Introduction to peptides and the Glow Up Stack

Peptides are chains of amino acids, typically ranging between 2 and 50 amino assets. They are chemical messengers, and they direct a particular part of the body to do a particularly task.

So they're signaling molecules, actually. Signaling molecules. Peptides, are essentially instruction messangers that tell the to body do stuff. That is correct.

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If you've been hearing the word peptides everywhere lately, from social media to longevity clinics, and wondering whether they're hype or the future of regenerative medicine, this episode is for you.

Today I'm joined by Dr. Lenise Lawson, board certified by the American Academy of Anti-Aging and Regenerative We're breaking down the science behind peptide stacking, specifically the glow up combination of BPC 157, GHK, CU and TB 500. What they actually do in the body, who they're for and what patients need to know before jumping in.

Let's get started. Dr. Lawson, thank you so much for joining me. I'm so excited to talk about peptides and the Glow Up Stack today. How are you doing?

Doing well, thank you. Good, good, well I can't wait to dive in. So if you're good let's, are you ready to dove in with me about peptides in the glow up stack?

I'm ready. Let's do it. All right, so first I want to start with peptide. What are they? Can you give me the 30 second elevator pitch on what peptids are?

Peptides are chains of amino acids, typically ranging between 2 and 50 amino assets. They are chemical messengers, and they direct a particular part of the body to do a particularly task.

So they're signaling molecules, actually. Signaling molecules. So peptides are essentially instruction messengers that tell the body to do stuff. That is correct.

Perfect. Awesome. Today we're going to be talking about three peptide combined together that make up this glow up stack. and putting all these three peptides together is stacking peptide.

What peptides are and why stacking works

So stacking peptides, what does that mean and why do people do it? So, stacking Peptides means you're using more than one peptid, so you are using different peptids to get a desired effect or outcome.

For example, with the glow up stack, it is a combination of BPC157, GHKCU, which is a copper tripeptide, and TB500, a fragment of thymus and beta-4. So all of them work synergistically together.

For example, the GH KCU is really good for promoting collagen and elastin production. The BPC 157 is more for repair. And then the TB 500 has some regenerative properties.

So the three of them together really work well to improve the integrity and firmness of the scan. It helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles. Again, it helps the body, actually, to produce more collagen and elastin.

So we already make collagen and elastin, but as we age, we don't make as much collagen in elastics. So the peptides, particularly the glow-up stack, it tells the body to do that task of making more collagen, and improving the skin integrity.

Awesome. Stacking these three peptide together actually creates more synergy. The concept of stacking peptides together is putting peptide that have a specific goal or outcome, putting them together to create more synergy.

Essentially not one plus one, plus equals three. It's more like one-plus-one- plus- one equals 10 or 11 because you get this amplified signaling cascade going on.

That would be correct. That's exactly what they do. So for example, now I have used the glow up stack and my primary purpose for using it was to improve my skin.

But what I found was that I had been having some back pain and I think because of the TB 500 and the BPC 157, my backpain actually improved. Yeah, it's a great combination.

It really is. Awesome. So the glow up stack, which is made up of three peptides, is the outcome and the goal, kind of what it sounds like, to have a little glow-up, right?

To age gracefully. It's not necessarily just about the outward appearance, but it is about regenerative signaling. These three peptides send regenerating signals to the entire body.

The glow up is happening not just outwardly, but regenerating other areas of the body. That is correct. Very cool. So let's break down each of peptides that are in the glow-up stack.

Let's start with GHKCU. What does that peptide do? So it's a copper tripeptide and it signals the body to make more collagen and elastin. So as we age, women notice that their skin doesn't look as plump and firm as it once did.

The GHKCU actually has a significant benefit on skin regeneration. Okay. So yeah, so that one can be used alone or it can used in the stack that we're discussing today.

is known for collagen stimulation, skin regeneration, hair support, and cellular signaling for repair.

GHK-Cu for collagen, skin, and hair support

And some of the benefits that you can see or expect would be visible skin benefits, anti-inflammatory, signaling your body to rebuild healthier tissue, and you notice that outwardly because of the elastin in the collagen stimulation.

That is correct. And GHKCU has been beneficial for, for example, there's another peptide that people are using and it's the GLP ones and the glp agonist and many people who lose weight rapidly will experience significant hair loss.

So the GHKCU in particular and even combined with that glow stack can even help to improve and and uh the hair lost. Very cool. Would that also, so with GLP ones, a lot of people who are experiencing rapid weight loss also are starting to see a little bit of like the sunken in face.

Could GHK see you also help with that? Actually, I think probably, maybe a little bit, but probably- But that's more fat loss. Yeah, the people are not consuming enough calories, are really consuming not enough protein.

But yeah, you've got to really maintain your caloric intake and exercise when you're using a GLP agonist. That makes sense. Second peptide to discuss that's part of this stack is TB500.

What is it known for? TB 500, I said earlier, it's a fragment of thymus and beta 4, and it has a lot of recovery benefits. So if, say for example, someone had an extensive shoulder injury, they might have torn a labrum and have significant pain.

So the TB 500 can really help with recovery. So now it also helps to repair. But when combined with the BPC 157, you get decrease in inflammation in the tendons, ligaments, and joints, but you better recovery when you add the Tb 500 to that particular peptide.

They work in synergy together. Right. They definitely work synergistically together. And depending on the condition, the peptide dosing is not a one-size-fits-all.

So, for growth stacks, so for example, most of the stacks contain two milligrams of GHKCU and then 500 micrograms of TB500 and 500 of the BPC 157. But for someone who has had a significant injury, you can even increase the dose of TB 500 even up to two milligrams.

So you don't just, if someone had an injury I would say the glow stack would not be appropriate for them. We would have to change your dosing and maybe not use that particular stack, but the two, the TB 500 and the BPC 157 definitely work quite well together.

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Learn more at forumhealth.com and explore supplements at shopforumhealth.com. So we were just talking about TB 500, what it is and what the benefits are.

Do you want to kind of back up just a little bit Dr. Lawson and kind start around what is TB500 and can patients expect results wise from taking that?

So TB500 is a fragment of thymus and beta-4. It has a lot of regenerative and recovery benefits. So if someone had a significant injury, they would use a larger dose of the TB 500, whereas if it's just being used for skin benefits and having a glow up, then you would that in a lower dose.

As I was saying before, there's not just a one dose fits all.

TB-500 for recovery and tissue repair

You really have to look at each person's condition and dose them accordingly. But, you know, I have a colleague who really injured his shoulder significantly and he had to use the TB 500 and the BPC 157 for about three months, but he'd had significant recovery And he used the two at a higher dose.

So that particular stack would be called the Wolverine stack. There are different combinations of peptides that can be used for different conditions. Right.

TB500 is definitely known for its regenerative qualities. increasing recovery time. And when you look at it in the glow stack, depending on what goal or outcome you're looking for, you might have a lower dose of the TB 500, but TB500 can be used for a lot more than just the Glow Up Stack and it works very well synergistically with BPC.

excuse me, BPC 157. So at higher doses, you're looking at more injury recovery, things like that in the glow up stack for the TB 500. You're more looking for overall regeneration of the tissues and supporting the cellular processes of Right, skin rejuvenation.

Now, I tell people it's not going to be, you're not gonna get the results that you would get with a baselift, but it does definitely improve the clarity of the skin.

Skin texture, firmness, having a little bit like more useful glow to the Right. Beautiful. But again, you know, they don't work by themselves. You know you have to have a good diet.

you've got to use good skin care. So it's just a part of the regimen to Yeah, that TB 500 works really synergistically with BPC 157, which is the third peptide of this glow up stack.

So Bpc 15 7, what is that peptides and what does it do in the body? So BPC-157 is made up of a gastric protein. So not only does it have some benefits of decreasing inflammation, in the skin, it also helps to heal the gut.

So not only do I use it for people who are doing the glow up stack, if I have someone with ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease, I will use the BPC 157 in that patient as well.

Again, you use them for different purposes and different conditions, and the way you used them depends on what you combine with them, which other peptide you combined.

BPC-157, I've seen being used as a very popular peptide for gut health and gut healing. And that makes sense in the glow up peptides stack because I think a lot of times as integrative and regenerative practitioners, your skin is a reflection of your inside, right?

So it makes sense, BPC-157 being part of the glow up sack, not just because it's the body protection compound and systemically, it is just helping your whole body with repair signaling and things like that, but it also a really great peptide for GI conditions.

And again, Glow up peptide is kind of sounds like more of like a vein vanity type of a peptides stack. But when you look at the peptids in the glow up stack, yes, you're getting more elastin collagen in this nice outward appearance and this glow.

but a lot of this has to do with like just. healing and providing regenerative signals to the body and the end result is a really nice outward complexion and you feel really good about how you look.

Yeah, I think that that's a really important thing to understand is that when people look great because their skin and their hair are looking really good, they have to have a certain amount of internal microbiological and cellular health in order to achieve that, right?

I wouldn't say that I use TB 500 primarily for looking good. I used it for repair, right? Like Dr. Lawson was saying about this friend of hers that used for several months at a higher dose.

That doesn't mean it doesn' work for that. It works great. Like you're going to look great because your body's repairing a little better. And if you're generally healthy, I think a glow stack, you gonna get really impressive results because you generally are healthy.

If you are injured, your gonna use that glowstack. It's gonna help you repair. You might not glow quite as quick because your gotta get all the repair done first before you start to really glow.

And I love BPC 157. I had a guy I gave it to. A week ago, he had pulled his hamstring, an older guy. He was going on a trip, I think to Germany or something.

We just injected in the three places where it hurt the most. And he actually contacted me immediately.

BPC-157 for gut healing and inflammation

I did it on Friday. On Monday, this stuff is the best ever. Where do I get more? That fast. So, you know, it's a great recommended for a guy who had not been able to work out.

He had low back pain. I don't remember exactly what the injury was and he was doing physical therapy. And I said to him, why don't you try the Wolverine stack with the combination of the TB 500 and the BPC 157? And, I spoke to them earlier in the week and he said, my back is completely normal.

I'm able to get back in to gym. He said this is amazing. And he was very happy. It maybe took about two to three months, so it wasn't immediate. because he had significant pain, but it really is amazing.

And I'm a believer because now I use the Glow Up Stack because when I look at myself on Zoom all day long, you get to look up your skin and I thought, okay, well look.

But you look amazing, Lenise. Oh, thank you, because of the glow up. But I had been experiencing back pain for about a year and, you know, I was taking my loxacam, getting tight massages and trying to stretch and nothing really worked.

I mean, still had significant pain. And after about 30 days of using the glow-up stack, I noticed that I really didn't have any pain anymore. So I'm not using glow up stack currently.

I am just using BPC 157 and TB 500. But I cannot believe how much better I feel. So I started using thymus and beta-4 primarily for patients that had chronic illness.

And that's because it lowers pro-inflammatory cytokines, right? It lowers interleukin-1-beta, it lower TNF-alpha, and it then lowers Interleucin 6. Those are all sorts of things that will be high when people have chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia.

But that's also part of why it is giving you anti-inflammatory repair signaling, right? So that the beauty of this is it can be used for longevity, but it could also be use for chronic illness recovery.

And people are like, well, those are two opposite things. No, actually those were the same exact pathway. We're talking about the, you know, these, immune cascades that happen and either they keep us sick because we get stuck in that pathway or you need to reduce that acutely so that we can then recover and repair.

So, You know I have to look at myself after being recorded for the podcast and all that stuff and I use different peptides for different reasons and one Setting up the expectation for when to start noticing these results is one thing that I wanted to jump into, but it's the inflammation markers that when you start seeing those lower and lower your body starts to become less puffy and puff and I actually noticed a relationship between my outward glow up and my inflammatory markers.

So I was watching my HSCRP markers and I watching the inflammation continue to go down, down using the BPC157 and even the GLP ones. I do microdosing of that to help with lowering inflammation.

And I can notice the glow up in my face, the decrease in the puffiness, brightness, and even just like the more energy that I feel, the less pain, if the lesson brain fog and fatigue, like those are all also markers of longevity and regeneration, which I think is more of the core of what the glow up stack is.

It's not necessarily just this outward look it's decreasing inflammation and giving the body these repair signals. Like that's the Glow Up and you get to look nice at the same time.

Right. It's interesting that you said that. You brought up that point about the cardio CRP being elevated. So I saw a patient today and her cardio crp was 8.4 and she said it had been elevated for many years.

Now she had had some mold exposures and I checked her melanocytes stimulating hormone level and it was less than 8 and should be at 35 or above. And she had some gut issues as well.

So I told her that she should probably add the KPV to that stack because that's a three amino acid fragment of melanocyte stimulating hormone. And when your stimulating hormones is low, then you are going to have more inflammation, so the KPV actually even enhances the decrease, well, enhances decreasing inflammation.

So I had to, I thought about doing the glow up, and then I said, Well, okay, let's do the KPV and the BPC-157. Now the good thing about Bpc- 157 is if somebody really is anti-injection, it does come in an oral capsule.

So I did a combination of the BPC 157 and the KPV and a capsule for her. And then I also, because she also had a lot of back pain and knee pain, so we're going to do the TB 500 in a much higher dose.

We're gonna do, rather than doing the 500 micrograms, which is what's normally given in that glow stack, we are going double that dose and give her a milligram per day of TB 500. Sounds like you kind of personalized somebody else's glow stack.

So commercially, we know that the glow-stack is these three peptides, but it sounds like, you're able to kind-of personalize a glow, stack up to each patient and swap out one peptide for the other based on the patient's needs for their glow up stack?

Right. So that's another good reason why having a doctor be involved in this is a good idea because Dr. Lawson is able to check what somebody's melanocytes stimulating hormone is and then give them the right, the ideal peptide rather than just probably work peptides.

Right. And I told her the glow stack would probably work nicely and she would get some benefit from it. She said, well, what's going to decrease my inflammation the most?

She asked, is there enough BPC-157 and TB-500 in that stack to really lower my information?

Personalizing peptide stacks and setting expectations

I said there was not. So she said I don't really care how I look right now. I just want to feel better. It's nice to understand what the benefits of each peptide are and not just blanketly, you know, prescribe the same regimen for everybody.

You really need to personalize that regimens for the person. One person's glow up might be outwardly another person's glow up might be working on the inside and their energy and the hormones.

So first you have to understand what does your glow-up look like. And then it sounds like you've had to find the right practitioner to. Understand how all these peptides work together.

You want to put peptide that works synergistically together because not all peptids do work synergetically together and then match that to the patient's outcomes and needs.

Correct. Right. So I'm excited for this patient. I think within the next two, maybe two to three months, she will have significant improvements. It's just another tool in the box, but you have to always get to the root cause of what that person's illness really is triggered by.

Yeah. I wanted to, we kind of touched on this a little bit, setting up expectations for patients who are on peptides or who're going to be engaging in a peptide journey.

So I've seen people being frustrated with peptids because they saw a peptide, decided to try it out. They tried it for a month or so, didn't see the results that they wanted too, and so now they've written that off.

So when you're talking or prescribing peptides to patients, how do you set them up for success? Well, for example, if they just want more aesthetic benefits from the Glow Up Stack, I tell them that they will probably notice some differences in four to six weeks.

But I also steer them to be on the right skincare regimen and not just use Dove. So you have to really As you age, you really have to do everything. You have the lifestyle.

It's not just about providing the peptides, it's really looking at the whole picture. Exactly. But the peptides definitely have been amazing. I've seen amazing results with them.

So yeah, I'm happy that we're able to use them and that some of them have come off of the do not compound list. Yeah, that is so exciting. Right. It is exciting and another thing that, you know, people might be experiencing when they're not getting the results that they want or thought they were going to achieve with doing the peptides, it could have been where they resourced.

So a lot of people will buy them online from a research-only facility, and you don't really know what's in that vial. You don't know what kind of contaminants are there.

You do not know if the actual raw ingredient is what they say it is. So they have to be sourced properly as well. When you're talking to patients and setting up their expectations, first you look at what's going on in their lifestyle, not just prescribing peptides.

you have understand the whole story to make sure that if you want Goal X, peptides are the instructions to your body to get there. Let's look at what kind of signal, other signals and ingredients you're giving your.

So skincare, are you putting on toxic hormone disrupting skincare? That's not going to benefit your journey. Also, even your food and your intake, these are messengers and you're body needs the appropriate ingredients and fuel in order to do something with those messages.

And so there is more to getting the results that you want leveraging peptides. You have to have all these other steps in place. Um, and then the next thing you had mentioned is making sure you have the right quality and sourcing for the peptide.

Correct. Awesome. I love that. If you guys could add one other peptide to the stack. So we've got the GHKCU, the BPC157, The TB500. We did talk a little bit about the KPV peptides.

if there was another peptid you could to add to this stack, what would it be? I do like the CJC1295 and ipomerelin because that helps to improve lean body mass.

It helps people to lose body fat. And it has a lot of anti-inflammatory and regenerative properties as well. Now, it gets expensive if you do everything, but the combination of Now, I think probably the best combination would be the KPV, the BXP 157, TB 500 and GHKCU.

And then the CJC 1295 and Ipamerelin is a good addition to that stack. Roger Lawson, you versus the, uh, CJ C Ippamarelin versus Tessamorelin. Do you, what do you see in your experience between those two?

Anything different? The Tessamerelin is more effective. You know, that's what I'm using right now. So I do like that. And, you know I talked to one of the reps from the pharmacies that I use and he says people are really getting amazing results with the Tessa morellin.

It's definitely a good addition as well. But you don't necessarily see that one is superior to the other, or do you? Yeah, we haven't seen that personally at this point, because the test of morelin is much more expensive than the CJC-1295 and ipamorelin.

So I definitely see more patients on that, the Cjc- 1295. I see. Maybe it is more effective. It's a question of is it, you know, cost effective compared to it.

It is more expensive. Yeah, the one that I would say I like that. I. Would add maybe this is cause I'm an old man, but the C max and C like for brain health.

Oh, I love those. I'm probably more worried about becoming forgetful than ugly. Yes, I am on the C-max right now. And you want to know what, i'm a big fan of cycling my peptides.

Lifestyle, sourcing, and cycling peptides

So I like, you don't, a lot of the peptide protocols are like four to six weeks and then you take a break, but you're always taking breaks and cycling with a of these peptidde protocols.

I just did a round of, cause To your point, Dr. Peterson, I am brain health and that is an important part of aging to me. Right now, my family has a history of Alzheimer's, so I like to be very proactive in that area.

So I just did a round of cerebral lysine and then my next peptide, instead of going right back to cerebral lysine, right now I'm doing a around of CMAX.

the next one that I'm gonna do. And so I just don't feel like I need to do everything all at once. But I do know that, I want to consistently support those different areas in my body.

So I cycle different peptides to support the different area that's I am concerned about as I age. That's how I my glow up. Yeah, and that makes sense to me.

I don't think we have enough data to say that that's the best way, but it makes the most sense we should be moving towards to saying, look, yeah, you could use BPC-157, TB-500 and GHK-CU continuously for the next three years, that's fine.

But if you can't afford to do everything all the time, then give your brain a little boost, and give you growth hormone a boost and then your immune system a bit boost.

You can cycle through these things and I think get a lot of benefit rather than focus on only one part of your body because otherwise we end up seeming a You're, you know, I, the way we fractured healthcare into ologists, i'm a cardiologist or a nephrologist or gastroenterologist.

It's silly. I've only got one body, right? You need to pay attention to all those things. And so I think the idea of saying, Hey, did this for a month, maybe two, three months, and then I'm going to switch.

And a lot of the recommendations, you know, they're, there are no standardized recommendations. But what a of experts say is that. So for example, with the glow up, sometimes they'll say, I've read that you use it for two months on, and then maybe take a month off, so you cycle these things.

You, focus on one area first. And then when you cycled off of it, then you add in another peptide that addresses some of other areas of concern. And just again, you get the best of both worlds when you are able to use everything that addresses all of your concerns.

And personally, I can feel it. There's a peptide, a sublingual peptides blend that maybe you've heard of, Dr. Lawson, what's it called, BioPro. And I'll use Bio Pro for two months in a row, and then I take six months or two month off.

I could tell when I'm like, ooh, it's going down, might need to get another box of Let's start again. I think it's the same thing with these other peptides of, you know, I'm using this.

The only one that I don't feel a difference in is the growth hormone, the CJC epimoral line. Maybe it is because I am not, my weight is fine, and I not trying to lose weight, but I just don' t notice it.

But I notice the other ones and that doesn't mean that i don t use it, i still use because i figure well i need growth hormones, need to repair sometimes.

And maybe your IGF level was good to start, and so you didn't get a lot of benefits. You're just supporting the body. I think, too, with peptides like CJC and epimoralin, if your goal and your outcome is to increase your muscle mass or if you have specific body composition goals, I think one of the biggest things that you to do with your patients or just as a person using peptides is track your goals.

Like you should be hopping on an in-body once a month. You should making sure that your getting a high intake of protein. Your should make sure you're doing muscle resistance and things are promoting and adding to the peptide because I wanted to bust this myth before we ended.

Myth or truth, peptides replace healthy habits. Absolutely a myth. Definitely a myth. If you're smoking and drinking alcohol and eating your processed foods, you might have to waste your money on the peptides.

You really need to be committed to doing everything. I mean, nobody's going to get all of the time, but you need be pretty consistent about your lifestyle and living a healthy lifestyle about 80 to 90% of time.

Exactly. Mandy, you could think about it like building a house. If I have twice as many framers, plumbers, and HVAC guys show up, but they don't have any two by fours or pipe or wire, they're not getting more work done.

Right. And so peptides you take, if you don' have the basic building blocks and your autonomic nervous system is not in a state where it can say, let's repair, it's not going to work.

if I'm in fight or flight state, my autonomal nervous systems says, Hey, we got to escape from the tiger. Well, it won't help me that much that I took Tessamoralin.

It'd be a good time to take BPC 157 and calm down the fear, right? And that's why you want to see a doctor to help you do this. Cause if you're taking a peptide without doing all those other steps, they're just really expensive.

And that was my myth or truth. Peptides replace healthy habits. Absolutely not. It is 100% false. it is a myth. And people should be, if you are taking a peptide, what is your goal?

You need to ask yourself, What is the outcome you were looking for with this peptides? And you should tracking it. When you're taking that peptid, CJC and ipamoralin is really great example.

If you looking to goal, increase your muscle mass because that is a recomposition body type of a peptide. You need to make sure that you're following the lifestyle to support the peptides and the outcome that your going for.

Peptides are the messengers, you still have to have the right tools and ingredients in the body for those messages to happen action and result at the end of the day.

Yeah, I agree, 100%. Well, this was such a powerful conversation. Thank you guys so much. My big takeaways are one, I learned so about the glow up stack and GHKCU, TB 500, BPC 157, but also just the overall concept of stacking and what the Glow Up Stack means in general is you're looking to have a glow-up.

And if you are looking for a Glowe Up, it doesn't have to be just these three. But working with a practitioner can really one, customize the peptide stack to your outcome and goals and make sure that those peptides work synergistically together.

So you are maximizing your. Absolutely. I love it. You should let me join. Uh, I really appreciate Dr. Lawson, your expertise on this. Um, it's really, It's great for the organization.

And I know it was great. For your patients. Yeah. I'm really happy that we have that in our toolbox. It makes a huge difference because, you know, again, I've heard, had two people say to me, oh my goodness, that these peptides, well, particularly the BPC 157 and the TB 500 have changed my life.

So that's, it's good to hear. You always hear the negative, but it'd nice to here something positive. Yep. Amen. Absolutely. Well, you can find practitioners like Dr.

Lawson and Dr Peterson on our website at formhealth.com. Thank you so much for listening and stay tuned for next week's episode. If you liked this, don't forget to like, comment, and share with somebody who can benefit from this podcast also.

Thanks so Thank you for joining us on the Forum Health Integrative Medicine podcast. Each episode, we help you understand your health from every angle and inspire your lifelong wellness journey.

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Lynese Lawson, DO, IFMCP

The Glow Stack: Can Peptides Really Repair and Rejuvenate?