# The sources behind the menu

Here are the sources behind the entries, with a few words about what each one can tell us.

## How I read these links

![An older adult in reading glasses studies a café menu card at a sunny table; the tiny slanted print is unreadable.](/vital-menu-01ae0c55aee7/open-page-edge.webp)

A café menu gets read item by item. I give each claim here that same attention.

Links sit beside the claims on each page. This list collects them so you can find a source again. I read an agency warning as a warning and a study as a study; neither gives a whole menu a clean bill of health.

Regulatory information here is dated as of October 2026. The date on an FDA page isn't a date when every substance changed status. For studies, I keep track of what was tested and what changed, rather than letting the headline answer for everything.

## Hormone treatment has specific questions

[FDA's menopause information](https://www.fda.gov/consumers/womens-health-topics/menopause) covers symptom treatment, risks and custom-mixed hormones. It helps separate relief for a specific concern from a broad promise about youth.

[The Endocrine Society's testosterone information](https://www.endocrine.org/patient-engagement/endocrine-library/hypogonadism) explains diagnosis and treatment risks. It can't interpret your blood results or decide whether treatment fits you.

## Peptides stay separated by substance

[The sermorelin review](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18031173/) explains how it prompts growth-hormone release and reports older safety findings. [The study in older men](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1379256/) measured hormone changes. It didn't establish a longer life.

[The GHK-Cu paper](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3169264/) reports collagen production in lab-grown skin cells. [The epitalon paper](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12937682/) reports changes to telomeres, the protective chromosome caps, in cells. [The MOTS-c paper](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33473109/) includes mouse performance experiments and measurements during human exercise.

[FDA's compounding safety page](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/certain-bulk-drug-substances-use-compounding-may-present-significant-safety-risks) lists withdrawn ingredient requests and safety concerns. [Its epitalon review](https://www.fda.gov/media/193345/download) distinguishes epitalon from the animal-gland extract epithalamin and describes safety gaps. [Its MOTS-c review](https://www.fda.gov/media/193347/download) found no published human treatment studies. As of September 2026, [a ClinicalTrials.gov trial](https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07505745) was recruiting without posted results.

## NAD+ studies answer smaller questions

[The NAD+ infusion pilot](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31572171/) followed blood and urine chemistry. [The oral nicotinamide riboside study](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29599478/) tested a precursor, something the body can use to make NAD+. An oral precursor isn't an NAD+ drip.

[FDA's November 2024 notice](https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USFDA/bulletins/3bf6dd7) describes reactions after NAD+ injections and problems with ingredient quality. [FDA's compounded-drug information](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/understanding-risks-compounded-drugs) explains that medicines mixed to order aren't FDA-approved. These are preparation questions as well as ingredient questions.

## PRP needs more than a nickname

[The American Academy of Dermatology's facial PRP page](https://www.aad.org/public/cosmetic/younger-looking/platelet-rich-plasma-secret-to-younger-skin) covers the process, uncertain skin results and blood-handling risks. [FDA's microneedling page](https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/microneedling-devices-getting-point-benefits-risks-and-safety) covers devices that puncture skin with fine needles, including the limits of clearance when PRP is added.

[CDC's 2024 investigation](https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/73/wr/mm7316a3.htm) describes likely HIV transmission linked to poor infection control at an unlicensed facility. It doesn't tell us how often infection happens across all PRP procedures. That limit matters alongside the warning.

Sources reviewed October 27, 2026. [Back to the menu guide](/).

I read the menu here; this is a guide, not a clinic, a pharmacy or a seller.

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