Pinc PeptideThe girly peptide research blog

Hexarelin · Dose evidence · updated 8 October 2026

Hexarelin dosage: what studies actually used

The short answer

We found no established hexarelin dose for any use: as of 7 October 2026, Drugs@FDA lists no product under hexarelin or its other name, examorelin, and we found no controlled trial of it for muscle gain1234. Human studies gave single doses into a vein of up to 2 µg/kg, which came close to the largest possible growth hormone (GH) response, and repeated doses under the skin, into the nose or by mouth for days to months5678. This page reports those doses and is not dosing advice.

Not dosing advice. This page reports doses that studies and approved labels used, with their sources. It does not recommend a dose, and we do not give mixing, injection or unit-conversion instructions. Gray-market vials often do not contain what their label says. How we report doses.

Every dose studied in people

StudyWhoPeopleDose and routeWhat happened
Ghigo 1997 Healthy adults aged 24 to 68 (12) and patients with Cushing’s syndrome, a disease of too much cortisol (17) 29 2.0 µg/kg once, compared with CRH (the brain hormone that triggers ACTH release) 2.0 µg/kg
Into a vein · Single tests		 In healthy adults, ACTH, the pituitary hormone that drives cortisol, rose from 16.3 to a peak of 32.4 pg/mL, and cortisol rose too, much as after CRH9. In Cushing’s disease, the pituitary form of the syndrome, the ACTH rise after hexarelin was about 7-fold greater than after CRH9.
Broglio 2001, heart study Healthy adults (7), adults with severe GH deficiency (7) and patients with severe dilated cardiomyopathy, a weakened, enlarged heart (12) 26 2.0 µg/kg once
Into a vein · One dose; heart checked for 60 minutes		 Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), the share of blood the heart pumps out with each beat, rose in the healthy and GH-deficient adults but not in those with cardiomyopathy, and blood pressure and heart rate did not change significantly10.
Broglio 2002, placebo-controlled comparison Men with coronary artery disease during bypass surgery under general anesthesia 24 2.0 µg/kg once, compared with GHRH (growth hormone-releasing hormone) 2.0 µg/kg, GH 10.0 µg/kg or placebo
Into a vein · One dose; heart checked for 90 minutes		 Hexarelin raised LVEF, cardiac index and cardiac output from 10 minutes after the dose, lasting up to 90 minutes, while GHRH, GH and placebo had no effect on the heart11.
Loche 1995 Children aged 6.0 to 17.3 (15) and adults aged 20.2 to 30 (4) with GH deficiency, compared with 45 short children without it 19 2 µg/kg once, compared with GHRH 1 µg/kg
Into a vein · Single tests		 Patients whose GH deficiency had no known cause responded like the short children without it, and more strongly than to GHRH; in those with structural problems of the pituitary area, the response was absent or blunted in all but one12. Cortisol rose slightly in all patients except those who also lacked ACTH12.
Ghigo 1994, comparison of routes Healthy young volunteers 12 Into a vein: 1 or 2 µg/kg; under the skin: 1.5 or 3 µg/kg; into the nose: 20 µg/kg; by mouth: 20 or 40 mg
Into a vein, under the skin, into the nose and by mouth · Single doses		 A dose of 1 µg/kg into a vein released about twice as much GH as GHRH 1 µg/kg, and every route raised GH13. Compared with a dose into a vein, the authors put its activity at 77.0% under the skin, 4.8% into the nose and 0.3% by mouth13.
Imbimbo 1994, double-blind, placebo-controlled rising-dose study Healthy adult men 12 0.5, 1 and 2 µg/kg, and placebo, as single doses
Into a vein · Single doses		 Average GH peaks were 26.9, 52.3 and 55.0 ng/mL after 0.5, 1 and 2 µg/kg, against 3.9 ng/mL after placebo, and the authors judged the 2 µg/kg response very close to the maximum5.
Laron 1994 Children aged 5.5 to 15.5 whose short stature runs in the family (10), and two adults with GH deficiency 12 1 µg/kg into a vein and 20 µg/kg into the nose, a week apart
Into a vein; into the nose · Two single tests		 Average GH responses were 79.6 mU/L after the dose into a vein and 72.2 mU/L after the dose into the nose, and the two adults with GH deficiency did not respond to either14.
Rahim 1998 Healthy older adults 12 1.5 µg/kg twice a day
Under the skin · 16 weeks, retested 4 weeks after stopping		 The GH response to a test dose shrank from 19.1 to 10.5 µg/L·h by week 16 and was back to 19.4 four weeks after stopping615. IGF-1, a blood marker of GH action, body fat, lean mass and bone density did not change significantly6.
Arvat 1997, comparison with GHRP-2 Healthy young adults aged 22 to 27 (6) and healthy older adults aged 66 to 73 (6) 12 1 and 2 µg/kg once each (older adults: 2 µg/kg), compared with GHRH 1 µg/kg
Into a vein · Single tests		 In young adults, 1 µg/kg gave a strong GH response, higher than GHRH and similar to GHRP-2, and 2 µg/kg gave a higher response than 1 µg/kg16. Prolactin, another pituitary hormone, also rose, as did ACTH and cortisol16.
Laron 1995 Short children aged 4 to 11.6, before puberty 8 60 µg/kg three times a day
Into the nose · Up to 8 months		 IGF-1 rose from 10.4 to 14.1 nmol/L and growth speed from 5.3 to 8.3 cm a year, and skinfold thickness fell even though body weight rose7.
Ghigo 1996, study I Healthy older adults aged 67 to 80 (4 men, 3 women) 7 1.25 mg (the authors say about 18 µg/kg) three times a day
Into the nose · 8 days		 The GH response to the peptide held, with a trend toward a rise, and IGF-1 did not change significantly, while IGFBP-3, a protein that carries IGF-1 in the blood, rose from 1.6 to 2.4 mg/L8. No side effects were seen8.
Ghigo 1996, study II Older women aged 63 to 80 7 20 mg (the authors say about 300 µg/kg) three times a day
By mouth · 15 days		 The GH response did not change, and IGF-1 rose slightly but significantly, from 141.6 to 156.0 µg/L, as did IGFBP-3; no side effects were seen8.
Klinger 1996 Short children before puberty, average age 7.6 7 60 µg/kg three times a day
Into the nose · 6 to 10 months		 The GH peak after a nasal test dose fell from 70.6 to 34.1 mU/L after 7 days of treatment and was 37.5 mU/L at 6 months, and the peak after a test dose into a vein fell from 84.8 to 19.8 mU/L by the end of treatment17. Growth speed still rose, from 5.3 to 7.4 cm a year17.
Frieboes 2004, placebo-controlled sleep study Healthy young volunteers 7 50 µg four times, an hour apart, starting late in the evening; or placebo
Not stated in the abstract · One night		 Deep (stage 4) sleep in the first half of the night and delta power, a measure of deep-sleep brain waves, fell, while GH, prolactin, ACTH and cortisol rose18.
Maccario 2002 Healthy young men 6 1.5 µg/kg two or three times in one day; then a 1 µg/kg test dose into a vein
Under the skin; test dose into a vein · 24 hours per schedule		 Two and three injections raised 24-hour GH to the same extent, without changing IGF-1, prolactin, ACTH or cortisol19. The earlier injections blunted the GH response to the test dose and abolished its ACTH and cortisol responses19.
Massoud 1996, dose-response study Healthy adult men (number not given in the abstract) – 0 to 1.0 µg/kg; and 0.125 µg/kg together with GHRH 1.0 µg/kg
Into a vein · Single doses		 GH leveled off at 140 mU/L at 1.0 µg/kg, prolactin rose with dose, and cortisol stepped up by about 40% at 0.5 µg/kg20. The low dose with GHRH released 115 mU/L of GH without raising cortisol20.

Studies, animals and users: kept apart

Doses below are what studies used or what a label says. They are not advice, and gray-market products may not contain what their label says.

In human studies

Single IV doses of 0.5 to 2 µg/kg in healthy adults, with 2 µg/kg giving close to the maximum GH response5, and 2 µg/kg IV in the heart studies1011. Under the skin: single doses of 1.5 and 3 µg/kg13, 1.5 µg/kg two or three times in one day19, and 1.5 µg/kg twice daily for 16 weeks in older adults6. Into the nose: 20 µg/kg once1314, 1.25 mg (about 18 µg/kg) three times daily for 8 days in older adults8, and 60 µg/kg three times daily for up to 8 months in short children7. By mouth: single doses of 20 and 40 mg13, and 20 mg three times daily for 15 days in older women8. Apart from skinfold changes in children7 and the unchanged body composition after 16 weeks6, these studies measured hormones, growth, sleep or heart function, not muscle or fat.

In animal studies

Rats: 80 µg/kg under the skin, given for 7 days, protected isolated hearts when blood flow was stopped and restored21; 10 or 100 µg/kg a day under the skin, split into two doses, for 2 weeks starting 4 weeks after a heart attack, with the higher dose raising cardiac output22. Mice: one dose by mouth 30 minutes after a heart attack preserved pumping in the chronic phase; the abstract does not give the dose23. Dogs: 1 µg/kg into a vein and 1 to 100 µg/kg under the skin to measure drug levels24.

What users report Anecdotal · not validated · not a recommendation

A 2026 medical review compiled bodybuilding-forum reports: 100 to 200 µg under the skin, once or twice a day4.

Half-life and how it is taken

Half-life
No human value found; about 120 minutes in dogs after a dose into a vein24We found no published measurement of how long hexarelin itself stays in human blood. In dogs given 1 µg/kg into a vein and measured with an antibody-based assay, the terminal half-life was 120 minutes24. In healthy men given an IV dose, GH peaked at about 30 minutes and fell back to baseline within 240 minutes with a half-life of about 55 minutes; that figure describes growth hormone, not hexarelin5.
Routes
  • Intravenous injection (hormone tests and heart studies)
  • Injection under the skin (studied in adults; the usual gray-market route)
  • Into the nose (studied in children and older adults)
  • By mouth (studied, but only about 0.3% as active as an IV dose)

Single test doses

Most hexarelin studies gave one dose, usually into a vein, and measured hormones or heart function over the next few hours510. In healthy men, 2 µg/kg came very close to the largest possible GH response, and in another study GH leveled off at 1.0 µg/kg, the highest dose tested, while prolactin and cortisol also rose520. All four heart studies we found gave a single dose10112526. These were one-time research doses, not treatment doses.

What repeated doses did

Studies of repeated doses lasted from 1 day to 10 months, and in some the GH response faded1719:

  • Under the skin for 16 weeks: in 12 healthy older adults given 1.5 µg/kg twice a day, the GH response to a test dose shrank by weeks 4 and 16 and recovered 4 weeks after stopping615. The cortisol response also fell and recovered, while prolactin did not change27.
  • Into the nose for 6 to 10 months: in 7 short children given 60 µg/kg three times a day, the GH response fell within 7 days and stayed lower, but growth still sped up17.
  • Short courses: 8 days into the nose and 15 days by mouth in older adults left the GH response intact8.
  • Within one day: two or three injections under the skin raised 24-hour GH equally but blunted the response to a later test dose19.

What the studies measured, and what it is promoted for

A 2026 medical review lists hexarelin among peptides used off-label for physique and performance, and promoted for recovery, fat loss and muscle building4. It says evidence for effects on muscle or body composition in people is limited and comes largely from hexarelin’s ability to raise GH and IGF-1, not from controlled trials designed to test body composition or performance4. Claim by claim:

  • Muscle and fat: in the 16-week study in older adults, body fat, lean mass and bone density did not change significantly6. Short children given nasal doses had thinner skinfolds as they grew, but the review notes that such data come from a specific clinical group and do not establish a general or approved treatment, particularly for healthy people47.
  • Heart: single doses into a vein briefly made the heart pump harder, for up to 60 minutes in 7 male volunteers and up to 90 minutes during bypass surgery, and we found no human study of repeated doses for the heart1125.
  • Sleep: 50 µg four times in one night reduced deep sleep18.
  • Healing and recovery: we found no human study. The human studies we found measured hormones, growth, sleep and heart function571018.

Why a gray-market dose is uncertain

As of 7 October 2026, Finnrick, a service that publishes lab results for peptide samples, listed no hexarelin tests, so no independent data show how much hexarelin gray-market vials hold28. In 2025 Health Canada listed hexarelin among unauthorized injectable peptides seized from or sold by one company, and warned that such products have not been assessed for safety, efficacy or quality and may contain high-risk ingredients or contaminants, listed on the label or not29.

Questions people ask

How much hexarelin should I take?

We found no established dose for any use, and as of 7 October 2026 Drugs@FDA lists no product under hexarelin or examorelin12. Studies used single doses of up to 2 µg/kg into a vein and, in one 16-week study, 1.5 µg/kg under the skin twice a day56. By our reading, US pharmacies may not compound hexarelin313233.

What dose of hexarelin was used in heart studies?

One dose of 2 µg/kg into a vein, in healthy adults, adults with GH deficiency, patients with a weakened, enlarged heart and men having bypass surgery1011. Two other heart studies do not give the dose in their abstracts, and all four looked only at a single dose2526.

How long have people taken hexarelin in studies?

The longest courses we found were nasal doses for up to 8 months and for 6 to 10 months in two small studies of short children, and injections under the skin for 16 weeks in older adults6717. Shorter courses ran 8 days into the nose and 15 days by mouth in older adults8.

Does hexarelin work by mouth or through the nose?

It raised GH both ways, but it was far less active: a 1994 study put its activity at 4.8% into the nose and 0.3% by mouth, compared with a dose into a vein13. Longer studies used 60 µg/kg three times a day into the nose, or 20 mg three times a day by mouth78.

Go deeper

Sources

  1. 1Drugs@FDA search for the active ingredient hexarelin (openFDA drugsfda endpoint; no matches) U.S. Food and Drug Administration (openFDA), accessed 7 Oct 2026. api.fda.gov · data query
  2. 2Drugs@FDA search for the active ingredient examorelin (openFDA drugsfda endpoint; no matches) U.S. Food and Drug Administration (openFDA), accessed 7 Oct 2026. api.fda.gov · data query
  3. 3Examorelin, PubChem compound summary (CID 6918297) PubChem, U.S. National Library of Medicine, accessed 7 Oct 2026. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  4. 4The emerging landscape of performance-enhancing peptides modulating GH-IGF1 axis: bridging the gap between clinical evidence and patient self-administration Frontiers in Endocrinology, 18 Jun 2026. frontiersin.org
  5. 5Growth hormone-releasing activity of hexarelin in humans. A dose-response study European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 1994. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  6. 6Growth hormone status during long-term hexarelin therapy The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, May 1998. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  7. 7Intranasal administration of the GHRP hexarelin accelerates growth in short children Clinical Endocrinology, Nov 1995. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  8. 8Short-term administration of intranasal or oral Hexarelin, a synthetic hexapeptide, does not desensitize the growth hormone responsiveness in human aging European Journal of Endocrinology, Oct 1996. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  9. 9Adrenocorticotropin- and cortisol-releasing effect of hexarelin, a synthetic growth hormone-releasing peptide, in normal subjects and patients with Cushing’s syndrome The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Aug 1997. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  10. 10Growth hormone-independent cardiotropic activities of growth hormone-releasing peptides in normal subjects, in patients with growth hormone deficiency, and in patients with idiopathic or ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy Endocrine, Feb 2001. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  11. 11Effects of acute hexarelin administration on cardiac performance in patients with coronary artery disease during by-pass surgery European Journal of Pharmacology, 19 Jul 2002. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  12. 12The effect of hexarelin on growth hormone (GH) secretion in patients with GH deficiency The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Sep 1995. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  13. 13Growth hormone-releasing activity of hexarelin, a new synthetic hexapeptide, after intravenous, subcutaneous, intranasal, and oral administration in man The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Mar 1994. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  14. 14Growth hormone releasing activity by intranasal administration of a synthetic hexapeptide (hexarelin) Clinical Endocrinology, Oct 1994. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  15. 15Does desensitization to hexarelin occur? Growth Hormone & IGF Research, Apr 1998. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  16. 16Effects of GHRP-2 and hexarelin, two synthetic GH-releasing peptides, on GH, prolactin, ACTH and cortisol levels in man. Comparison with the effects of GHRH, TRH and hCRH Peptides, 1997. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  17. 17Desensitization from long-term intranasal treatment with hexarelin does not interfere with the biological effects of this growth hormone-releasing peptide in short children European Journal of Endocrinology, Jun 1996. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  18. 18Hexarelin decreases slow-wave sleep and stimulates the secretion of GH, ACTH, cortisol and prolactin during sleep in healthy volunteers Psychoneuroendocrinology, Aug 2004. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  19. 19Impact of two or three daily subcutaneous injections of hexarelin, a synthetic growth hormone (GH) secretagogue, on 24-h GH, prolactin, adrenocorticotropin and cortisol secretion in humans European Journal of Endocrinology, Mar 2002. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  20. 20Hexarelin-induced growth hormone, cortisol, and prolactin release: a dose-response study The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Dec 1996. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  21. 21Growth hormone-independent cardioprotective effects of hexarelin in the rat Endocrinology, Sep 1999. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  22. 22The growth hormone secretagogue hexarelin improves cardiac function in rats after experimental myocardial infarction Endocrinology, Jan 2000. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  23. 23One dose of oral hexarelin protects chronic cardiac function after myocardial infarction Peptides, Jun 2014. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  24. 24Radioimmunoassay for hexarelin, a peptidic growth hormone secretagogue, and its pharmacokinetic studies Peptides, 1995. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  25. 25Acute cardiovascular and hormonal effects of GH and hexarelin, a synthetic GH-releasing peptide, in humans Journal of Endocrinological Investigation, Apr 1999. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  26. 26GH-independent cardiotropic activities of hexarelin in patients with severe left ventricular dysfunction due to dilated and ischemic cardiomyopathy European Journal of Heart Failure, Mar 2002. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  27. 27The effect of chronic hexarelin administration on the pituitary-adrenal axis and prolactin Clinical Endocrinology, Jan 1999. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  28. 28Hexarelin: safety testing results and vendor ratings (no published tests) Finnrick, accessed 7 Oct 2026. finnrick.com
  29. 29Unauthorized injectable peptide drugs seized and sold by Canada Peptide may pose serious health risks (RA-77807) Health Canada, 1 Aug 2025. recalls-rappels.canada.ca
  30. 30GH-releasing activity of Hexarelin, a new growth hormone releasing peptide, in infant and adult rats Life Sciences, 1994. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  31. 31Bulk Drug Substances Nominated for Use in Compounding Under Section 503A of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (categories list) U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 14 May 2026. fda.gov
  32. 32Bulk Drug Substances Used in Compounding Under Section 503A of the FD&C Act U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 14 May 2026. fda.gov
  33. 33Bulk Drug Substances Nominated for Use in Compounding Under Section 503B of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (categories list) U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 21 Mar 2025. fda.gov

Not medical advice. Talk to a licensed clinician before using any drug. Report an error.