Without a doubt, the latest trend in the health space is peptides. So many influencers are promoting them, and brands are saying their products support peptide use but what are most people blindly accepting about peptides without knowing the hidden risks?

Many people have become aware of the risks associated with pharmaceutical drugs. Whereas once they didn't think twice about checking the side effects of drugs, now they know to check and often realise the root cause is their diet and lifestyle.

Similarly to pharmaceutical drugs, peptides promise the world while being vague about potential side effects, research on safety is limited and sources are dubious. So what exactly are the risks, and how can we use a more natural approach to healing?

How they are made

You don't have to know much about peptides to realise they are highly synthetic. The vast amount of processing that goes into making peptides results in something far more sinister than synthetic vitamins.

Peptides are made by isolating an amino acid and combining it with a resin bead (polystyrene), then using reactive agents and solvents to complete the process.

Of course, the difference between a highly regulated peptide and one sourced from dubious origins is huge, but most people do not need to rely on synthetic peptides to heal, nature, as always, has the answer. Yes, peptides can help a small number of people, but the way in which they are marketed to the masses today isn't right and isn't without risk to the end user.

Bypassing detox systems

In nature, there is no such thing as a free lunch. If you want to get in shape or feel better, it requires eating whole foods, moving more, and assessing your lifestyle choices and the result is a healthier you.

If we skip this and expect an injection to heal us, it comes at a cost and I don't mean just a monetary one. If we abuse food and only eat fast food, the end result is no surprise, but when it comes to peptides or other synthetic substances people put into their bodies, they think little of the consequences. An injection that promises a whole lot often takes away something you didn't expect.

Peptides, when injected, bypass all the detox systems your body has compared to when you eat something. This is a huge risk to your health and can come with significant consequences. Peptides should be seen as something that has the power to do immense harm.

Real food healing

What many people forget is that food naturally contains peptides, often referred to as bioactive peptides. These are inactive while within their parent protein and only become active through digestion, fermentation, or food processing, such as with collagen peptides.

Real food has the power to heal us, but in a world where so many people eat so little whole food, it's no wonder modern medicine is coming up with the answer of synthetic peptides, while the real healers are right under our noses.

One of the foods richest in natural peptides is, unsurprisingly, organs. Modern science hasn't yet truly grasped how efficient organs are at healing the body, it goes deeper than calories, protein, fats, and even micronutrients. Organs contain peptides that help our bodies heal. Ancient wisdom from TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) highlights this perfectly with the principle of "like helps like," which has been proven again and again with liver, heart, thyroid, and so on.

Other peptide-rich foods include high-quality (ideally raw) dairy and fermented dairy, collagen-rich cuts of meat and bone (such as bone broth), eggs, and seafood.

It's not that we can heal all our issues with one meal of organs, that is what synthetic peptides try to do, but they often backfire. True healing takes time and a diet that supports good health. It's not what you eat once, but what you eat every day, that defines your health.