HI everyone...

I am Pat Holly, RN, MSN, currently training to be an Adult
Nurse practitioner specializing in Geriatric Health and Fitness.
I have been on HGH for 6 years for osteoporosis.

I agree with Ellis... the 30 gauge needle does not hurt. I inject
twice a day and never even feel a "pinch".

There is... however... an injection system which is advertised as
"needlessness" for Genotropin. The system uses several little
"pinprick" needles arranged in a circle. It is pressed against the
skin, and pressure pushes the hormone into the skin. You do feel
it... like the snap of a rubber band.

[In that case, the main "benefit" is to "scare you less" but you
are saying it actually "hurts" more than the 30 gauge needles,
because you said you don't even feel a "pinch" with the 30 gauge
needle and it is "like the snap of a rubber band" with the
"pinprick" needles arranged in a circle.

Several pharmaceutical companies are working on a "skin patch" for
HGH... and an oral HGH releaser is now in clinical trials at UCLA.
Hope this info is helpful...



[Thank you, Pat, for sending us this post with your experience
and your experience with the "needleless" pinprick needles arranged
in a circle, and also a look at what MIGHT be coming...

The best essay I have seen on this topic is Dr. Cranton's "HGH
Oral or Spray? I Doubt It !" from which I copy and paste the first
part, below... Or read the entire essay here:

http://www.drcranton.com/hrt/hghspray.htm

If this is true, (and I have no doubt that it is true) we will
not be seeing a skin patch or a true HGH oral releaser for a while
(ie, probably never).

There are, of course, secretagogues such as L-arginine and others,
even GHB which Dr. Hughes and Dr. Ward Dean have written to say is
an excellent growth hormone secretagogue...

http://www.rajeun.net/ghb.html

But there are ADVERTISING tricks and stunts, and anybody can call
anything "HGH" so there is "Super HGH" and "Super Pro HGH" etc.
products flooding the market ... BUT CALLING THEM "GROWTH HORMONE"
DOESN'T MAKE THEM AUTHENTIC HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE !

SO... Be careful... Don't allow yourself to be sidetracked looking
for authentic growth hormone in any form that is not injectible.
You are wasting your time, and you are not getting the benefit of
authentic growth hormone.

There is no problem with injections, except that we FEAR them,
because they "hurt" us when we were children. Those days are gone.
I KNOW little children that inject themselves insulin, or growth
hormone. They cried and they were afraid, until they learned that
it doesn't hurt! Now they take their injections themselves because
they have learned it doesn't hurt, and they want to stay healthy,
or grow taller. It is as simple as that.

Here is the first part of Dr. Cranton's essay... I recommend you
should read all of it at the link above, and you will find his
website to be one of the best anti-aging websites on the internet,
because Dr. Cranton gives us real information, not misinformation
as many websites do.

Also read the interview I had with Dr. Cranton, and the posts that
Dr. Cranton sent to Rejuvenation, which in my opinion are classics
of anti-aging literature on the internet.

(The only thing I disagree with is Dr. Cranton's stated target for
IGF-1... much too low... but I agree with his recommended 2 iu dose
as an optimum dose, which takes ME to IGF-1 in the near 500 area...
and it does not correspond to such a low IGF-1, so I think there is
a contradiction there, and I go along with his recommendation of
2 iu per day)

http://www.rajeun.net/cranton.html

http://www.rajeun.net/cranton2.html


=============================
HGH ORAL OR NASAL SPRAY? I DOUBT IT!

by Elmer M. Cranton, M.D.

Copyright (c) 2002 Elmer M. Cranton, M.D.

I am frequently asked about various forms of human growth
hormone (HGH) being marketed as a nasal spray, oral spray,
tablet, powder, or capsule. Full page advertisements for
such products have been seen in major newspapers. The
following facts must be addressed in scientific and legal
terms before any such claims can be believed. In fact, in
my opinion, they are all scams.

The following scientific facts contradict ally such deceptive marketing:

1. True HGH can only be absorbed in effective amounts by
injecting the pharmaceutical grade of HGH, which is
expensive and only available on a doctor's prescription. It
is not absorbed by mouth, by spray or by the sublingual route.

2. Most so-called HGH releasers are composed of amino acids,
primarily L-arginine, in large doses. A heaping teaspoon of
L-arginine on an empty stomach will increase HGH release by
the pituitary gland in a young person by up to 25%, for only
a short time, and only in those people who already make a lot
of HGH on their own and don't need any more. It will not cause
HGH to be released to any significant degree in an older person,
when it is needed to prevent accelerated aging. The small
releasing effect is progressively lost with age.

3. HGH releasers are non specific. They also increase the
pituitary release of ACTH, causing an increase in adrenal
cortisone production. Cortisone (cortisol) speeds aging while
giving a temporary boost in energy and well-being. For this reason
you might encounter testimonials of immediate "feel-good" effects
of such products. That is unrelated to HGH.

4. HGH releasers have the same effect as ghrelin, an appetite
stimulating peptide hormone. HGH releasers therefore increase
appetite and cause weight gain.

5. The effect of HGH releasers gradually fades with time, over
a few months--called tachyphylaxis.

6. Some so-called HGH releasers contain raw animal brains, listed
on the label as "hypothalamus" or "pituitary." The theory is that
they contain a minute amount of GH releasing hormone (GHRH). Raw
brain tissue is the primary cause of mad cow disease,
scientifically known as spongiform encephalopathy or Creutzfeldt
Jakob disease. This is true of all so-called glandular products
with freeze dried brain or pituitary ingredients.

To continue:

HGH is a large, fragile protein molecule with a molecular
weight of 20,000. It contains 191 amino acids in an exact
sequence, with many fragile cross-linkages that give it an
important 3-D configuration. . Its only source is from
human genes, using very expensive and meticulous recombinant
DNA technology. HGH from any other source, even from other
animals, does not work in humans. There is no other source
of HGH. There is absolutely no naturally occurring plant
source of HGH. HGH must be made using human genetics. The
only safe form of HGH is made by splicing human genes into
plant cells (bacteria) or embryonic mammalian cells, and
then growing those cells in a culture media.

A protein molecule that large cannot penetrate intact
membranes to any significant degree. Most would be wasted
if it were used in a nasal spray or orally. Manufacturing
costs are high. HGH is so expensive that any waste at all
is prohibitively expensive.

The technology to make HGH is patented by large pharmaceutical
companies and is restricted by law to their use. The FDA
restricts its use to a doctor's prescription.

The HGH molecule loses potency very rapidly when dissolved
in solution. The molecule is folded and twisted on itself
repeatedly. Activity in the body depends on fragile cross
linkages between branches of this very large molecule, which
hold it in an exact three-dimensional configuration. It works
on cell receptors exactly like a key in a lock. Any change in
shape blocks HGH activity, even if the chemical formula remains
exactly the same. Those cross-linkages break very easily and
become unstable soon after dissolving in solution. Only with
refrigeration can full biological activity be maintained for
up to four weeks. That's how fragile the molecule is.

How then could activity be maintained in a liquid spray at
room-temperature?

For storage and shipping, HGH must be very carefully
freeze-dried under a vacuum to become a powder. It must be
kept refrigerated after being mixed into solution for use.
Very large pharmaceutical companies with research budgets
in the billions of dollars have not been able to solve that
problem.