Guides
Guides
Answers to the questions people actually ask, written from primary sources rather than repeated from other blogs. We sell nothing, so we can tell you when the honest answer is “nobody knows”.
15 guides
What the research shows
“Ozempic face”: what it is and what causes it
Facial gauntness after GLP-1 weight loss is caused by the weight loss, not by the drug. The same appearance follows rapid loss by any means — which is what the term obscures.
Regulation & legality
Are peptides legal? What the FDA actually says
BPC-157, TB-500, CJC-1295 and ipamorelin: what the FDA has actually published about each, why “removed from Category 2” does not mean cleared, and what is still unlawful to compound.
What the research shows
BPC-157: what the evidence actually shows
BPC-157 is one of the most confidently discussed peptides on the internet. PubMed indexes no completed randomized controlled trial of it in humans. Here is what does exist, and what it can support.
Regulation & legality
Compounded semaglutide and tirzepatide: what changed
The shortages ended, and with them the enforcement discretion that allowed mass compounding of semaglutide and tirzepatide. What FDA actually said, with the dates, and what remains permitted.
Regulation & legality
Do peptides show up on a drug test?
Anti-doping panels detect peptide hormones and secretagogues; standard workplace panels generally do not screen for them. Legality, detectability, and prohibition are three separate questions.
What the research shows
Growth hormone secretagogues: what they can and can’t do
CJC-1295, ipamorelin and MK-677 reliably raise growth hormone and IGF-1 in humans. What the trials have not shown is that raising those numbers produces the outcomes people take them for.
Judging quality & evidence
How to read a peptide certificate of analysis
What a real certificate of analysis contains, why 99% purity does not mean 99% peptide, and the tells that separate a laboratory measurement from a marketing graphic.
Practical how-to
How to reconstitute a peptide (and the maths behind it)
How much bacteriostatic water to add, why the volume changes what a “unit” means, and the handling mistakes that silently degrade a peptide. With the arithmetic worked through.
Practical how-to
How to store peptides: fridge, freezer, travel and heat
Lyophilised powder, reconstituted solution, and what actually happens when a vial gets warm. Storage rules, travel guidance, and why a degraded peptide looks exactly like a good one.
Practical how-to
mg, mcg and “units”: peptide dosing conversions explained
A “unit” on an insulin syringe is a volume, not an amount of drug. Here is how mg, mcg, mL and units relate — and why copying someone else’s unit count is the most dangerous shortcut in peptides.
What the research shows
Microdosing GLP-1s: what is actually known
Microdosing semaglutide or tirzepatide is widely discussed and has never been tested in a randomised trial. Here is what exists, what does not, and why the distinction matters.
What the research shows
Muscle loss on GLP-1s: what the evidence shows
A 2026 meta-analysis found lean mass falls in absolute terms on GLP-1 drugs while rising as a proportion of body weight. Both statements are true, and they explain the entire argument.
What the research shows
Semaglutide vs tirzepatide: what the head-to-head trial found
SURMOUNT-5 compared them directly over 72 weeks: tirzepatide produced 20.2% weight loss versus 13.7% for semaglutide. What that number does and does not settle.
What the research shows
TB-500 and the Wolverine stack: what the evidence shows
TB-500 is a fragment of thymosin beta-4, and the human trials people cite for it were run on the full-length protein. Here is what each has actually been shown to do.
What the research shows
What happens when you stop a GLP-1
One year after semaglutide was withdrawn, participants had regained two-thirds of the weight they lost, and their cardiometabolic gains reverted. The withdrawal trials, read honestly.
How we write these
Regulation & legality
What the law and the FDA actually say, read from the primary documents rather than repeated from other blogs.
Practical how-to
Reconstitution, dosing arithmetic, storage — the mechanics where mistakes are quiet and expensive.
Judging quality & evidence
How to read a certificate, appraise a source, and tell a measurement from a marketing claim.
What the research shows
Appraisals of the actual trials — including, very often, what they failed to find.
Every claim is traced to a primary document, every link is checked before publication, and we take no money from vendors. Our guides are not medically reviewed, and we say so on every page. Read our editorial standards.
Educational reference only. Pepperz does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, prescribing guidance, or dosing recommendations.