Discovered in 1973 by Loren Pickart, a biochemist at UCSF who reportedly used it on himself daily, GHK-Cu is a peptide your body naturally produces that declines significantly with age. It delivers copper into cells, and signals cells to behave more like younger ones.

More specifically, it stimulates collagen production and remodeling, reduces inflammation, accelerates wound healing, and also appears to support neuroprotection and tissue repair more broadly.

Tighter, firmer, more elastic skin, less wrinkles and better hair follicles. (and it actually really work)

Deep-dive

Dosage:

• 1-2 mg daily subcutaneous injections.
• Typical cycle: 8–12 weeks on, 4 weeks off

Here’s what you can expect:

Results of GHK-Cu are pretty gradual and you won’t notice anything right away. After about two weeks to a month you’ll start noticing subtle changes in skin like firmness, texture, and hydration followed by a reduction in fine lines and overall skin quality. At month 2-3 you’ll notice significant improvements and might also notice changes in hair quality, faster healing of cuts, bruises, and general tissue damage, as-well as reduced joint pain and general inflammation.

Side effects & risks:

• Most people will experience some degree of injection site reactions, redness, swelling, tenderness, itching, bruising, and occasionally a small lump under the skin that may persist for a few days. This is partly because when GHK-Cu is injected, free copper can temporarily separate from the peptide before rebinding in tissues, triggering a localised inflammatory response
• GHK-Cu contains copper, there is a hypothetical risk of copper toxicity. 2mg of GHK-Cu contains 160–320 mcg of elemental copper per injection. The upper intake level is considered 5-10mg/day, so this is low risk. Symptoms include abdominal pain, vomiting, chest pain, chills, fever, weakness, tremors, and a metallic taste in the mouth. Metallic taste in your mouth is usually the first sign, followed by nausea, abdominal discomfort, and fatigue.
• Receptor desensitisation (hence we cycle this)
• Active cancer — avoid. The same angiogenesis and cell-growth mechanisms that make GHK-Cu effective for healing could theoretically support tumor growth.
• Wilson's disease (rare genetic disorder where the body can't properly excrete copper) — avoid completely.