Peptide hormones are a popular anti-aging treatment these days, but what are they exactly? Read the post below to learn more about them.
RELATED: How Skin Care Peptides Help With Anti-Aging
In this article:
- What Are Peptide Hormones?
- How Do Peptide Hormones Work?
- What Are the Benefits of Peptides?
- What Are Peptide Hormones Treatment?
- Who Might Need Peptide Hormones Treatment?
Peptide Hormones: From Reducing Joint Pain to Treating Cancer
What Are Peptide Hormones?
To understand peptide hormones is to define two terms:
- Peptides
- Hormones
Peptides are some of the shortest chains of amino acids. These are substances that make up proteins.
In a way, you can call them protein hormones.
Proteins are essential for many processes:
- They help transport oxygen.
- Proteins help in metabolism and growth.
- The body needs them to spur healing and recovery.
- Proteins help create enzymes.
- They catalyze many functions vital for survival.
Hormones, meanwhile, act as chemical messengers in the body. The glands of the endocrine system produce them.
Some of the organs that produce hormones are:
- Pancreas, which creates insulin
- Thyroid, which produces thyroid hormones
- Ovaries, which creates estrogen and progesterone
Based on these definitions, peptide hormones are like other hormones. They also act as chemical messengers.
But unlike the others, these hormones are from connecting amino acids. Examples include growth hormones released by the pituitary gland of the brain.
Now, those who are familiar with hormones may be confused between peptide and steroid hormones. While peptides come from amino acids, steroids are from lipids or fats.
They also differ in these ways:
- A peptide hormone has a shorter lifespan than a steroid hormone, which still has to circulate around the body. The cells are then able to use it faster and more efficiently.
- A peptide hormone is also water-soluble, so it moves through the bloodstream more freely.
How Do Peptide Hormones Work?
When you consume protein, the body breaks it down into its amino acid components. Using the instructions already in the genes, they then produce different peptide hormones.
These hormones can have a few amino acids, or many (polypeptide hormones). Either way, cells may release these chemicals in two ways:
- Constitutive secretion
- Regulated secretion
In constitutive secretion, the cells create hormones through signals received by the DNA. In regulated secretion, the body may produce many of these.
Biological containers called vesicles then store the excess hormones. They then become ready for release anytime the body needs them.
How do these hormones interact with the cell? In reality, they don’t.
Being water-soluble, they can move through the bloodstream but they cannot penetrate the plasma membrane or cover of the target cell.
It’s because the membrane is a lipid layer, and only fat-soluble hormones can work through it. Instead, a peptide hormone binds itself to a receptor found on the surface of the cell membrane.
Know, though, that cells can work with different hormones, and these chemical messengers can also interact with one another. In this situation, steroid hormones can amplify the binding of peptide hormone to the cell.
RELATED: Benefits Of Regenerative Medicine
What Are the Benefits of Peptides?
Why is studying peptide hormones essential? New studies suggest it can be a promising and exciting anti-aging therapy.
Clinics such as Dr. Guzman use peptides to help manage, treat, and prevent different chronic conditions. They may also be used to help boost performance and energy.
These are some of the benefits of peptide therapy:
1. It May Help Treat Conditions Affecting the Joints
Age is one of the primary risk factors for diseases like arthritis, osteoporosis, and joint pain.
What is osteoporosis? It is a medical condition where the bones become
brittle and prone to fracture.
There are many reasons why you may experience inflammation and pain, and one of these is a deficiency of growth hormones.
In fact, a 2007 study linked this deficiency to increased problems affecting the joints and changes in body composition, such as higher body weight.
Peptide hormones contribute to the production of growth hormones. In the process, it may reduce joint inflammation and risk of fractures, as well as boost mobility.
2. Peptide Hormones May Help Enhance Weight Loss and Manage Obesity
Obesity is another risk factor for chronic illnesses like cardiovascular disorders, hypertension, diabetes, and cancer.
It may also trigger metabolic syndrome, which are clusters of symptoms that affect metabolism. Some examples of these are high levels of cholesterol, glucose, and blood pressure.
In a 2011 research, it was concluded that peptide therapy may stimulate weight loss and manage obesity by enhancing energy homeostasis.
What is energy homeostasis? Also known as energy balance, it refers to the body’s ability to control energy intake and its use or expenditure.
The study suggested that protein hormones can control the levels of glucose in the blood and help reduce the risk of diabetes.
It may also decrease your food intake so it’s easier for you to create a calorie deficit.
3. Peptide Therapy May Improve Endurance
Peptide hormones promote muscle growth and secretion of insulin-like growth factors that can provide your body with the following benefits:
- Faster cellular regeneration and muscle repair
- Insulin sensitivity (Glucose is stored as glycogen instead of fat.)
- Prevention of sarcopenia or muscle wasting, which becomes a risk as you grow older
- Increased muscle mass for strength
- Higher capacity of the body to use and distribute oxygen
4. Peptide Hormones May Contribute to Treating Cancer
One of the potential benefits of peptide therapy is in cancer treatment. Cancer is now one of the leading causes of death globally.
Although patients these days have more treatment options, some are losing their potent effects. One reason is the tumor’s resistance to drugs.
A study in the Journal of Biomedical Science revealed that a peptide hormone could be a novel approach to killing cancer because:
- It has low toxicity.
- The body can synthesize and use it quickly.
- It can be highly specific, which may protect healthy cells from damage.
In particular, a 2013 study showed that some of these hormones produced by the heart reduced:
- 97% of the cancer cells
- 86% of lung cancer cells
- 66% of breast cancer cells
- 80% of pancreatic cancer cells
What Are Peptide Hormones Treatment?
Peptide hormones treatment target specific cell types and mimic the natural body signals to generate a particular reaction in the body.
Peptide injections have been around for almost 100 years and are a popular treatment option to enhance athletic performance, support weight loss, and slow down the signs of aging.
Treatments are much better now because of natural peptide sources and advancement in the effectiveness and longevity of the injections.
Peptide therapy uses several types of peptides. Some break down fat cells, while others help with muscle retention and recovery after workouts. Others can also protect your skin from harmful UV rays.
Who Might Need Peptide Hormones Treatment?
Peptides affect how your body responds to exercise, diet, your skin’s ability to resist sunburn, and your immune responses. Most people can benefit from peptide therapy, especially athletes.
Amino acid production decreases with age, making middle-aged individuals ideal candidates for peptide therapy.
Individuals who want to protect their skin and prevent signs of aging might also find peptide therapy useful.
If you experience any of these symptoms, peptide therapy could be helpful:
- High body fat, especially around the waist
- Fatigue
- Muscle loss
- Diminished strength, and reduced capacity to exercise without resting
- Age-related bone loss
Peptide therapy may lessen the symptoms and discomfort associated with aging and address a wide range of conditions. Treatment can boost energy, promote overall health, and improve the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Today, many products, including supplements and beauty creams, advertise themselves as containing peptide hormones.
Clinics such as Dr. Guzman, though, practice peptide therapy using IV therapy. This process allows the body to use hormones as efficiently as possible.
Either way, scientific discoveries about these hormones are still new. It’s always best to work with a doctor rather than try it by yourself without sufficient knowledge.
What do you think about using peptides for anti-aging? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
Up Next: