Feeling Your Age Is Old News

 

Let’s be real, growth hormone has a bad rap. Controversy takes over the conversation. The FDA heavily regulates its use. But promising evidence with growth hormone releasing hormones (GHRH) may be an alternative therapy worthy of a fresh perspective.

If your practice supports age management, chances are you’ve researched growth hormone (GH) products and realized they’re off the table. It’s no secret growth hormone is vital to many cellular pathways within the body, and its reduction over time has a meaningful influence on the aging process.

Growth hormone releasing hormones, like sermorelin, stimulate the pituitary gland to release endogenous growth hormone – growth hormone derived from the body itself. The question is, does that distinction matter? Exogenous growth hormone use has been researched with unfavorable outcomes. Could stimulating the release of endogenous growth hormone be the answer?

Some believe so. The impact on the pituitary gland may be the key. Since sermorelin is a GHRH analog, its effects on endogenous growth hormone via the hypothalamic-pituitary-somatotropic axis appears to be balanced by a negative feedback loop, mimicking the body’s natural regulation. It also prompts an intermittent release of GH with a rhythmic steadiness that studies suggest does not exceed therapeutic levels.

Medications that encourage the body’s innate pathways can be better tolerated overall. For sermorelin, that appears to be true. Its side effect profile seems advantageous, with reported injection site reactions, nausea, and facial flushing kept to a minimum.

Growth hormone decline may be associated with impaired cognition.  Longevity research supports sermorelin use in the elderly, with the drug improving brain health. Over the course of 6 months, one study demonstrated significant strides in problem solving and memory in older men and women receiving 1 mg of sermorelin nightly.

Growth hormone releasing hormones also increase insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), which may translate to changes in body composition. How fat is distributed and metabolized critically impacts overall cardiovascular and metabolic health, especially later in life. Research shows patients struggling with obesity and taking medications like sermorelin report decreased visceral fat and inflammation with improved muscle mass.

With a drug this versatile, the opportunity is yours for the taking.

References

  1. DiGiorgio L, Sadeghi-Nejad H. Growth Hormone and the Fountain of Youth. J Sex Med. 2018 Sep;15(9):1208-1211. doi: 10.1016/j.jsxm.2018.04.647. Epub 2018 May 31. PMID: 29861354.
  2. Sigalos JT, Pastuszak AW. The Safety and Efficacy of Growth Hormone Secretagogues. Sex Med Rev. 2018 Jan;6(1):45-53. doi: 10.1016/j.sxmr.2017.02.004. Epub 2017 Apr 8. PMID: 28400207; PMCID: PMC5632578.
  3. Sinha DK, Balasubramanian A, Tatem AJ, Rivera-Mirabal J, Yu J, Kovac J, Pastuszak AW, Lipshultz LI. Beyond the androgen receptor: the role of growth hormone secretagogues in the modern management of body composition in hypogonadal males. Transl Androl Urol. 2020 Mar;9(Suppl 2):S149-S159. doi: 10.21037/tau.2019.11.30. PMID: 32257855; PMCID: PMC7108996.
  4. Stanley TL, Grinspoon SK. Effects of growth hormone-releasing hormone on visceral fat, metabolic, and cardiovascular indices in human studies. Growth Horm IGF Res. 2015 Apr;25(2):59-65. doi: 10.1016/j.ghir.2014.12.005. Epub 2014 Dec 20. PMID: 25555516; PMCID: PMC4324360.
  5. Vitiello MV, Moe KE, Merriam GR, Mazzoni G, Buchner DH, Schwartz RS. Growth hormone releasing hormone improves the cognition of healthy older adults. Neurobiol Aging. 2006 Feb;27(2):318-23. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2005.01.010. Epub 2005 Mar 23. PMID: 16399214.
  6. Walker RF. Sermorelin: a better approach to management of adult-onset growth hormone insufficiency? Clin Interv Aging. 2006;1(4):307-8. doi: 10.2147/ciia.2006.1.4.307. PMID: 18046908; PMCID: PMC2699646.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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