Sermorelin_
Also known as GRF 1-29, Geref
A gentle shot that prompts your body to make more of its own growth hormone.
Common vial size is what vendors typically sell, not a recommendation. Enter your own vial in the calculator.
What is Sermorelin?
Plain language first. The technical label stays, but it never stands alone.Overview
Sermorelin is a GHRH analog, a shortened copy of the natural hormone that prompts growth hormone release. In plain terms: it encourages your body to make more of its own growth hormone, a gentler approach than injecting the hormone directly.
What it's used for
Encourages your body to make more of its own growth hormone for better recovery, deeper sleep, more muscle, and slower aging. A gentler route than injecting growth hormone directly.
How does Sermorelin work?
What it does in the body, and where.Sermorelin is a shortened copy of GHRH, containing the first 29 amino acids, which is the smallest piece that still works.
- 01It reaches the GHRH receptor on your pituitaryThe same receptor your own hormone uses, so the pituitary responds the way it normally would.
- 02Your body makes the growth hormone itselfWhich means your own feedback loops still apply, and the pituitary can decline to respond if levels are already high.
- 03It clears within minutesA short, natural-shaped pulse. That is gentler than injected growth hormone, and also far less powerful.
A schematic of the compound's mechanism, not a diagnostic image.
What else is it used for?
Each group 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.
Growth in children
FDA-approved- Human trialIn 110 growth-hormone-deficient children, growth rate rose from 4.1 cm a year to 8.0 cm a year at six months, settling at 7.2 cm a year at twelve months.
- Human trialAbout 74% of those children were good responders.
- RegulatoryIt was approved in 1990 and 1997, then withdrawn from the US market in 2009 for commercial reasons, not safety or effectiveness.
Adult and anti-aging claims
Early research- Human trialIn elderly men, 1 mg twice daily raised IGF-1 toward young-adult levels.
- Human trialResults are inconsistent. One study found lean-mass gain in men only, and another in 11 men found no significant change at all.
- No dataThe adult body-composition claims rest on studies of under 20 people, over a few weeks, measuring blood markers rather than outcomes.
A specific lean-mass gain figure circulates widely online but traces to a secondary peptide website rather than the original study.
How much, and do you cycle it?
The range, and whether you take breaks.0.2 up to 0.5 mg per dose (start low, increase slowly), daily/nightly. Not cycledClinical use
In clinical use it is given nightly and continuously for as long as it is working. The on/off schedules attached to it online come from the research-peptide market, not from how it is prescribed.
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
8 / 100 unitsHow 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 Sermorelin 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
- Known allergy to sermorelin
- Active cancer, since it raises growth hormone and IGF-1
- Pregnancy
Stop and get help
- Swelling of the face or throat, trouble breathing, or hives
Common effects
- Injection-site redness, irritation, or pain, which is the most common effect
- Flushing
- Headache and occasional dizziness
- Generally mild
Where this page says nothing is established, that means nobody has studied it, not that a compound is safe.
Is Sermorelin approved?
And where the numbers on this page come from.Yes. Approved for clinical use.
A regulator has cleared it for specific uses in a clinical setting.
- DoseFrom product labeling and clinical guidelines.
- Vial sizeFrom what vendors typically list; not a recommendation.
- Sources
- Reviewed22 July 2026
What else is like Sermorelin?
Others in Growth hormone, side by side.If you're weighing Sermorelin, it's worth reading Ipamorelin, CJC-1295 with DAC, and CJC-1295 no DAC (Mod GRF 1-29) in the same class.
A gentle shot that prompts your body to make more of its own growth hormone.
- Dose
- 0.2 up to 0.5 mg per dose (start low, increase slowly)
- How often
- Daily/nightly
A gentle shot that nudges your body to release its own growth hormone.
- Dose
- 0.2 up to 0.3 mg per dose (start low, increase slowly)
- How often
- Daily, often at night
A once-or-twice-weekly shot that keeps your growth hormone raised for days.
- Dose
- 1 up to 2 mg per dose (start low, increase slowly)
- How often
- 1-2x per week
A short-acting growth-hormone pulse, usually paired with ipamorelin.
- Dose
- 0.1 mg per dose
- How often
- Daily to 2x daily
10What these words mean
Show glossary +
What these words mean
- Titrate
- Starting at a low dose and increasing it slowly over time so your body adjusts and side effects stay mild.
- Subcutaneous
- An injection just under the skin, into the fat layer, usually with a short, thin insulin needle.
- Intramuscular (IM)
- An injection into a muscle, using a longer needle.
- Reconstitution
- Mixing a powdered peptide with liquid (bacteriostatic water) so it can be drawn into a syringe.
- Bacteriostatic water
- Sterile water with a tiny amount of preservative, used to mix powdered peptides.
- Concentration
- How strong the mixed peptide is, in milligrams per milliliter (mg/mL). More water makes it weaker; less water makes it stronger.
- 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.
- mcg and mg
- Units of dose. 1 milligram (mg) equals 1,000 micrograms (mcg).
- 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.
- 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.
- Research only
- No approved dose or use in people. Sold for research and not reviewed by the FDA for safety or quality.
- Investigational
- Still being tested in clinical trials and not yet approved or legally sold for general use.
- Banned in drug-tested sport
- Prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA); using it can disqualify a competing athlete.
Sources
- Sermorelin paediatric growth trial, PubMed, 1996
- Geref withdrawal determination, Federal Register, 2013
Last reviewed 22 July 2026