Growth hormone (somatropin) in aging

Growth hormone (GH, somatropin) is a peptide hormone from your anterior pituitary. It shapes body composition, bone density, and metabolism, mostly by making your liver produce insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). After your 30s, GH pulses and daily output fall by about 14% per decade, a trend called somatopause. That lowers IGF-1, adds visceral fat, and costs you lean mass. The landmark Rudman 1990 trial (NEJM) gave six months of recombinant GH to 21 men aged 61 to 81. Lean mass rose 8.8% and fat fell 14.4%. But Rudman himself warned it had no anti-aging meaning. A deep paradox complicates the picture. In worms, flies, and several mouse strains (Ames dwarf, Snell dwarf, GH-receptor knockout), less GH/IGF-1 signaling extends lifespan by 40 to 65%. And humans with Laron syndrome (born without working GH receptors) get almost no cancer and less diabetes, despite very short stature. In older adults, GH replacement improves body composition, but it has not been shown to help function, thinking, or survival. And it carries real risks: insulin resistance, fluid retention, joint pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, and a theoretical boost to cancer through IGF-1-driven growth signals. Aguiar-Oliveira and Bartke (Endocrine Reviews 2019) concluded the evidence does not support off-label GH for healthy aging. Approved use stays limited to proven adult GH deficiency of pituitary origin.

Last reviewed: June 22, 2026

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