L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine)_Dosage, benefits & legal status
Also known as levocarnitine, Carnitor, L-carnitine tartrate, acetyl-L-carnitine
An approved drug for a rare deficiency, sold as a fat-loss injection.
Common vial size is what vendors typically sell, not a recommendation. Enter your own vial in the calculator.
What is L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine)?
Plain language first. The technical label stays, but it never stands alone.Overview
It is the shuttle that moves fat into the part of the cell that burns it.
Levocarnitine is a naturally occurring compound that carries long-chain fatty acids across the mitochondrial membrane so they can be burned for energy.
What it's used for
A carnitine deficiency drug, also sold as a supplement and as an injectable fat-loss aid, which is the one use it has no approval for.
How does L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine) work?
What it does in the body, and where.Carnitine has one job, and whether that job is a bottleneck decides whether extra helps.
- 01It carries long-chain fatty acids into the mitochondriaFatty acids cannot cross that membrane on their own. Carnitine is the ferry.
- 02In a true deficiency, adding it back changes everythingThis is the approved use, and in some patients presenting with cardiomyopathy the label describes symptoms improving rapidly.
- 03In someone with normal levels, the ferry was not the hold-upAdding more shuttle capacity to a system that has enough is the central reason the fat-loss results are underwhelming.
- 04Muscle carnitine is also hard to raiseSkeletal muscle holds most of the body's carnitine, and getting more into it by mouth is slow and requires insulin. That is a separate practical problem from whether it would help.
A schematic of the compound's mechanism, not a diagnostic image.
What else is it used for?
Each use below carries its own evidence level. Approved means regulators have cleared it for that purpose. Investigational means it is in trials. Early research means it is being studied and is not established.
- Primary systemic carnitine deficiencyFDA-approved
- Secondary carnitine deficiency from an inborn error of metabolismFDA-approved
- Carnitine deficiency in people with end stage renal disease on dialysisFDA-approved
- Fat loss and exercise performanceResearch only
How much, and do you cycle it?
The range, and whether you take breaks.Varies widely by route and purpose, daily by mouth, or two to three times a week by injection. Continuous, since the approved use is a permanent deficiencyFDA label
Carnitine deficiency does not resolve, so the approved use is lifelong. Nothing in the label or the trials addresses the cycled use common on the research market, and nothing suggests a break serves any purpose.
How long does it stay in the body?
The half-life, and where the figure comes from.About 15 hours after an oral doseFDA label
Reported at roughly 15 hours for the oral product. This is one of the less useful half-life figures on the site, because the body maintains its own carnitine pool and regulates it, so plasma clearance does not describe tissue levels.
Not yet traced to a primary source.
You can compare this against the whole library to see where it sits.
How do I dose and price it?
Enter your vial and your dose. Pick a mix. We show the draw and the cost.The vial holds a fixed amount of drug. Adding more water does not make more drug, it just spreads it thinner, so you draw a bigger number on the syringe for the same dose.
Choose your mix
Measuring the water1 mL = one full 100-unit syringe.
Your draw
0 / 100 unitsL-Carnitine (Levocarnitine) starts at $35.99 across 17 vendors, typically $0.08 – $2.00 per mg.
21 listings, last read Aug 25, 2026. Shipping and card fees are not included.
How do you store it?
Before mixing, and after.Dry powder in the freezer or fridge. Once mixed, fridge, and use within about a month.
Unmixed lyophilized L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine) keeps for a long time cold. Once you add water the clock starts: most reconstituted vials hold up for roughly 28 to 30 days at fridge temperature. Keep it out of light, and do not freeze it after mixing.
What are the side effects and cautions?
Known cautions and warnings for this compound.Who should avoid it
- Taking warfarin, without INR monitoring
- Seizure disorders, where the label notes seizures have occurred and may become more frequent
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding, without a specific reason and supervision
- Kidney disease outside dialysis, where clearance is altered
Stop and get help
- A seizure, or an increase in seizure frequency
- Unusual bruising or bleeding, if you take warfarin
- Spreading redness or swelling at an injection site
- Signs of an allergic reaction such as face or throat swelling, hives, or trouble breathing
Common effects
- Nausea, cramping or diarrhoea, usually from taking a large oral dose too fast
- A fishy body odour, from gut bacteria converting it
- Injection site soreness
- Restlessness or difficulty sleeping if taken late
Where this page says nothing is established, that means nobody has studied it, not that a compound is safe.
Is L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine) approved?
And where the numbers on this page come from.Yes. L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine) is FDA approved and available on prescription in the United States.
- Injected into muscle and Injected under the skinResearch onlyNot approved by this routeThe intramuscular vials sold on the research market use a route the approved product does not cover, and the approved oral solution is labelled not for parenteral use.
- By mouthFDA-approvedFDA-approvedCarnitor tablets and oral solution are approved prescription products for carnitine deficiency. The same molecule is also sold separately as an unregulated dietary supplement.
- Into a veinFDA-approvedFDA-approvedCarnitor injection is approved for intravenous use only, for carnitine deficiency.
- RouteBy mouth, into a vein, or into muscle
- CheckedAugust 2026
What has happened recently
Approved as Carnitor for three things: primary systemic carnitine deficiency, secondary carnitine deficiency caused by an inborn error of metabolism, and the prevention and treatment of carnitine deficiency in people with end stage renal disease on dialysis. Fat loss is not among them. The route detail matters as well. Carnitor injection is approved for intravenous use only, and the approved oral solution carries the statement that it is for oral or internal use and not for parenteral use. The intramuscular vials sold for fat loss are neither the approved product nor the approved route.
You can compare this against the whole library, or read how to check a seller.
- DoseFrom the drug label. The manufacturer tested this range and a regulator reviewed it.
- Vial sizeFrom what vendors typically list; not a recommendation.
- Sources
- Reviewed24 August 2026
What else is like L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine)?
Others in Fat loss without GLP-1, side by side.If you're weighing L-Carnitine (Levocarnitine), it's worth reading ATX-304 (O-304), AOD-9604, and HGH Fragment 176-191 in the same class.
An approved drug for a rare deficiency, sold as a fat-loss injection.
- Dose
- Varies widely by route and purpose
- How often
- Daily by mouth, or two to three times a week by injection
An exercise mimetic that got through a phase 2a trial and then went quiet.
- Dose
- No established dose outside the trial
- How often
- Daily in the trial
A growth-hormone fragment marketed for fat loss, with weak proof it works.
- Dose
- 0.3 mg per day
- How often
- Daily
The fat-burning piece of growth hormone, aimed at stubborn fat.
- Dose
- 0.25 up to 0.5 mg per day (start low, increase slowly)
- How often
- Daily
10What these words mean
Show glossary +
What these words mean
- 503A and 503B
- The two kinds of compounding pharmacy in US law. A 503A pharmacy prepares medicine for one named patient. A 503B outsourcing facility makes larger batches under stricter manufacturing rules.
- Agonist
- Something that switches a receptor on. The opposite is an antagonist. It blocks the receptor instead.
- Amino acid
- The building blocks that link together in a chain to make a peptide or a protein. The order they sit in is what makes one peptide different from another.
- Amylin
- A hormone released alongside insulin that slows the stomach emptying and reduces appetite. Several weight loss compounds copy it.
- Analog
- A compound built to copy a natural one with small deliberate changes, usually so it lasts longer or holds onto its target more tightly.
- Animal study
- Research done in rats, mice or other animals. Most findings do not repeat in people, so an animal result is a reason to keep looking. It is not a reason to act.
- Antibody
- A large immune protein, far bigger than a peptide, engineered to lock onto one specific target. These are made by drug companies and are not sold as research powders.
- Bacteriostatic water
- Sterile water with a tiny amount of preservative, used to mix powdered peptides.
- Banned in drug-tested sport
- Prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA); using it can disqualify a competing athlete.
- Bioavailability
- How much of a dose actually reaches your bloodstream. Most peptides survive stomach acid badly, so most of them are injected instead of swallowed.
- Bioregulator
- Very short peptides from a Russian research tradition, usually two to four amino acids long, sold for supporting a specific organ. Human evidence is thin and most of it is published in Russian.
- Blend
- One vial holding more than one compound, mixed together by the seller. Working out a dose means working out each ingredient separately, because they are rarely present in equal amounts.
- Boxed warning
- The most serious warning the FDA puts on a drug label, printed inside a black border. It flags a risk considered severe enough to sit above everything else on the label.
- Bulks list
- The FDA's list of ingredients that compounding pharmacies are allowed to use. A substance can sit under review on it for years without anything being decided either way.
- Certificate of analysis (COA)
- A lab report on a batch of product. It only means something if it names the batch you actually received, comes from an independent lab, and can be checked with that lab.
- Clinical trial
- A study that gives a treatment to people under a written plan and measures what happens. It is the only kind of evidence that can show something works in humans.
- Compounding
- A licensed pharmacy preparing a medicine to order. Being allowed to compound something is not the same as the FDA approving it, and the two get mixed up constantly.
- Concentration
- How strong the mixed peptide is, in milligrams per milliliter (mg/mL). More water makes it weaker; less water makes it stronger.
- Cycle
- A stretch of time using a compound followed by a break. Most cycling patterns come from community practice. Very few have been tested.
- DAC
- Short for Drug Affinity Complex. An attachment added to a peptide so it grabs onto a blood protein and stays in the body for days instead of minutes.
- Dead space
- The small amount of liquid left sitting inside the needle and hub after you inject. On very small doses it can be a real share of what you meant to take.
- Dilute
- Adding more liquid to make a mix weaker. The amount of peptide in the vial does not change. It is just spread through more water, so each draw is bigger.
- Endpoint
- The result a trial said in advance that it would measure. A study can be reported as positive and still have missed the endpoint it set out to hit.
- FDA approved
- Reviewed by the FDA and cleared for a specific use, in a specific form, at a specific dose. Approval for one use is not approval for another, and approval in another country is not approval here.
- Fragment
- A short piece cut out of a larger natural protein. A fragment can behave very differently from the whole protein it came from, so evidence about one does not transfer to the other.
- Ghrelin
- The hunger hormone. Some growth hormone compounds work by copying it, so they can make you noticeably hungrier.
- GHRH
- A natural signal telling the pituitary gland to release growth hormone. Several compounds copy it.
- GHRP
- A second, separate signal that also triggers growth hormone release, through a different door than GHRH. This is why the two types are often used together.
- GLP-1
- A natural gut hormone that lowers appetite and blood sugar. Drugs that copy it, like semaglutide, are used for weight loss.
- Growth hormone secretagogue
- A compound that nudges your body to release more of its own growth hormone, rather than injecting the hormone itself.
- Half-life
- How long a compound stays active in your body. A longer half-life means you inject less often.
- HPLC
- A lab method that separates out everything in a sample so the amounts can be measured. It shows how much of the main ingredient is there. It does not confirm that the main ingredient is the right molecule.
- In vitro
- Done in a dish or a test tube, on cells outside a living body. It is the earliest kind of evidence there is.
- Injection site
- The spot on the body where you inject. Moving it around gives the skin and fat underneath time to recover between doses.
- Intramuscular (IM)
- An injection into a muscle, using a longer needle.
- Intravenous (IV)
- An injection into a vein. It needs training and equipment and is not something to do at home.
- Investigational
- Still being tested in clinical trials and not yet approved or legally sold for general use.
- Lyophilized
- Freeze-dried into a powder so it keeps longer. That is the white cake or dust in the bottom of an unmixed vial.
- Mass spectrometry
- A lab method that weighs molecules to confirm what they are. HPLC answers how much is in the sample. This answers what it is.
- mcg and mg
- Units of dose. 1 milligram (mg) equals 1,000 micrograms (mcg).
- Myostatin
- A natural brake on muscle growth. Several compounds are built to block it, though human results have been far smaller than the animal work suggested.
- Off-label
- A doctor prescribing an approved drug for something other than its approved use. This is legal and common, and it is different from a compound having no approval at all.
- Orphan drug designation
- A status given to treatments for rare conditions to make them worth developing. It is an incentive, not an approval, and a compound can hold it while being approved for nothing.
- PCAC
- The FDA advisory committee that reviews compounding ingredients. It recommends. It does not approve, and the FDA does not have to follow what it says.
- Peer review
- Other scientists checking a paper before a journal publishes it. It filters out some bad work. It does not make a finding true.
- Peptide vs small molecule
- A peptide is a short chain of amino acids. A few items here (like MK-677 or methylene blue) are small molecules, not true peptides, but people use them the same way.
- Placebo
- A dummy treatment given for comparison. Without one it is very hard to tell a real effect apart from expectation and time passing.
- Purity
- The share of a sample that is the intended compound, usually given as a percentage. A high purity number on the wrong molecule is still the wrong molecule.
- Randomized
- Deciding by chance who gets which treatment, so the two groups are comparable. Studies that skip this are much easier to read the wrong way.
- Receptor
- A docking point on a cell that a compound attaches to. If a cell has no matching receptor, the compound does nothing to it.
- Reconstitution
- Mixing a powdered peptide with liquid (bacteriostatic water) so it can be drawn into a syringe.
- Research only
- No approved dose or use in people. Sold for research and not reviewed by the FDA for safety or quality.
- Stack
- Using more than one compound at the same time. Almost no combinations have been tested together in people, so a stack is usually built on guesswork.
- Sterile water
- Water with nothing added to stop bacteria growing. It works for a single dose, but a vial mixed with it should not be kept and used again.
- Subcutaneous
- An injection just under the skin, into the fat layer, usually with a short, thin insulin needle.
- Titrate
- Starting at a low dose and increasing it slowly over time so your body adjusts and side effects stay mild.
- Trial phases
- The stages of human testing. Phase 1 checks safety in a small group, phase 2 looks for an effect, and phase 3 tests it against a comparison in a large group.
- Units (on the syringe)
- The marks on an insulin syringe. 100 units equals 1 mL. They measure how much liquid you draw, not the dose in milligrams.
Guides for this compound
- How to Reconstitute a Peptide
Mix peptide powder with bacteriostatic water, step by step.
- How to Read an Insulin Syringe
Read the units, convert to millilitres, and draw the exact dose.
- mcg vs mg: The Peptide Dosing Mistake to Avoid
Your vial says mg and your protocol says mcg. Here is the conversion and how to check it.
- Semaglutide vs Tirzepatide vs Retatrutide
One receptor, two, or three. Mechanism, trial weight loss, side effects, and real cost.
Sources
- Carnitor injection prescribing information, DailyMed(2025)Three approved indications, and intravenous use only for the injection.
- Carnitor tablets and oral solution label PDF, FDA Drugs@FDA(2018)Oral solution labelled not for parenteral use, and the warfarin INR interaction.
Last reviewed 24 August 2026
Peptide Decoding is published by Decoded Sciences LLC. We take no payment from vendors for coverage, inclusion or ranking, and our affiliate relationships are disclosed in full.