Peptide injections

What is hormone therapy?

Hormone therapy refers to medical treatment that adjusts hormone levels in your body. It involves taking medications containing female or male hormones to supplement lower hormone levels. Hormone therapy helps relieve symptoms like hot flashes or low libido caused by menopause, hormone deficiencies, or medical conditions. Typically administered for perimenopausal, menopausal, and postmenopausal individuals, hormone therapy comes with risks and benefits requiring discussion with your doctor.

What are the different types of hormone therapy?

There are a few main types of hormone therapy:

Estrogen therapy supplements lower estrogen levels using pills, patches, gels, sprays, or vaginal rings. It relieves hot flashes and vaginal dryness.
Progestin therapy adds progestin alone or with estrogen, often for women who had hysterectomies.
Testosterone therapy boosts low testosterone levels in both women and men via gels, injections, patches, or tablets. It helps symptoms like low sex drive and muscle loss.
Bioidentical hormone therapy uses hormones structurally identical to those your body makes naturally. It claims to have fewer risks than synthetic versions.

What are the risks and side effects?

Potential side effects and health risks depend on your age, health status, dosage, and therapy duration. Some risks include blood clots, strokes, heart disease, breast and endometrial cancers. Common side effects involve fluid retention, mood changes, nausea, breast tenderness, weight changes, or hair growth. Staying on the lowest effective doses under a doctor’s supervision minimizes risks.

How is the therapy administered?

The route of administration varies by hormone, dose, and patient factors:

Oral forms like pills, liquids, or sublingual tablets get absorbed through blood vessels under the tongue.
Transdermal methods like gels, creams, sprays, patches, sticks, or implants go through the skin into the bloodstream.
Vaginal rings, tablets, or creams introduce hormones directly to vaginal tissues.
Injections like pellets or shots deliver measured doses via needle into fat, muscle, or right under skin.

Follow your doctor’s exact instructions on usage to maximize benefits and minimize possible absorption issues.

Who should consider hormone therapy?

Perimenopausal, menopausal, and postmenopausal individuals with moderate to severe symptoms like hot flashes, vaginal dryness, or disrupted sleep could benefit from hormone therapy. It also helps transgender patients align secondary sex characteristics with gender identity. Discuss your health history thoroughly with your doctor first to confirm if hormone therapy aligns with your needs and goals. Consider participating in clinical studies related to hormone therapy as is a 5-topic FAQ with answers about peptide injections:

FAQ About Peptide Injections

What are peptide injections and how do they work?

Peptide injections contain short chains of amino acids that mimic proteins in the body. When injected, peptides bind to specific cell receptors to promote various benefits like tissue repair, increased strength and lean muscle mass, injury recovery, and anti-aging effects. The most common peptide injections used are BPC-157, TB-500, IPAMORELIN, and SERMORELIN. By targeting specific receptors, peptides amplify the body's natural healing abilities.

What results can I expect from peptide injections?

The results of peptide injections vary based on factors like lifestyle, diet, genetics, and the types of peptides used. However, most patients report improvements like faster recovery from workouts, enhanced muscle growth, increased collagen production, joint and tendon pain relief, strengthened immune system, weight loss, and anti-aging skin benefits. With a healthy lifestyle, the results can be quite significant. As Dr. Ryan Shelton says, “In the right patient, these injections work incredibly well.”

How often do the injections need to be administered?

The injection frequency depends on the types of peptides used and desired results. For general wellness and anti-aging goals, most providers recommend peptide injections 1-2 times per week. For recovery, injury repair, or targeted fat loss, more frequent injections like every other day may provide better outcomes. Our clinic has an algorithm to determine optimal dosing tailored to your unique needs and goals. Be sure to follow your provider’s instructions for best results.

What are the potential side effects?

When properly dosed, peptide injections have very few side effects. In rare cases, patients may experience fatigue, headaches, nausea, or redness/itching at the injection site. However, by starting with lower doses, side effects can generally be avoided. As peptide therapy expert Dr. Thomas O’Connor states, “Used responsibly and correctly, I have seen very few side effects in clinical practice.” If any side effects occur, be sure to contact your peptide therapy provider.

Is a prescription required for peptide injections?

In most cases, yes - a prescription is required for therapeutic peptide injections. Because peptide protocols need to be customized for your health goals, hormone levels, and lifestyle factors, an experienced anti-aging provider should guide your treatment plan. Many clinics offer both an initial blood panel and body composition analysis to determine the right peptide types/doses to maximize your desired results. Allow an expert to assess your needs before self-administering peptides.