their unique needs and goals, optimizing their health, vitality, and overall well-being.
