I e-mailed my doctor to ask him about HGH.
Below is his answer
here is my answer (save your money send it to charity)
Growth Hormone Schemes and Scams, 24/6/2009
Human growth hormone (HGH) is a substance secreted by the pituitary gland that promotes growth during childhood and adolescence. Growth hormone acts on the liver and other tissues to stimulate production of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I), which is responsible for the growth-promoting effects of growth hormone and also reflects the amount produced. Blood levels of circulating IGF-I tend to decrease as people age or become obese . Many marketers would like you to believe that boosting HGH blood levels can reduce body fat; build muscle; improve sex life, sleep quality, vision and memory; restore hair growth and color; strengthen the immune system; normalize blood sugar; increase energy; and "turn back your body's biological clock." This article traces the history of these claims and why you should disregard them.
Soon after the book's publication, many amino acid products were claimed to cause overnight weight loss by increasing the release of growth hormone. So called "growth-hormone releasers" were also marketed to bodybuilders with claims that they would help build muscle. Such claims are unfounded because amino acids taken by mouth do not stimulate growth hormone release. These formulations are based mainly on misinterpreted studies of intravenous arginine, which can increase HGH blood levels for an hour or so. Taking it by mouth has no such effect. The FTC , and the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs attacked some companies making "growth-hormone release" claims, but these actions had very little effect on the overall marketplace.
In 1990, The New England Journal of Medicine published a study that attracted mainstream media attention. The study involved 12 men, aged 61 to 81, who were apparently healthy but had IGF-I levels below those found in normal young men. The 12 men were given growth hormone injections three times a week for six months and compared with 9 men who received no treatment. The treatment resulted in a decrease in adipose (fatty) tissue and increases in lean body (muscle) mass and lumbar spine density . An accompanying editorial warned that some of the subjects had experienced side effects and that the long-range effects of administering HGH to healthy adults were unknown. It also warned that the hormone shots were expensive and that the study had not examined whether the men who received the hormone had substantially improved their muscle strength, mobility, or quality of life .
The 1990 article also helped stimulate formation of the American Association for Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) and the unrecognized medical specialty of "anti-aging medicine." The group, founded in 1993. states that it has 11,500 members, of whom 80% are medical or osteopathic physicians . Many exhibitors at its conferences have made questionable claims for HGH-related products.
The Internet has added another dimension to the HGH marketplace. Thousands of Web sites and spam e-mailers are hawking the actual hormone; alleged HGH releasers; alleged oral hormone products (which can't work because any HGH would be digested); and/or "homeopathic HGH" products.
HGH is useful for treating growth hormone deficiency in children and adults and has several other proven (FDA-approved) uses . But the the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists has warned that the clinical use of growth hormone as an anti-aging treatment or for patients with ordinary obesity is not recommended .
Citing several studies of HGH injections in which side effects were significant , Vance concluded:
In January 2003, the FDA sent a warning letter to Be Youthful, of Edmonton, Canada, objecting to claims that their Be Youthful HGH product was effective against depression, chronic fatigue, high blood prsessure, and high cholesterol levels .
In April 2003, Nature's Youth, LLC, of Centerville, Massachusetts, voluntarily destroyed approximately 5,700 boxes of "Nature's Youth HGH" with a market value of about $515,000. The destruction took place after the FDA notified the company that claims made for the product were unsubstantiated and therefore illegal. The company had claimed that the product, which it described as a growth-hormone releaser, would enhance the body's natural production of Human Growth Factors and Insulin-like Growth Factor-1; improve physical performance; speed recovery from training; increase cardiac output; and increase immune functions; and was "your body's best defense against aging." .When asked for substantiation, the company cited Rudman's 1990 report, which, as noted above, does not support such claims. The product's leading promoter has been G. Gordon Liddy, the former Watergate conspirator who served five years in prison and now hosts a talk show syndicated to 160 radio stations. In 2002, Nature's Youth's Web site carried a testimonial from Liddy:
I am often asked my secret for remaining virile, vigorous, potent and fecund. The secret is that, in addition to not smoking or drinking alcohol, exercising and following a diet low in calories, fat and red meat and high in fish, I have for some time been taking a Human Growth Hormone Releasant specially formulated for me and heretofore not available to the public. Now, under the brand name Nature's Youth HGH, the exact formula I have been using is available to you. My secret is out. Nature's Youth HGH is how I stay "Good to Go and Ready to Launch!
In 2005, Edmund Chein, M.D., who operates the Palm Springs Life Extension Institute (PSLEI) in Palm Springs, California, was placed on five years' probation during which he must (a) pay $10,000 to the State of California for costs, (b) take courses in ethics, prescribing practices, and recordkeeping, (c) refrain from making unsubstantiated advertising claims, and (d) either have his practice monitored or participate in an intensive professional enhancement program. The clinic's Web site states that PSLEI specializes in "optimized total hormone balancing by returning hormone levels to values consistent with a younger person." The grounds for discipline included inappropriately and negligently prescribing HGH plus insulin to a patient who was neither deficient nor diabetic .
In 2007, the College Pharmacy, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, its owner (pharmacist Thomas Bader), a sales representative (Kevin Henry), and a sales representative (Bradley Blum) from a company in Houston, Texas, were indicted by a federal grand jury for illegally importing and distributing HGHfrom China. The indictment charged that the defendants obtained Chinese-manufactured HGH that lacked FDA approval and repackaged and sold it to physicians throughout the United States. In response to the indictment, the Colorado Board of Pharmacy revoked Bader's license . Blum subsequently pleaded guilty and was fined $10,000 and placed on 2 years probation. In 2008, the U.S. Government and the pharmacy owners reached a civil agreement under which $3.5 million (representing the proceeds from illegal importation and sale of HGH) was forfeited . For many years, the College Pharmacy catalog identified it as "one of the largest, most comprehensive compounding centers in North America." In 2005, it was fined $50,000 and placed on probation following complaints that its pharmacists had incorrectly dispensed medication.
In 2009, Sean Shafer and The Compounding Center, Inc.,of Phoenix, Arizona were charged with illegally distributing HGH. The indictment alleged that the company's Web site touted impermissible uses of HGH for "anti-aging" purposes and that from 2001 through 2006, nine doctors made more than 400 purchases totaling more than $1.1 million. Rge indictment also states that Shafer, in his capacity as the manager of the wholesale department of the Compounding Center, also sold a number of HGH kits to two undercover operatives who specifically told him that the purchases were for bodybuilders and athletes .
Although growth hormone levels decline with age, it has not been proven that trying to maintain the levels that exist in young persons is beneficial. Considering the high cost, significant side effects, and lack of proven effectiveness, HGH shots appear to be a very poor investment. So called "growth-hormone releasers," oral "growth hormone," and "homeopathic HGH" products are fakes.
American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists Medical Guidelines for Clinical Practice for growth hormone use in adults and children2003 update. Endocrine Practice 9-65-76, 2003.
Regulatory Actions against Michael Teplitsky, M.D., 13/6/2005
According to the FTC, the defendants advertising deceptively claimed that the dietary supplements Ultimate HGH and Super HGH Booster and homeopathic sublingual sprays called Master HGH and Super HGH will (a) significantly increase growth hormone levels, (b) provide the benefits purportedly shown in various studies involving prescription-only HGH injections, (c) reduce fat, cholesterol, and blood pressure (d) increase muscle mass, and (e) improved cognitive, immune, and sexual function. The FTCs complaint also challenged deceptive claims that Fat Blaster and Super Carbo Blocker cause weight loss by suppressing appetite, reducing the conversion of carbohydrates to fats, and enhancing metabolism; and that Ultimate Wild Oregano Oil and Super Wild Oregano Oil prevent colds and flu and, when taken orally, treat and relieve bacterial and viral infections and their symptoms. The complaint further alleged that defendants falsely represented that radio and television infomercials for their products were independent shows when, in fact, they were paid-for commercials. In addition, the defendants violated the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) by failing to obtain informed consent to charge consumers credit cards for additional products after a first telemarketing sale was completed. The alleged HGH enhancers typically sold for $100 for a three-month supply, with total sales exceeding $70 million.
In 2004, the Electronic Retailing Self-Regulation Program asked PCI to substantiate core claims in its infomercial for Super Prostate Formula, but the company had declined to do so . Ironically, despite the fact that New York State disciplined Teplitsky for inappropriately prescribing HGH, several Web sites that market PCI's Super HGH still claim that Teplitsky "has not only developed all of the nutritional formulas on this site, but he and his patients have been using them for years with astounding results!"
Be Wary of Health-Related Infomercials, 10/9/2009
Ultimate HGH
Ultimate HGH, which is marketed by Great American Products, was promoted with claims that it can "turn back the clock 20 to 30 years," build muscle, increase memory retention, increase "cardio output," cause people to reduce weight, increase energy, improve vision, enhance immune function, and lower cholesterol. Claims of this type have been stimulated by a study published in 1990 in the New England Journal of Medicine
which showed certain changes in elderly men given injections of human growth hormone (HGH). However, the article has no real relevance because the product contains no hormone or any ingredient that can increase the body's HGH. Even if it could, taking the product would not be a good idea because HGH can produce serious adverse effects. The company's research director, who was interviewed during the infomercial, advised everyone after the age of 30 to use the product. My advice is that nobody should use it because the infomercial was a total fraud.
