“It feels like no one really knows what we’re doing by taking peptides,” says Margo Fleming, a 41-year-old ultramarathon runner in Los Angeles. Fleming started using BPC-157, a synthetic peptide that allegedly boosts wound healing and supports recovery, two years ago after hearing recommendations from several health professionals, including a personal trainer, a massage therapist and a naturopath. “I’ve dealt with a lot of injuries in the past, but I feel like my body is more resilient on peptides,” she says. Fleming says some of her chronic injuries—Achilles tendinitis and frequent calf strains—are gone.
Peptides are the body’s messengers that signal your cells to execute functions like prompting your kidneys to absorb water or your brain to release oxytocin. They occur naturally in your body, but synthetic versions, like the ones Fleming uses, can also be made in a laboratory and injected or swallowed to induce a variety of vital functions at will. Once limited to die-hard fitness circles, injectable peptides have seeped into the mainstream thanks to a heavy push on social media and widespread use of GLP-1 medications, which themselves are weight-loss peptides.
And there’s a peptide for nearly everything—speeding muscle recovery, slowing aging, helping a variety of injuries and ailments—though many aren’t well studied or approved for use by the Food and Drug Administration. Still, they’ve been publicly supported by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who announced in February that he planned to ease restrictions on 14 peptides that the FDA had previously banned pharmacies from creating. However, even Kennedy admitted that there isn’t much scientific evidence to support the use of supplemental peptides.
Health-care providers are usually wary of patients trying these so-called “gray market” products manufactured without FDA oversight. Meanwhile, desperate consumers are tempted by a buffet of choices.
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Why are so many different things considered peptides?
The term peptides can be confusing. “Peptides are short chains of amino acids, the same building blocks that make up proteins, just much smaller,” says Stuart Phillips, PhD, chair of the Department of Kinesiology at McMaster University in Ontario. Several medications fall into the peptides category, including insulin and GLP-1s like Ozempic. Those are FDA approved; the peptides many people reference on social media are not.
“Your body makes thousands of them naturally, and they act as signaling molecules that tell cells what to do, whether that’s releasing a hormone, building tissue, regulating appetite or modulating inflammation,” Phillips says. “The peptides people are talking about now are synthetic versions designed to mimic or amplify those natural signals.”
Of the injectable and oral peptides popular on social media, BPC-157 (tied to muscle and tendon repair and gut health), is one of the most common, along with MK-677 (muscle growth), and SS-31 and GHK-Cu (both anti-aging). Influencers make bold claims about these products, suggesting that they can support gut health, muscle recovery, longevity and more. (Often, these influencers offer a discount code for an online retailer or provide a special link in their profile, suggesting that they receive a commission from sales.)
Because many peptides are not FDA approved, people often purchase products labeled for research use only, says Daniel T. Abazia, PharmD, director of the Rutgers/RWJBarnabas Health Medication-Use Safety and Information Center. But purchasing products labeled “not for human consumption” or “for research purposes only” means bypassing key safety checks.
Why are people using peptides?
About four years ago, Jessi Smith, a 33-year-old in Boston, developed a mysterious array of symptoms, including brain fog, fatigue, dizziness and food intolerances. Her functional medicine provider determined that she had mold toxicity and spent two years trying to help her feel better.
“It was getting to the point where we had tried everything,” Smith says. “We’re still detoxing the mold, still healing my gut. My immune system is just shot.” It was then that Smith’s provider suggested she try peptides as a way to “jump-start” her health.
She started with a blend of several peptides: BPC-157, KPV, GHK-Cu and N-acetyl larazotide. At first, she didn’t like the way she felt. She had “horrible insomnia” and felt awful the next day. “I don’t want to necessarily blame the peptides, because my body is pretty reactive right now,” she says. Smith restarted the peptide blend at a lower dose a few weeks later and felt better. “I still need to give it some time and ease up to the full dose, but thankfully had no bad reactions other than some fatigue the first few days,” she says.
Fleming’s experience has been different. “I have had no side effects,” she says. She had “pretty intense” tendinitis in her Achilles tendon for three years that went away after she started taking BPC-157. “I was in a space of seeing a podiatrist, getting prescriptions for MRIs … it was bad,” she says. “I recover faster on peptides.” She has also struggled with digestive-health issues for years. “Apparently BPC-157 helps with gut-related issues,” she says, “but I can’t say that anything is worlds better there.”
While BPC-157 is popular in athletic circles, it’s banned in and out of competition by the World Anti-Doping Agency, making it something that athletes competing at the national or international level, especially top finishers and record breakers, should avoid. (Fleming says she’s not running races to try to win.)
How well do they work?
There is rigorous data to support the use of FDA-approved peptides, but clinical data on the unregulated wellness and sports peptides sold online is limited or lacking. One 2018 study found that BPC-157 helped heal damaged tendon-muscle junctions in rats given the peptide. And an earlier study, from 1996, found that when a group of adults ages 64 to 81 took MK-677, their levels of an important growth hormone were restored to those of young adults. But the study was small, including only 32 adults.
“A lot of peptides being used on the gray market currently don’t have human studies or have very limited human studies that are not ideal,” says Tracy Verrico, DO, a board-certified OB-GYN and hormone expert at Bona Dea Gynecology. “We definitely need more data. That’s what I’m telling patients.”
There’s also a big difference between animal and human studies, notes Abazia. “A peptide that heals a tendon in a rat doesn’t always work the same way in a 51-year-old man with a complex medical history,” he says.
Phillips says the lack of data to support these peptides is particularly concerning. “We have very limited human data,” he explains. “A lot of the enthusiasm is built on rodent studies, in vitro work, or anecdotes. That doesn’t mean these compounds don’t work, but we don’t really know what they do over months or years of use, what the right dose is, who shouldn’t take them or what happens when you stack three or four together, which is common practice.”
Phillips stresses that a lack of data isn’t evidence that these peptides are harmful. “But it’s also not evidence of safety, and the marketing tends to blur that distinction,” he says.
There’s also a lack of data on how well oral peptides perform compared to the more popular injectable peptides. “A capsule from a wellness website is almost certainly not delivering what an injection would,” Phillips says, noting that peptides are “poorly absorbed” when they’re taken orally.
But injectable peptides carry risks of infection and injection-site reaction, and then there’s the question of what’s actually in the vial, Phillips says.
Fleming acknowledges the lack of data surrounding peptides. “I feel like if there was some sort of glaring issue, I would stop,” she says. “I don’t know if this is blind optimism, but if I feel good, that’s good.” Fleming says she thinks the impact of BPC-157 has been “significant” on her health and fitness recovery but adds, “I really wish I could prove the peptides were helping.”
Are peptides the answer?
Many people who use peptides started them after feeling as if they had exhausted their options with conventional medicine. “I was getting no answers. I was told it was just anxiety,” Smith says. “I feel like I was getting very gaslit. The nontraditional routes have been more helpful for me.”
Peptides are often marketed to these patients. “A lot of people—particularly those dealing with chronic pain, slow recovery from injury, midlife metabolic changes or symptoms that don’t fit neatly into a diagnostic box—feel unheard by conventional medicine,” Phillips says. “Peptides are being marketed as a personalized, optimization-focused alternative, often by clinicians who spend more time listening than a typical primary-care visit allows.”
There can be a placebo effect to feeling cared for, he adds, noting that this “shouldn’t be dismissed.” Couple that with many social media claims, and it’s easy to see why some people are willing to try peptides. But before turning to them, take a step back. “Be honest with yourself about what you’re trying to fix,” Phillips says. “Many of the things that people use peptides for—recovery, body composition, energy—are far more responsive to consistent training, adequate protein and good sleep.”
If your current health-care provider isn’t meeting your care needs, Dr. Verrico suggests finding a new one. “If you feel that you’re not getting anywhere and you’re not being heard, you need to get a new doctor who will take the time to put the pieces together,” she says. “It may be someone who is offering [both] conventional and functional medicine.”
Dr. Verrico acknowledges the allure of peptides as a cure-all, though. “Peptides are pitched as the next best thing to sliced bread,” she says. “I know you’re desperate to feel better. Let’s figure [it] out in a safe way.”
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