GH secretagogue
Sermorelin
Formerly approved; discontinuedSmall human studiesGerefGRF 1-29
The first 29 amino acids of natural GHRH. It was once an approved drug (Geref) for children with growth hormone deficiency before being pulled from the market for commercial, not safety, reasons. It's very short-acting and gives a natural-style GH pulse.
- Canada
- Not authorized
- United States
- Was FDA-approved (Geref) for diagnosing and treating GH deficiency in children; discontinued in 2008 for business reasons. Compounded in the US.
Download profile Opens in Vialchemy on your iPhone, where it's added to your Library as your own.
Not medical advice — talk to your doctor before making medical decisions.
At a glance
- Class
- GH secretagogue (GHRH 1-29)
- Mechanism
- Triggers a GH pulse from the pituitary
- Evidence
- Older human trials (children with GH deficiency)
- Canada
- Not authorized
- Us
- Formerly approved; now compounded only
- Half Life
- About 10-20 minutes
- Routes
- SubQ
- Common Side Effects
- Flushing, site reactions, headache
- Key Cautions
- Raised blood sugar; avoid with cancer history; WADA prohibited
What the research says
Why was it discontinued?
The manufacturer stopped making it in 2008, citing manufacturing and business reasons, not safety.
Evidence in healthy adults?
Small older studies in older adults showed raised GH and IGF-1 with mixed effects on body composition. Not strong evidence for anti-aging or fat loss.
Common side effects and cautions
- Water retention, tingling or numb hands, joint aches and headache are the usual GH-related effects.
- Raised growth hormone and IGF-1 can raise blood sugar and lower insulin sensitivity. Worth watching if you're also on a GLP-1 or have prediabetes.
- Flushing, light-headedness or a rush of hunger right after injection are commonly reported.
- Long-term raised IGF-1 is linked in studies to cancer growth, so people with active cancer or a history of it are usually told to avoid GH-raising compounds.
- Prohibited in sport (WADA S2) if you're drug-tested.
Get medical care if
- Redness, heat, swelling or pus at a site that spreads or comes with fever
- Hives, swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing (call 911)
Buying and quality
- Not authorized by Health Canada. Products sold online as "research use only" are illegal to sell for human use in Canada, and the label doesn't change that.
- Health Canada warns these products may contain too much, too little or none of the peptide, plus contaminants like endotoxins, solvents, heavy metals or bacteria.
- A certificate of analysis (COA) from the seller isn't independent proof. A 98% purity result still leaves 2% unidentified.
- If you use it anyway: one clean needle per injection, sterile technique, label and date every vial, and stop if a site gets hot, red and spreading.
Dose calculator
Doses are set with your prescriber. This converts a dose you already have into what to draw; it doesn't recommend one. Check every number against your syringe and your vial's label.
Doses left in the vial
A blend vial
Not medical advice — talk to your doctor before making medical decisions.
Sources
Researched 2026-10-27. Trial results and approval status change.
General education, not medical advice. Nothing here is a dose recommendation. Doses, schedules and changes are set with a prescriber.