What we talk about when we talk about peptides

Diamond Rhino

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What we talk about when we talk about peptides

The next big policy question in the U.S. will be how much will be permit people to experiment with their own health and healing.

Brady Dale

Mar 29, 2026

Images from *Science Leads The Way* (A.C. Gilbert, 1959) and *Thrills of Tomorrow #17* (1954, by Ray Palais)

If you had a coworker who seemed to transform one month, what would you do?

What if she seemed to have more pep in her step, a glow in her skin, more focus and more charm? Would you ask her what was going on?

You might assume she had found a fresh romance, but what if she reached into her bag, pulled out a little pouch and opened it up to show you a bunch of nasal sprays and said: “I’ve been shooting these on the reg and I feel like I’m 17 again.”

If she swore to you that she knows a dozen other people doing the same thing and that they all report similar results, with no noticeable downsides, what would you do?

Would you order a few bottles?

That’s roughly a conversation that’s taking place on the West coast quite a bit right now. I am willing to bet it’s coming to your backyard sooner than you think. The driver of the conversation: synthetic peptides. Sprays and injections that enter our body and imitate little proteins that have always been good at telling our bodies to do the things we need them to do.

Peptides have been an ambient topic for me over the last three or four years. It all started with Ozempic, of course, but I’ve come across people experimenting with other peptides as well, for things like healthy skin.

It felt like one of those frontier topics that I should have a look into, but once I started poking around YouTube videos and podcasts exploring the topic, I realized how exciting this new kind of hacking really looks to be.

Here’s a heuristic about technology that has never let me down: If lots of smart people and smart money moves into a sector, it can’t lose. Something valuable will come out of it.

We are in the rebel phase of peptide experimentation and entrepreneurship. It’s a point at which it makes sense to look directly at the rhetoric around peptides in order to see whether or not it sounds similar to (perhaps misguided) rhetoric we have heard about other topics in other times.

This is not a peptides explainer. This is an exploration of the explanations. All I want to convince you of is this: an important conversation about healthcare, health hacking and health sovereignty is underway in this country.

And, of course, there are major vested interests naysaying the whole conversation. Also, Martin Shkreli naysays it.

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Sources

Silicon Valley's new miracle drug
March 6, 2026
Good Work

How Peptides Conquered the Internet
Feb 13, 2026
Search Engine

The Booming Business of Chinese Peptides
Dec 19, 2025
Odd Lots

The Great Peptide Debate, Musk Driving on the Moon, AI Coming for Zuck’s Job, Unitree S1
TBPN
March 23, 2026
Martin Shkreli v. Max Marchione

The Truth About Popular Peptides (What Works, What’s Overhyped) | Peptide Tier List pt.1
Dec 22, 2025
Dr. Alex Tatem

Dr. Josh Axe: On Mitochondrial Health, Peptide Therapy and Parasite Infections | TUH #205
The Ultimate Human
Gary Brecka
Sept 30, 2025

Before You Start Peptides: A Doctor Answers Your Biggest Questions
Nov 29, 2025
Dr. Ashley Froese

Joe Rogan Experience #2376 - Brigham Buhler
Sept 9, 2025

Narrative note

I’m super skeptical of personal stories from founders and influencers. I included one tiny one. The low trustworthiness of personal storytelling at this point obviously complicates this narrative, and something I will work to remain mindful of going forward.