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Science Weekly

Peptides: are they worth the hype?

Science Weekly

The Guardian

Science

4.2 β€’ 1K Ratings

πŸ—“οΈ 17 March 2026

⏱️ 18 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Grey-market injectable peptides – a category of substances with obscure, alphanumeric names such as BPC-157, GHK-Cu, or TB-500 – have developed a devoted following among biohackers and health optimisers. To understand how these unregulated substances have become mainstream and what they could be doing in our bodies, Madeleine Finlay hears from journalist Adrienne Matei and from Dr Anna Barnard, an associate professor at Imperial College London who researches peptides. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Transcript

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0:00.0

This is The Guardian.

0:12.0

Performing research on yourself used to be something that only fringe scientists and madcap

0:18.0

inventors would do.

0:20.0

But these are topsy-turvy times.

0:23.3

And in the world of wellness gurus, longevity bros and luxmaxes,

0:27.8

regulated medicines that have long been proven to be safe and effective are out,

0:32.7

and cutting-edge experimental drugs are in.

0:38.0

The most talked about right now are injectable grey market peptides.

0:44.0

Unregulated substances from mysterious sources shot straight into the body.

0:49.6

These are the two peptides you need to be using in 2026.

0:54.7

We've got BBC 157, which is for healing and tissue repair.

0:59.1

What if I told you that there's a perfect peptide stack to regrow and thicken your hair?

1:03.0

Well, that would be true, because I've done the research so you don't have to.

1:07.6

And as optimization influences show off their extreme regimes,

1:12.1

tight abs and flawless skin to millions of viewers,

1:15.8

more and more of us attempted to turn ourselves into lab rats too.

1:20.1

I just got a delivery of some peptides.

1:22.4

This one is the glows stack, which I'll be starting after I finish my Bc-157 and tb-500 pen i've ordered my first

1:29.4

peptide g hkccc is a peptide that boost collagen production and it just like enables skin repair

1:39.3

so your skin is nice if you guys have been curious about peptides, hearing about peptides, have them on your free page.

1:46.2

This is your sign to hop on a peptide.

1:53.2

So today, what are peptides?

...

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