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FDA panel on peptides will include experts who promote the unproven chemicals favored by RFK Jr.
PBS • • business
Key Points:
- The FDA has formed a new advisory panel on peptides primarily composed of health professionals who prescribe or promote peptides, diverging from previous panels made up mostly of academics and researchers.
- Peptides, popular among athletes and influencers for claims such as muscle building and anti-aging, are often sold as unapproved drugs and labeled "for research use only" to evade FDA regulation, raising safety concerns.
- Many injectable peptides are compounded by pharmacies and have not been extensively studied in humans; the FDA has repeatedly warned about risks associated with substances like BPC-157 and TB-500, which are also banned by sports authorities.
- Some new FDA panel members have financial ties to the peptide industry, including clinic operators and pharmacists who sell or promote peptides alongside other unapproved therapies, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest.
- FDA Commissioner Robert Kennedy and his allies have reshaped advisory panels, replacing experts with individuals aligned with their views, despite previous criticism of conflicts of interest on federal panels and legal challenges to such actions.
