What is sermorelin?
A cursory glance at the current research into Sermorelin acetate reveals a peptide that is valued for its ability to boost growth hormone secretion. It is used clinically for just this purpose and is thought to be the shortest analogue of growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH) to maintain all of the parent protein’s functional properties. Stopping here would leave one with the impression that Sermorelin is a GHRH analogue and does little more than boost growth hormone levels. Nothing could be further from the truth.
A deeper dive into the benefits of Sermorelin reveals a peptide with potent anti-aging properties, the ability to reduce free radical damage, wound-healing properties, and even benefits in fighting cancer. Sermorelin acetate is more than simply a GHRH agonist with the ability to improve body composition by building muscle and reducing fat. According to some researchers, Sermorelin is the closest humanity has come to the fountain of youth.
Growth hormone is a Goldilocks hormone, which is to say that it has an optimal level for producing the best outcomes. Too much GH increases morbidity and mortality, but so does too little. There is good evidence to suggest that at least part of the reason we age is because growth hormone levels decline over time, leaving us with sub-optimal levels of this important messenger. This decline in GH levels is referred to as somatopause and it has become a major focus of anti-aging science and research.
Growth Hormone and Aging
Somatopause is defined by the common symptoms we associate with aging:
- difficulty maintaining muscle mass
- loss of bone density
- increased fat deposition
- reduction in energy and libido
- increased cholesterol levels
- changes in skin texture and elasticity
Exercise helps to prevent these aging effects precisely because it keeps GH levels high, but more and more research suggests that exercise can only do so much to offset the roughly 40% decline in GH levels that occurs between the ages of 20 and 701. Supplementation may, in fact, be necessary to achieve optimal GH levels. This, ironically, increases exercise capacity, which makes it easier to maintain GH levels moving forward.
It was initially thought that Sermorelin and similar peptides simply reduced the effects of aging without actually prolonging life. For instance, Sermorelin improved muscle mass and body composition, but researchers thought it unlikely that the peptide could help us live longer. Research in mice, however, shows that Sermorelin, specifically, does improve longevity. The improvement is interesting however, as the research revealed a dramatic increase in average life expectancy but no change in maximum life expectancy.
The above research is consistent with the idea that Sermorelin helps to maintain optimal body chemistry and thus maximizes lifespan. It does not extend maximum life expectancy, but it does help more individuals to get closer to their maximum lifespan. What is more, Sermorelin improves health and general function, meaning that individuals are more active and functional during their extended lives.
Benefits of Sermorelin
The benefits of Sermorelin in reducing the effects of aging include, but are not limited to:
- improved metabolism,
- improved body composition (more muscle and less fat),
- improved immune function,
- enhanced wound healing,
- better cardiac function, and improves sleep.
Sermorelin and the Immune System
One of the reasons that Sermorelin may help to promote longevity and better health is the stimulating effect it has on the immune system. Research in humans finds that after just four months of Sermorelin administration, there is a roughly 30% increase in immune function. Aging has long been associated with increased risk of infectious disease. The elderly are more susceptible to everything from staph infections to the common flu. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has only served to reinforce the risks of infectious disease as we age, with people over 50 having a much higher risk of severe COVID complications than their younger counterparts. The ability to augment immune function without adverse effects (an important finding in the research) would lead to reduced risks of infection, cancer, and perhaps even neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
Sermorelin and Cancer
The research into mice that showed an increase in longevity revealed that tumor incidence was substantially lower in mice treated with Sermorelin. In fact, in one study tumor incidence decreased from 10% to just 1.7%. Other research backs this finding, showing that Sermorelin is of benefit in treating gliomas and other brain cancers. It is thought that Sermorelin may inhibit tumor cell proliferation (the process that leads to both growth and metastasis) by regulating immune checkpoints. This is an important finding not just because it has the potential to revolutionize cancer treatment and prevention, but because Sermorelin cost is substantially less than that of even standard chemotherapy. Similar benefits of Sermorelin have been shown in prostate cancer, the most common cancer among men and, in fact, that most common form of cancer overall.
Sermorelin and Heart Disease
The benefits of Sermorelin on heart disease have been obvious for a long time, with the peptide helping to reduce cardiac scarring and remodeling following heart attack. There is also good evidence to show that Sermorelin can improve cardiomyocyte (heart muscle cell) survival by reducing inflammatory signaling in the heart and promoting blood vessel growth.
New research shows that Sermorelin preserves ejection fraction (the amount of blood expelled by the heart each time it beats), which is something that modern medicine has struggled to address. Preserving ejection fraction is critical to preventing a number of long-term changes that reduce efficiency, pliability, and overall function of the heart. Long-term supplementation with Sermorelin has not been studied as it pertains to heart function, but there is good reason to believe that optimizing GH levels can help to ensure optimal heart function throughout life. This would result in better overall health, maintenance of exercise capacity, and other benefits.
Sermorelin Regulates Sleep Cycles
Sermorelin acetate has been shown to help regulate orexin signaling. Orexin is a potent regulator of sleep that is produced in specialized neurons within the central nervous system. Research in fish shows that Sermorelin augments orexin secretion. Sleep dysregulation is a common problem associated with age, but orexin dysregulation affects more than just sleep patterns. Orexin, and by extension sleep pattern, has profound effects on feeding behavior, addiction, lipid metabolism, mood, concentration, and more.
We tend to think of sleep as a time of inactivity, but it is better to think of sleep, which consumes fully one third of the average life, as a time of altered activity. In fact, sleep reduces conscious activity so that energy can be shunted to other pathways involved in tissue repair and organ system maintenance. In wasn’t until recently, in fact, that science recognized an entirely new system within the brain (the glymphatic system) that is only really active when we are asleep and is necessary for removing metabolic byproducts and toxins from the central nervous system.
Sleep is a necessary component of health and has been connected, in dozens if not hundreds of studies, to increased longevity. Research shows that optimal sleep benefits the cardiovascular, endocrine, immune, and nervous systems. Sermorelin, by improving sleep efficiency, can actually slow the effects of aging by helping to repair and maintain all of the systems mentioned.