Human Growth Hormone and Anti-Aging

Dear Dr. Dave and Dr. Dee,

What are the negatives about using Human Growth Hormone? Can HGH stop aging? Are pills just as effective as injections?

Signed,

Looking for anti-aging remedy

Dear Looking for anti-aging remedy,

Human Growth Hormone (HGH) is a synthetic human growth hormone that is only available by prescription for treatment of specific medical conditions in children or adults. HGH is administered by intramuscular injection and not by pills or orally because the HGH would be destroyed by stomach acids and not absorbed into the body.

There is no scientific evidence that HGH can stop the aging process. Some other negatives are the health risks and side effects with HGH such as increased risk of cancer, nerve pain, increased cholesterol and glucose. The cost of HGH injections can be thousands of dollars over the course of a year. Because HGH costs several hundred dollars per dose, there is the danger of counterfeit HGH being sold to consumers.

HGH is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (www.fda.gov). However, according to the FDA, there are a limited number of conditions for which HGH can be prescribed:

1. Hormonal deficiency that causes short stature in children.

2. Long-term treatment of growth failure due to lack of exogenous GH secretion.

3. Long-term treatment of short stature associated with Turner syndrome.

4. Adult short bowel syndrome.

5. Adult deficiency due to rare pituitary tumors or their treatment.

6. Muscle-wasting disease associated with HIV/AIDS.

If you feel that you are a candidate for HGH, then speak to your physician about the risks and benefits.

For more information on HGH, see (http://www.fda.gov/ora/fiars/ora_import_ia6671.html)