Growth hormone
What is growth hormone?
Human growth hormone (HGH) is a pituitary hormone that drives growth in children and helps maintain muscle, bone and fat balance in adults. Prescription HGH treats diagnosed deficiency. Some people inject it, or peptides such as sermorelin that make the body release more, hoping to slow aging. Trials do not support that use.
Listed here because well-known people have tried it on themselves. Trying something is not recommending it; each entry says whether the person tells others to do it.
Who has tried it
Tried by 2 people we can source: 1 kept, 1 stopped.
Kept
Sylvester StalloneActor
Dates not stated · Recommends it to others
Told Time in 2008 that he used HGH to get in shape for Rambo and called it not a steroid; in the same interview he said testosterone matters for well-being with age and that everyone over 40 should look into it. He has not said publicly whether he still uses HGH.
“Anyone who calls it a steroid is grossly misinformed.” Source of quote
VOA News, Stallone admits using growth hormone for Rambo (January 2008) · Status checked January 26, 2008 · Suggest a correction
Stopped
Andrew HubermanNeuroscientist at Stanford, host of Huberman Lab
Dates not stated · Does not recommend it to others
Tried sermorelin, a peptide that makes the pituitary release growth hormone, very briefly; it deepened his slow-wave sleep but cut his REM sleep and raised his PSA, so he came off it and his PSA returned to normal.
“Spiked my prostate specific antigen. I’ve never had any problems with PSA. I came off it. PSA went back to normal.”
The Tim Ferriss Show #876, Dr. Andrew Huberman on peptides, performance and protocols (July 2026) · Status checked July 22, 2026 · Suggest a correction
What the evidence shows
The anti-aging idea started with a small 1990 study of 21 men: six months of HGH in men over 60 with low IGF-1 raised lean mass by about 9% and cut fat by about 14% [1]. Later trials confirmed the body composition change but not the benefits people hope for. In healthy older women and men, HGH added lean mass and cut fat, but strength barely changed, and swelling, joint pain, carpal tunnel symptoms and diabetes or glucose intolerance were more common [2].
A systematic review of 18 trial populations in healthy older adults found small changes in body composition, no change in bone density or most lipids, and more side effects, and concluded HGH cannot be recommended as an anti-aging therapy [3]. In young athletes it raised lean mass without improving strength or exercise capacity [4]. Peptides that release growth hormone, such as a sermorelin-like analog, raised GH and IGF-1 and thickened skin in a small trial, with little other change in body composition [5].
Genetics point the other way. People in Ecuador with growth hormone receptor deficiency, who have very low IGF-1, had almost no cancer or diabetes over 22 years of follow-up [6]. No trial has tested whether HGH or secretagogues change lifespan in people.
Safety
- HGH is approved for diagnosed growth hormone deficiency and a few other conditions. In the United States, distributing it for anti-aging is illegal, and it is banned in tested sport.
- In trials in healthy older adults it caused fluid retention, joint pain, carpal tunnel syndrome and breast enlargement in men, and raised the risk of diabetes and impaired fasting glucose.
- Higher IGF-1 is a concern for people with cancer or a history of it, and HGH is not for anyone with active cancer.
- Secretagogue peptides such as sermorelin, ipamorelin and CJC-1295 are not approved for anti-aging; the FDA has cited serious adverse events for CJC-1295 and ipamorelin, and gray market vials are unregulated.
- Any use belongs with an endocrinologist who confirms deficiency and monitors IGF-1, glucose and, in men, PSA.
Common questions
Did Sylvester Stallone use HGH?
Yes. He told Time in 2008 that he used human growth hormone to prepare for Rambo, defended it as not a steroid and suggested people over 40 look into it. He has not said publicly whether he still uses it.
Does Andrew Huberman take growth hormone?
He has said he tried sermorelin, a growth hormone releasing peptide, very briefly and stopped after it cut his REM sleep and raised his PSA. In the same July 2026 conversation he said prescription HGH at low doses seems a better option than unknown peptides, without saying he takes it.
Does HGH slow aging?
No trial shows that it does. A systematic review found small body composition changes and more side effects in healthy older adults, and concluded it cannot be recommended for anti-aging [3].
Is HGH legal for anti-aging?
Not in the United States, where distributing it for anti-aging is illegal [3]. It is a prescription drug for diagnosed deficiency and a few other conditions.
Sources
- 1.Rudman D, Feller AG, Nagraj HS, et al. Effects of human growth hormone in men over 60 years old. N Engl J Med, 1990. doi:10.1056/NEJM199007053230101
- 2.Blackman MR, Sorkin JD, Münzer T, et al. Growth hormone and sex steroid administration in healthy aged women and men: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA, 2002. doi:10.1001/jama.288.18.2282
- 3.Liu H, Bravata DM, Olkin I, et al. Systematic review: the safety and efficacy of growth hormone in the healthy elderly. Ann Intern Med, 2007. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-146-2-200701160-00005
- 4.Liu H, Bravata DM, Olkin I, et al. Systematic review: the effects of growth hormone on athletic performance. Ann Intern Med, 2008. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-148-10-200805200-00215
- 5.Khorram O, Laughlin GA, Yen SS. Endocrine and metabolic effects of long-term administration of [Nle27]growth hormone-releasing hormone-(1-29)-NH2 in age-advanced men and women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab, 1997. doi:10.1210/jcem.82.5.3943
- 6.Guevara-Aguirre J, Balasubramanian P, Guevara-Aguirre M, et al. Growth hormone receptor deficiency is associated with a major reduction in pro-aging signaling, cancer, and diabetes in humans. Sci Transl Med, 2011. doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.3001845