For many of us, as children and teenagers and even into our 30s, we found ourselves strong and energetic, recovering quickly after moderate and even intense exercise, and often immune to daily aches and pains. As we aged beyond those years, however, we started to lose our stamina and ability to quickly recover.

More and more exercise is required just to maintain our strength, flexibility, and vitality. It takes longer for us to recover from those exercise sessions, and we’re more susceptible to injury. Why is this? What do we lack in our later years that we had in abundance in our youth?

The answer is human growth hormone (HGH). HGH stimulates and regulates the growth and lifecycle of nearly every cell in the body. And when you reach the age of about 30 years, your pituitary gland releases less and less HGH with each passing year. This decline can occur rapidly, and to be clear, it is a normal part of aging. However, this reduction of HGH is largely responsible for many of the signs associated with aging:

  • Lower energy
  • Decreased muscle mass and inability to build new muscle
  • Increased difficulty losing or maintaining weight
  • Weakened immune system
  • Decreased healing efficiency
  • Other signs of physical and mental aging

Today, I want you to know that by working with functional medicine-focused doctor, you can work on reversing this process and boost HGH in two ways:

  • Directly via injections of synthetic human growth hormone, which is typically recommended only for people whose pituitary gland is damaged or dysfunctional
  • Indirectly by stimulating the pituitary gland to release more human growth hormone that your body produces naturally

Stimulating the Pituitary Gland to Release More HGH Naturally

Stimulating the pituitary gland to release more human growth hormone is the safer way to increase HGH, and there are several ways to do it:

  • Practice intermittent fasting
  • Exercise, especially high intensity interval training (HIIT) — alternating periods of high-intensity strength-building exercise with brief recovery periods
  • Reduce your sugar intake
  • Improve your sleep quantity and quality — sleep is restorative
  • Supplement with gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) — at least one study showed that taking a GABA supplement led to a 400 percent increase in HGH at rest and a 200 percent increase following exercise
  • Supplement with a HGH secretagogues, such as a blend of CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin (secretagogues are substances that stimulate the secretion of other substances)

Why Use CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin to Boost HGH?

CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin are two separate peptides that are often used together to maintain a healthy balance of growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), which is a hormone with a similar structure to insulin. Healthy IGF-1 levels are required for maintenance of bone mass, muscle mass, and brain function at later ages in life.

CJC-1295, also called DAC:GRF, is a man-made version of a hormone called growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), which also goes by the name growth hormone-releasing factor (GRF). Ipamorelin, classified as a growth hormone releasing peptide (GHRP), prompts the anterior pituitary gland to secrete growth hormones.

Research has shown that administering CJC-1295/Ipamorelin once weekly helps to increase plasma growth hormone (GH) concentrations two to 10 times more for up to six (6) days after injection. In addition, this blend of peptides increases IGF-1 levels by one-and-a-half to three times for a period of nine (9) to 11 days, with no adverse side effects.

This combination of peptides can deliver a broad range of benefits and provide relief for numerous health conditions, including the following:

  • Chronic fatigue
  • Aging
  • Diabetes
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Inflammation
  • Chronic infections
  • Heart disease
  • Body composition

Deciding Whether CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin Are Right for You

I find that growth hormone secretagogues are helpful in a number of scenarios with certain patients. To decide whether a CJC-1295/Ipamorelin is right for you, see if you fit any of the following scenarios:

  • You work out often and want to stay fit and active as you age, playing pickleball, golf, basketball, or engaging in other physically strenuous activities. Increasing levels of growth hormone to a more youthful state improves sleep, recovery from exercise, bone health, and muscle mass. You can use CJC/IPA in your thirties, forties, fifties and beyond. You can use it in cycles of three to six months, or consistently based on your health conditions and goals.
  • You struggle to lose weight or achieve your body composition goals and objectives. If you’re looking for a way to gain the edge on weight loss or increase muscle mass for sustained weight loss, CJC/IPA is a tool you can use without the adverse side effects associated with weight loss peptides like Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus). Using CJC/IPA, along with diet and lifestyle adjustments, can make a profound impact on energy levels and your ability to start and continue to exercise with improved recovery. Many patients succeed on CJC/IPA because the combination makes them more resilient and less susceptible to injury and fatigue that would otherwise derail their workout routines and result in weight gain.
  • You’re suffering from chronic fatigue. CJC/IPA can improve energy levels, restorative sleep, and overall recovery. Chronic fatigue afflicts a large portion of my patient population, and they’ve been able to find relief using this combination of CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin.
  • You’re interested in combating aging and restoring your youthfulness. I consider CJC/IPA to be a first line regenerative therapy for improving age-related conditions, balancing hormone levels, restoring a healthy circadian rhythm, promoting deep sleep, and improving brain health, muscle development, and more.

Starting CJC/IPA Therapy

CJC/IPA therapy should be part of a comprehensive, personalized treatment plan that identifies and addresses any and all underlying health issues, including any nutritional deficiencies, exposure to environmental toxins, stress, undiagnosed infections, lifestyle issues, and more.

To get started on CJC/IPA therapy, I recommend taking the following steps:

  1. Schedule a consultation with your functional medicine-focused healthcare provider — a medical professional who will perform a complete workup and order any lab tests required for a thorough and accurate analysis of underlying health issues.
  2. Have your labs completed. The lab will send results to your functional medicine provider for analysis and discussion with you.
  3. Review your labs and work closely with your functional medicine-focused healthcare provider to develop your personalized treatment plan, including CJC/IPA therapy. Your healthcare provider will recommend a specific CJC/IPA protocol; for example, injections at home, using an insulin needle five days on and two days off to start.
  4. Continue to assess labs and results via follow-up consultations.

If, after reading this post, you decide that CJC-1295/Ipamorelin therapy might bring you closer to achieving your health and fitness goals and objectives, I can help. However, it’s up to you to take the first step. Contact me to schedule your initial consultation. Regardless of whether your health issues are related to low human growth hormone (HGH) or something else entirely, our initial consultation can put you on the path to identifying the root causes, receiving effective treatment, and restoring your health and vitality.

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About the Author: Dr. Matt Lewis, D.C., DACBN, CFMP®, specializes in diagnosing and treating the underlying causes of the symptoms related to chronic and unexplained illness through nutrition, lifestyle, chiropractic, and other natural approaches to whole-health healing in Tampa, Fla. Dr. Lewis has 20 years of experience practicing nutritional and holistic medicine. He earned his B.S. in Biology from Shenandoah University, his Doctorate in Chiropractic from Life University, his Diplomate status in Clinical Nutrition from the American Clinical Board of Nutrition, his CFMP from Functional Medicine University, and his certification as a Digestive Health Specialist (DHS) through the Food Enzyme Institute. Dr. Lewis’ passion for health and wellness stems from his own personal experience. With a family history of autoimmune conditions and diabetes, and his own lab tests showing his genetic susceptibility to Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (autoimmune thyroid), Dr. Lewis has learned how to restore his own health and vigor to prevent the onset of these and other illnesses and live an incredibly active life. Through this process, he acquired a deeper understanding of health and wellness, which he now offers his patients in Tampa and elsewhere.