Editorial & clinical review policy
Sourcing
Articles are written from primary sources: peer-reviewed studies indexed in PubMed, FDA documents (labels, approval and compounding records, warning letters), state pharmacy board records and manufacturer documentation. Secondary sources such as news reports or other websites are cited only for facts that have no primary source, and are labeled as such in the Sources list.
Every factual claim that could change a reader's decision — a benefit, a dose, a side effect, a legal status — links to a source. If we cannot find a source, we say the claim is unsupported rather than repeating it.
Evidence grades
| Grade | Meaning |
|---|---|
| A | Strong human evidence: adequately powered randomized controlled trials, or meta-analyses of them, in a population similar to the readers' |
| B | Limited human evidence: small, short or uncontrolled human trials, or trials in a narrow population (for example, an FDA-approved indication that differs from the wellness use) |
| C | Indirect or weak human evidence: observational data, mechanistic studies in humans, or extrapolation from a related compound |
| D | Animal or in-vitro data only, or no evidence at all |
A grade describes the evidence for a specific claim. It is not a recommendation. A compound can carry an A grade for one use and a D grade for the use it is marketed for; the table shows both.
Doses
We report doses as studied doses: the amount used in a cited human study or on an FDA label, with the population and duration. We do not publish "protocols" of our own. Where compounding pharmacies or clinics commonly prescribe a different dose than the studies used, we say so, because that gap is itself information a patient needs.
For prescribed medication, the dose and reconstitution instructions on the pharmacy label override anything on this site, including our calculators.
Clinical review
Before publication, each article passes a clinical check against this list:
- Claims match the cited evidence and the grade assigned.
- Doses are reported as studied doses with their source.
- Contraindications, interactions and the populations who should not use the compound are listed.
- Regulatory status is current: FDA approval status, Category 2 status, and whether the compound is available by prescription in the US.
- The article does not promise outcomes, and does not describe a research-use-only product as something to take.
Reviewers are identified on each article. "Plenivida Clinical Team" denotes a clinical check by the clinical staff of Plenivida Health. Where an individual licensed clinician (MD, DO, NP or PA) has personally reviewed the article, that clinician is named with their credentials and license state. We do not list credentials that have not been verified.
Updates and corrections
- Compound profiles and regulatory pages are re-reviewed at least every 90 days, and immediately when FDA or a state board acts on a compound we cover.
- Every article shows a published date, an updated date and, where applicable, a last clinical review date.
- Corrections are made on the page and noted at the bottom of the article with the date. Material corrections are also noted in the article's changelog.
- To request a correction, email editors@peptidedoctrine.com. We respond to every request.
Use of AI
Our editors use AI tools for research assistance, drafting and copy-editing. No article is published without a human editor verifying every cited source and a clinical check as described above. AI tools are never used to invent studies, quotes, data or credentials.
Disclosure
The Peptide Doctrine is published by JOINFORM, LLC, which also operates Plenivida Health, a telehealth platform. Our editorial team works independently of Plenivida's commercial team; when we link to Plenivida we say so, and we list competing providers on the same terms. Links to Plenivida are tagged rel="sponsored". We do not accept payment for reviews, rankings or placements, we do not run affiliate links, and we do not sell or link to "research-use" peptide vendors.
Medical disclaimer
Content on this site is educational and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Compounded medications are not FDA-approved. Talk to a licensed clinician before starting, stopping or changing any medication.