The Science Behind Peptides

What Are Peptides?

Peptides are strings of amino acids similar to proteins, which are also made up of amino acids. Because peptides are very small, sometimes consisting of only two amino acids, they’re typically easy for the body to absorb, whether through the gut or the skin.

Your body makes peptides as part of its normal function; these are known as endogenous peptides. Insulin, for instance, is an endogenous peptide that consists of 51 amino acids.

In addition, peptides are present in foods, including meats, soy, milk, oats, wheat, and eggs. These are known as exogenous peptides. Scientists can also synthesize peptides in the lab. Insulin is also an excellent example of this process as the first peptide ever created in a lab.

Different types of peptides have different effects within your body, depending largely on what types of amino acids they contain. They’re instrumental in all sorts of your body’s processes, ranging from digestion to healing to communication between cells.

Exogenous peptides typically have fewer side effects than various medications because they’re natural to your body and because your body breaks them down into natural amino acids. They also travel easily throughout your body, making them easy to process.

Peptides vs. Proteins

When you hear the phrase “amino acids,” you probably think immediately of proteins — and you’re correct. Proteins are also chains of amino acids. So what’s the difference between proteins and peptides?

The difference lies in the size of the chain of amino acids involved. Shorter chains of amino acids are labeled peptides, while longer chains are called proteins. Most scientists will call a chain of 20 or fewer amino acids a peptide.

The short length of peptides is what enables these substances to work their way easily through the walls of skin, cells, and the intestines. That means they can get into the bloodstream and travel to the parts of the body where needed quickly and easily. For scientists making exogenous peptides, this property is a bonus, as the shorter length of peptides also makes them easier to create and produce.

Types of Peptides

Scientists classify peptides based on their properties and functions. Among the most common peptides are:

• Anticancer peptides: These small peptides fight cancer cells by breaking holes in cancer cell membranes; scientists use them in cancer treatment.
• Antifungal peptides: These peptides protect you against disease and infection stemming from fungi, including molds.
• Antimicrobial peptides: These endogenous peptides play a role in your immune response and help defend your body against intrusive and dangerous organisms.
• Bacterial peptides: These are produced by the bacteria in your body and include lipoproteins and some enzymes.
• Cardiovascular peptides: These help control your blood pressure and help fight congestive heart failure, coronary artery disease, and atherosclerosis.
• Endocrine peptides: These specialized peptides help your endocrine system function properly through improving insulin sensitivity, boosting metabolism, regulating appetite and weight, fighting inflammation, regulating bone growth, and managing the sleep/wakefulness cycle. They also help control thyroid and sex hormones.
• Neuropeptides: Your neurons create these peptides, which work within your nervous system and brain; they include familiar body chemicals such as epinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine.
• Opiate peptides: These work with your hypothalamus and pituitary gland to mediate stress and pain.
• Plant peptides: These exogenous peptides, which you ingest from plants, help regulate cholesterol and blood pressure, and they also protect against inflammation, cancer, microbes, and damage caused by free radicals.

Scientists synthesize various types of peptides to boost health in a variety of ways. Synthesized creatine peptides, for instance, help build muscle strength, while synthetic collagen peptides show great benefits for skin health.

How Can Peptides Benefit Your Health?

Peptides, whether produced naturally in your body or synthesized in a lab, can benefit your health in a myriad of ways.

Improved Healing

Peptides play a role in healing in many ways. Collagen is one of the peptides that promotes healing. It’s active both in wound healing and in maintaining healthy skin. Certain antimicrobial peptides also may contribute to healing of certain skin conditions, including eczema and psoriasis. Varied bioactive peptides also behave as antioxidants, boosting healing as they decrease inflammation.

Slowing of the Aging Process

Various peptides help slow aspects of aging in different ways. Peptides delivered to the skin may protect against damage from the sun and increase blood flow to the skin. As a result, they can help boost skin elasticity and minimize the development of wrinkles. Inside your body as well, these peptides, which often include collagen, help your muscles, ligaments, and tendons stay flexible and strong, so you feel younger from the inside out.

Prevention of Bone Loss

Studies show that peptide intake may help counteract bone loss, which most people are likely to experience as they grow older. Peptides appear to increase bone mineral density, and the FDA has approved some peptide-based medications as a treatment for osteoporosis.

Building of Muscle Mass

Certain peptides, including human growth hormone peptides, successfully help increase muscle mass, especially when paired with resistance training. They also assist with repair of damaged muscles and improve joint mobility. Of course, that doesn’t mean that all supplements that claim to build muscles are safe for you to take over the counter. Some supplements that contain peptides (or claim to contain them) have dangerous side effects, including raising blood sugar levels. That’s why it’s important to work with medical professionals when considering peptide use.

Improved Skin and Hair

Some of the antimicrobial peptides that your body makes naturally help your skin stay healthy, protecting your skin against damage from wounds and bacteria. Adding exogenous versions of these peptides can protect you against eczema, psoriasis, and acne. Typically, these exogenous peptides contain collagen, which is well-known for its ability to boost skin’s elasticity and moisture levels, as well as for helping hair become thicker and healthier. Also well-known is the fact that we lose collagen naturally with age — so peptide treatment may be necessary to protect your skin and hair as you grow older.

Increased Testosterone Levels

Specific peptides trigger the production and release of the hormones involved in the production of testosterone. By taking in these peptides, you can boost your body’s testosterone levels naturally without having to take supplemental testosterone.

Benefits to Brain Function

Among the benefits of opiate peptides is the ability to ease anxiety, depression, and stress, as well as to provide pain relief. Research is ongoing to determine how exogenous versions of these peptides, which bind with specific receptors in the brain, might help improve brain function and reduce stress medically.