Sermorelin
The active portion of your own growth hormone releasing hormone, which prompts the pituitary to release growth hormone in natural pulses.
The basics
Sermorelin is the first 29 amino acids of GHRH, the hormone your hypothalamus uses to tell the pituitary to release growth hormone. It's the shortest piece that keeps full activity.
Because it works through your own pituitary, release stays pulsatile and under the body's normal feedback control, which is the main argument for a secretagogue (a drug that prompts your own gland to secrete) over injecting growth hormone itself. Patients usually take it at bedtime, when the natural growth hormone pulse occurs.
We review the studies, the potential uses and benefits, and the open questions in our research post, Sermorelin, Growth Hormone, and the Slow Decline of the Somatotropic Axis.
What the evidence looks like
Moderate for the hormone effect, limited for outcomes. Small studies in older adults show that it raises growth hormone and IGF-1, with modest changes in body composition. No long-term trial shows that it prevents disease or extends life.
Why patients ask about it
- The age-related decline in growth hormone
- Sleep quality and recovery
- Body composition alongside training and nutrition
Good to know
- The FDA approved sermorelin in 1997 for children with growth hormone deficiency, and the manufacturer later discontinued it for commercial reasons, not over safety. The compounded version is not FDA-approved.
- We monitor IGF-1 and blood sugar. Side effects include injection-site reactions, flushing, and headache.
- Not for anyone with active cancer. Prohibited in competitive sport.
Sermorelin, Growth Hormone, and the Slow Decline of the Somatotropic Axis
Sermorelin is the first 29 amino acids of your own growth hormone releasing hormone, given to coax the pituitary rather than replace its output. The physiology is sound, the human trials are small, and no trial shows it extends life.
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