Like gas station kratom, research-grade peptides have become widely available to consumers in convenience stores across the United States. Yet, as an investigation into peptides from a New York bodega revealed, ease of access comes at a high price: your health.
In a new report on the peptide trade, CBS closely examined gray market peptide products available in the United States, including a knockoff of Eli Lilly’s yet-to-be-marketed injectable weight-loss drug retatrutide, purchased at a Brooklyn convenience store.
To test what’s actually in a bodega bottle labeled “retatrutide,” the outlet sent samples to Jason Galpin, a bioorganic chemist researcher at the University of Iowa. His analysis? “It doesn’t look anything like a peptide,” he said. CBS.
Instead of any sort of peptide-like substance – which should be made up of short chains of amino acids – Galpin discovered that the vial was filled with phenylacetic acid, a filler compound typically used in the manufacture of illicit perfumes and amphetamines.
Worse, the vial also contained at least 13 different bacterial colonies, said Carl Ross, director of development at the University of Iowa Center for Biocatalysis and Bioprocessing. CBS could easily cause a dangerous infection.
“As kids, we’re all taught to wash the cuts if we get cut,” Ross explained. However, with gray market peptides, users are “injecting bacteria under the skin where they could multiply. It’s pretty terrifying.”
Last month, Wired conducted a similar analysis, purchasing “peptides” from a Brooklyn bodega and sending them to a lab for analysis. As with CBS, it turned out that they were not peptides at all; instead, they found a chemical sludge that the technicians couldn’t even identify.
So there you have it: if your guy at the local grocery store tries to slip you some peptides to go with your chopped cheese, just say no. Your body will thank you – in many ways.
Learn more about peptides: Black market retatrutide linked to multiple deaths
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