Growth Hormone - GH or hGH: Learn More!

Growth Hormone has been regarded as one of the most promising discoveries in the fields of rejuvenation medicine and anti-aging treatments. All hormones described to date exhibit significant and undeniable results, but Growth Hormone acts decisively in the tissue regeneration process.

GH, as its name suggests, is responsible for a child's growth during childhood and adolescence. Its absence or deficiency leads to dwarfism or the inability to grow.

Human Growth Hormone is one of many hormones whose production decreases with age, similar to estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, melatonin, and DHEA. According to proponents of hormone therapies, while many of these hormones can be replenished to counteract some effects of aging, hGH may go beyond that, postponing biological aging and even reversing a series of symptoms associated with aging.

hGH, also known as somatotropin, is secreted by the pituitary gland and produced at a rate that peaks during adolescence, when bodily growth is accelerated. Subsequently, its daily secretion decreases with age, until, around 60 years old, an individual secretes only 25% of the amount released at 20 years old.

Throughout the day, Growth Hormone is released in larger quantities in pulses during the early stages of sleep; it is then rapidly converted in the liver into its main metabolite, IGF-1, also known as somatomedin-C. It is this IGF-1 that actually promotes most of the effects attributed to hGH.

The physiological decline of Growth Hormone with age is directly associated with many symptoms of aging, such as wrinkles, gray hair, decreased energy levels and sexual function, an increase in body fat percentage, and cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, etc.

For the pituitary gland to produce Growth Hormone, it must be acted upon by another hormone, called GHRF (growth hormone releasing factor), produced in the brain above the pituitary gland, in a region known as the hypothalamus. Thus, under the stimulation of GHRF, the pituitary gland releases Growth Hormone.

This hormonal interplay originates in the brain. The hypothalamus controls the activity of various glands and other hormones, always through interaction with the pituitary gland. The hypothalamus is the brain region that receives information from the entire organism and from external events. This is the case, for example, with TRF production, a releasing factor that stimulates the pituitary gland to release TSH, which, in turn, will stimulate the thyroid to produce the T4 hormone. Depending on the information received, the hypothalamus will determine the production of GHRF which, in turn, will trigger the production and release of Growth Hormone by the pituitary gland.

Growth Hormone, hGH, or somatotropin, as it is also known, is the most abundant hormone released by the pituitary gland. Its production occurs in peaks with greater intensity at night, during the rapid eye movement (REM) sleep phase, and in smaller peaks during fasting and after physical exercise. It is one of the so-called anti-aging or pro-longevity hormones, alongside estrogen, testosterone, pregnenolone, melatonin, and DHEA.

What differentiates hGH from other hormones is that, while the others act primarily preventatively, curbing the advancement of aging, Growth Hormone primarily acts by reversing some effects of aging, in addition to slowing down the pace of the aging process's evolution. This is why it is often said that Growth Hormone acts by delaying the biological clock.

Growth Hormone is a substance naturally produced by the pituitary gland, a gland located in the hypothalamus in the Central Nervous System. After production, the hormone is carried by the bloodstream to the liver, which uses it to produce so-called growth factors, such as IGF-1 (Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1), a potent inhibitor of aging.

From the age of 21, Growth Hormone release is reduced, and above 40, less than one-third of it will be available in the body, with a progressive decline of approximately 14% per decade. By age 60, daily GH production is extremely low.

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