Dr Mayoni Gooneratne examines systemic peptide use in longevity and wellness practice
Peptide-based drugs have moved rapidly from niche therapeutics to a major growth area across endocrine, metabolic, oncologic and rare disease medicine.¹⁻⁴ At the same time, a parallel market has emerged in the wellness and longevity space, where intramuscular, subcutaneous (SC) and intravenous peptides are promoted for tissue repair, fat loss, performance and ‘antiageing,’ often outside established regulatory frameworks.
This disconnect between robustly developed peptide therapeutics and loosely regulated ‘research peptides’ creates clinical, ethical and legal challenges for any medical professional practising in appearance medicine, metabolic health or general wellness. Systemic peptides act far beyond the skin, raising questions about long-term safety, off-target effects and professional scope that cannot be answered by aesthetic outcome data alone.²⁻⁵
This article will review the fundamentals of systemic peptide therapeutics, summarise current regulatory positions, outline commonly discussed agents and critically appraise potential benefits versus…
