GH-RH, GHRELIN AND OTHER HGH SECRETAGOGUES
Written by Dr. Welsh, Article reviewed and edited by Dr. Fine M.D.. Published on September 4th, 2019
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Hormone Replacement Therapy
HGH Secretagogue
HGH
Secretagogues and GH-RH
HGH
Secretagogues are hormones, peptides, or other molecules which
stimulate the production of Human Growth Hormone by the Anterior
Pituitary Gland. The two hormones which stimulate HGH Production most
directly are Ghrelin and Growth Hormone-Releasing Hormone.
Functionally-Identical and Biologically-Identical hormones such as
Sermorelin Acetate also count as Secretagogues, although they are not
produced by the human body.
HGH and
Hypopituitarism
Most
patients suffer from Adult Human Growth Hormone Deficiency as a
result of Hypopituitarism, meaning that their deficiency is the
result of a reduced capacity of the pituitary to produce optimal
levels of HGH. Sometimes, Hypopituitarism is the result of medical
issues relating directly to the function of the pituitary gland, but
usually, Hypopituitarism which leads to HGH Deficiency is the result
of changes in the level of stimulation occurring of the pituitary
gland.
Secretagogues
Boost HGH
Numerous
studies show that most patients that suffer from Growth Hormone
Deficiency still have the capacity to produce Human Growth Hormone
with stimulation by Secretagogues such as arginine or injected GH-RH.
HGH Secretagogues have not been approved by the Food and Drug
Administration for the treatment of Growth Hormone Deficiency that is
the result of aging, but there is promising initial research which
seems to show that there are some potential benefits for aging men
and women across America. Off-label use of Sermorelin Acetate is
legal in the United States, although the FDA has yet to give
Sermorelin for Age-Related Growth Hormone Deficiency an official
approval.
Secretagogues
Stimulate Normal Patterns of HGH Secretion
Researchers
are confident that Growth Hormone Secretagogue Therapy can provide a
more physiologically natural form of Hormone Replacement Therapy than
Growth Hormone HRT, because Secretagogues such as Sermorelin Acetate
stimulate the Pituitary to release Human Growth Hormone in a manner
which is practically identical to the body's normal endogenous
processes. Although Human Growth Hormone Injections are effective at
increasing Human Growth Hormone levels to normal, HGH Injections
cause the hormone to be released slowly into the body at a constant
rate.
Sermorelin
and other Secretagogues elicit the production of HGH in stimulative
pulses which pass through the body quickly in the same manner that
the pituitary gland naturally releases the hormone. Injectable HGH
Secretagogues allow the pituitary to function naturally, allowing
Negative Feedback Mechanisms such as Somatostatin to regulate HGH
Production, preventing HGH Overdose and unnatural cycling of Human
Growth Hormone throughout the body.
Sermorelin
Produces Rare and Minor Side Effects
Both
Sermorelin Acetate Therapy and Human Growth Hormone Replacement
Therapy produce the same variety of potential side-effects, but GH-RH
Replacement Therapy produces side effects more rarely and with less
intensity. There is also evidence that some forms of Secretagogue can
be taken nasally, transdermally, or orally (although Sermorelin
Acetate must be injected)
Sermorelin
Acetate Boosts IGF-1 Production
Daily
Sermorelin Acetate Injections have been shown to be effective at
restoring natural production of Human Growth Hormone to healthy and
normal levels. In one study, Sermorelin Acetate injections were
provided to patients in order to assess the ability of the hormone to
restore Human Growth Hormone Production. After six months of
Sermorelin Acetate treatment, participants were found to have
Insulin-Like Growth Factor Levels that increased by around
thirty-five percent.
As has
been found with Human Growth Hormone Injections, Sermorelin Acetate
injections lead to a drop in overall body fat and an increase in lean
muscle mass. Although these benefits were discovered, there seemed to
be no increase in aerobic ability or strength as a result of the
injections. Other studies, however, have shown that GH-RH and HGH
Hormone Replacement Therapy can improve exercise performance.
GH-RH
Replacement Slows the Physical and Mental Decline Associated with
Aging
One aspect
of this study that should not be forgotten is that it deals primarily
with older patients. One incredibly hopeful and intriguing result of
the study was that, although the ability to go about the normal
physical actions of daily life did not increase as a result of
therapy, they also did not decrease. Physical performance dropped
significantly among participants that received placebo injections.
This
suggests that the Sermorelin Acetate Injections and other HGH
Secretagogue Treatment may have the ability to preserve normal
physical ability in aging men and women! Another study showed that
after three months of Sermorelin Acetate Therapy, healthy older
subjects showed an improvement in physical exercise ability.
Sermorelin
Acetate Therapy also appears to have a highly beneficial effect upon
cognitive function, although its ability to improve sleep is
inconclusive. In this study, Sermorelin Acetate Injections did not
produce a significant effect upon the patients' ability to sleep
soundly, but it does have the capacity to improve participants'
scores in memory evaluation. GH-RH Hormone Therapy did not have an
effect upon long term memory, but it did have the ability to improve
both short term and working memory, which seem to be partially
correlated with the circulation of healthy levels of IGF-1.
Ghrelin
and HGH
Ghrelin is
another hormone which impacts the release of Human Growth Hormone.
Ghrelin is secreted by the stomach and is one of the hormones
primarily responsible for the feeling of hunger that occurs during
times when the body recognizes a need for food. Although Ghrelin does
have a stimulative effect upon Human Growth Hormone, it is also
responsible for a number of different functions as well.
GH-RH is a
rather unique hormone, because the only area of the body that GH-RH
stimulates is the anterior pituitary, whereas most hormones have
multiple purposes throughout the human body. The ability of Ghrelin
to Stimulate Human Growth Hormone production seems to be correlated
with the mutual presence of Growth Hormone-Releasing Hormone.
As a
result of this, it is hypothesized that the metabolic effects of
Ghrelin reduce with age as a result of the age related decline of
GH-RH Secretion. This may also be why older patients respond to lower
doses of GH-RH and HGH more potently.
Ghrelin,
GH-RH Combination Therapy May Be Most Beneficial
Although
research at this point is preliminary, many researchers feel that
replacing Ghrelin and GH-RH mutually may be more effective at
alleviating symptoms related to aging than replacing either hormone
by itself. In addition to Ghrelin and GH-RH Derivatives, there are
other hormones which can boost Human Growth Hormone Secretion by
reducing the release of Somatostatins, including beta-blockers and
arginine.
Three
Important Secretagogue Studies
Although
there have been a number of studies conducted in regard to the effect
of Human Growth Hormone Secretagogues upon the secretion of HGH,
there are only three studies which have studied the effect of these
Secretagogues upon the physiologically normal process of aging.
One study
found that injections of a molecule known as Growth Hormone-Releasing
Peptide-Two (GHRP-2) has the capacity to increase the body's
production of both IGF-1 and Human Growth Hormone by the process of
Pituitary Stimulation.
Another
study conducted by the University of Virginia, utilizing Growth
Hormone Secretagogue MK-677, showed that the hormone had the ability
to boost lean muscle mass in a way similar to Secretagogues such as
Sermorelin Acetate. Although this Secretagogue did increase IGF-1
production over the short term, the lean muscle boosting power of GHS
MK-677 did not appear to be sustained over the course of a year.
A third
study was conducted with regard to a Secretagogue known as Oral
Growth Hormone Capromorelin. Participants in this study were older
males and females that were relatively healthy. This study had over
three hundred participants and was planned to last two years.
Although the study was planned to last two years, it was suspended
after a single year because patients did not experience an increase
in lean muscle percentage as a result of therapy.
This
Secretagogue did prove to
lead to an increase in lean muscle mass, but also increased hunger in
the patients, canceling out the increase in lean muscle by a
correlated increase in body fat. This study was conducted before the
scientific community was aware of Ghrelin, and further research has
displayed that Capromorelin produces a physiologically similar effect
upon the body as Ghrelin.
Capromorelin was shown to boost IGF-1 levels, and it also seemed to
produce some benefits in regard to overall physiological function as
well. Cognitive benefits were not evaluated in this study, but there
were reports that sleep quality declined very slightly as a result of
Oral Capromorelin. There were few side-effects among patients, and
side-effects experienced were mild for the most part.
These
three studies all show that Growth Hormone, GH-RH, and Ghrelin all
have the capacity to alter the body's physiological production of
IGF-1. Ghrelin produces these benefits, but is also correlated with
an increase in hunger as a result of its secondary purpose as an
appetite stimulator.
HGH
Secretagogue Conclusions
Frailty
and muscle atrophy are two of the strongest contributors to the
age-related decline in physical independence. Today, aging is not
considered a disease, but many symptoms of the aging process act upon
the body just like a disease. Hormone Decline associated with the
aging process directly leads to an inability to sustain muscle mass,
and Human Growth Hormone Secretagogues may be able to slow down or
stall this gradual decline.
The more
that we research Human Growth Hormone Deficiency, the more obvious it
becomes that aging itself begins as a mild form of HGH Deficiency,
and as the aging process continues, this Deficiency becomes more
dramatic. There is strong evidence that Human Growth Hormone
Replacement Therapy improves muscle mass in patients clinically
diagnosed with Adult-Onset Human Growth Hormone Deficiency.
There is
also growing evidence that HGH Secretagogues, as well as Human Growth
Hormone Injections, have the ability to decrease the effects of
sarcopenia and mental decline in older patients.
Evidence
suggests that HGH Secretagogues like Sermorelin Acetate may be
effective at improving the life length and quality of older patients.
As we grow older and our HGH Levels Decline, we also become more
sensitive to Human Growth Hormone at the same time. For this reason,
it is important to titrate HGH Replacement in accordance with age.
Recommended
HGH Treatment Will Likely Depend upon Age
The use of
Sermorelin Acetate and other HGH Secretagogues in older patients may
be more effective at treating patients in their seventies and
eighties than Human Growth Hormone Replacement Therapy because of
this gradual increase in sensitivity to HGH the aging process occurs.
The use of
GH-RH Analogs in the treatment of Age-Related Growth Hormone Decline
may be preferred, because the treatment allows the body to regulate
itself more effectively, limiting the potential for side-effects and
accidental overdose which are sometimes associated with Human Growth
Hormone Replacement in these individuals.
Number of words: 1767
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