Walk into any longevity clinic today and it’s impossible to miss the buzz about peptides. Collagen, GLP-1s, and now MOTS-c, BPC-157, CJC-1295, Thymosin α-1. They’re spoken about with the same excitement (and skepticism) that statins or metformin inspired when they first reshaped medicine. On social media, peptides are caught in a similar crossfire we’ve seen with hormone replacement therapy: framed either as a miracle solution with endless benefits or as a risky experiment with unknown consequences.

The reality, as with most emerging therapies, lies between the extremes—at the intersection of clinical experience and evolving evidence.

On one end of the spectrum, we have peptides like GLP-1s (semaglutide, tirzepatide), which were originally developed and FDA-approved for type 2 diabetes but have undergone rigorous, large-scale clinical trials validating profound secondary benefits—including sustained weight reduction and major cardiovascular event risk lowering. As a direct result of these trials, the FDA has formally expanded their indications to include not only chronic weight management in individuals with obesity but also cardiovascular risk reduction in high-risk populations.

On the other end are experimental peptides such as BPC-157 and Epitalon. Both generate significant consumer interest and are widely promoted for tissue repair, anti-aging, and regenerative therapies; however, the bulk of existing data is from preclinical and animal models, making translation to human biology uncertain. In 2024, the first-ever human study on oral BPC-157 provided evidence of benefit for chronic pain—a hopeful step toward clinical relevance. These peptides illustrate the gap between promising early evidence and what’s needed for regulatory approval and clinical guideline adoption.

Some experts, like Peter Attia, call peptides a “wild west”—intriguing in theory, risky in practice, and largely unregulated. Eric Topol points out that the hype is outsized compared to the evidence. At the same time, A4M faculty highlight them as some of the most promising tools on the horizon for healthspan optimization. Then there are the countless patient perspectives that swear both sides are true.

And the stakes are high: patients want them, clinics are building protocols around them, and entire companies are scaling businesses on peptide offerings. Meanwhile, the FDA last year began challenging their use—citing safety concerns for compounding popular peptides like CJC-1295, BPC-157, and Thymosin α-1. For now, they sit in regulatory limbo: widely demanded by patients, but lacking the clinical trials and approvals that would make them mainstream.

Here’s how the landscape actually looks when you zoom out:

Mitochondrial peptides (MOTS-c, Humanin):
These act like “exercise mimetics” in preclinical models—improving insulin sensitivity and physical resilience in mice. In humans? Still early days. Early trials suggest higher MOTS-c levels correlate with strength, and protective effects against inflammation with Humanin. Cautious curiosity is warranted.

Growth hormone secretagogues (CJC-1295, Ipamorelin):
These peptides support IGF-1 levels, and patients often report better sleep, recovery, and body composition. But the biology cuts both ways: while some animal models with reduced IGF-1 show increased maximum lifespan, the effect on mean lifespan is inconsistent. Recent regulatory developments have these peptides under review for potential compounding approval. Tesamorelin is the exception—FDA-approved for HIV lipodystrophy with proven metabolic benefits. Off-label anti-aging use is growing in popularity but remains unsupported by evidence.

Regenerative and repair peptides (BPC-157, Epitalon, etc.):
BPC-157 has shown remarkable healing effects in animal studies—tendon repair, gut lining protection, even neuroprotection. In humans, controlled studies are limited but emerging, and in high demand. Epitalon, long promoted for telomere extension, stems from small studies that haven’t been independently replicated. These compounds are widely requested by patients and marketed by clinics yet remain unapproved and were flagged by the FDA as problematic for compounding. For now, they’re best viewed as experimental: high demand, emerging data, and under growing regulatory scrutiny.

If you’re running a modern clinic, the question isn’t “Do peptides work?” It’s:

The best clinics we see are doing exactly that:

The bottom line: Peptides may well become a defining tool in longevity medicine. Some, like GLP-1s, have already proven what’s possible when rigorous trials and regulatory approval meet patient demand. Others are still in the “wild west,” where enthusiasm, clinical adoption, and federal scrutiny are still finding balance.

Patients clearly want them, and practices are being developed to meet that demand. The clinics that thrive and endure, will be those that welcome innovation while upholding rigor: maintaining compliance, embedding peptides into comprehensive protocols, and resist overselling uncertain science. In other words, practice good medicine.

That’s how this space will mature from hype and hazard, into a legitimate pillar of longevity care.

Want to go deeper on the latest protocols and perspectives on peptides with leading clinicians in Longevity? Check out The Peptide Mastermind by Longevity Docs in NYC on October 4th. If you’re planning to join, make sure to stop by and say hi to the Vibrant team - we’ll be there! 👋🏽

Dr. Anant Vinjamoori is a Harvard-trained physician and entrepreneur, the former Chief Medical Officer at Modern Age, and Chief Longevity Officer at Midi and Superpower. Now, through his work at Next Generation Medicine, he partners with clinics to build advanced longevity platforms and runs a cohort-based program helping physicians get fluent in this new era of medicine.

Anant’s principle is simple: context beats prompts. Most clinicians waste time writing long, complex prompts for LLMs. With Model Context Protocols (MCPs), you don’t need to—because the AI is already connected to your systems.

Instead of re-explaining your world every time, MCPs let your AI securely access the tools you already use—email, calendar, tasks, even your EHR—so it can actually do work on your behalf.

👉 Try this:

Connect Zapier MCP to Claude (takes 5–10 minutes). Give it access to Gmail and Calendar. Then ask: “Prioritize my inbox for clinical operations today. Summarize what matters, draft responses, and flag any billing or legal items separately.”

You’ll get a triaged hit list with suggested actions—like a digital chief of staff.

✅ Your Homework
Pick one area where you lose time daily (emails, chart prep, or scheduling). Connect that tool through MCP. Then, chain a simple workflow: intake → synthesis → patient summary. Notice how much cleaner your day feels when context—not just prompts—drives the output.

MCPs are less about asking better questions and more about embedding your reality into the system. That’s how AI becomes not just a drafting partner, but a true workflow multiplier.

👉 Want to go deeper? Watch this webinar on using AI in Longevity Medicine with Anant and Sunita or join Anant’s cohort-based learning program at Next Generation Medicine and learn how to integrate AI and longevity protocols into your own practice.

As we mentioned in last week’s issue, there are pluses and minuses to this layer 3 approach. You might want more security and less time spent in setup. If that sounds like you, book a call with our team at Vibrant to learn if our product might be a great fit for you.

Some of the most interesting conversations, reads and research related to AI and clinical practice.

Deus Ex Medicina: 5 Takeaways (full summary here - partial paywall)
At this week’s Deus Ex Medicina conference in San Francisco - a gathering of health tech founders, investors, and clinicians (including Vibrant’s very own Sunita Mohanty) - the focus was squarely on AI’s role in reshaping medicine.

OpenAI’s new health hires signal serious interest (or this one paywalled)
OpenAI hired Doximity’s Nate Gross and Instagram veteran Ashley Alexander to lead a new healthcare push. Patients and clinicians alike are already using ChatGPT to interpret labs, research rare diseases, and plan regimens. With rivals like OpenEvidence raising at a $3.5B valuation, OpenAI clearly sees healthcare as one of the biggest markets where its models can move from “helpful sidekick” to core clinical tool.

AI is revolutionizing medicine but it can’t replace your doctor
The risk with AI in healthcare isn’t replacement—it’s deskilling. That’s why in this Time Magazine piece Marc Benioff and Murali Doraiswamy call for Intelligent Choice Architecture (ICA): tools that nudge clinicians to think more critically, not less. As the article puts it: “The future of medicine isn’t about replacing health care providers with algorithms—it’s about designing tools that sharpen human judgment and amplify what we can accomplish.”

The Modern Clinician is written for functional, integrative, and longevity-focused physicians who want to scale their impact and deliver cutting-edge care.

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