What was tested?
Ask whether the work involved people or only a lab. Ask whether it tested the same medicine and the same goal.
Source cards
Find out what the evidence really says.
Begin with the exact medicine and the use being proposed. Request the source used to support the claim and check which question that source answers.
Approval names the medicine and what it treats
Medicine reviews are part of the work of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA.
FDA approval covered a specific medicine and the uses in its official instructions under the U.S. rules checked on September 26, 2026.
Ask whether that use matches your health goal. A claim about “longevity” needs an explanation of the result being proposed.
Evidence cardRead the medicine’s official instructionsRead the source
Read the medicine’s official instructions
Semaglutide is the medicine sold as Wegovy.
As of September 26, 2026, its approved uses included weight loss and reducing certain heart risks in patients who met the official instructions’ requirements.
The label is the medicine’s official instructions. Ask your doctor to show you the uses and patient requirements that apply to you.
Open the approved medicine instructions (PDF file)A made-to-order drug needs a different check
Compounded means a medicine is mixed or made to meet a patient’s need, rather than supplied as a finished medicine from a drug company.
FDA had conducted no approval review of compounded drugs’ quality, safety, or ability to work by September 26, 2026.
Ask why that medicine is being proposed for you. Ask what studies support the medicine this pharmacy will make for you.
Evidence cardMade to order does not mean an approved copyRead the source
Made to order does not mean an approved copy
A generic with approval copies a medicine sold under a brand name.
FDA guidance checked September 26, 2026 described two misleading claims about compounded drugs: calling one an approved generic, or saying it matches an approved drug.
Read the FDA guidance on compounded-drug claimsA product code is not proof of approval
Products in a U.S. drug directory have identifying codes called NDCs.
In the FDA explanation checked September 26, 2026, an NDC listing did not mean the agency had approved the product.
Ask for the approval record or the reason a custom-made product is needed, rather than stopping at the code.
Evidence cardA directory entry is not an FDA checkRead the source
A directory entry is not an FDA check
As of September 26, 2026, FDA said its product-code directory did not show that the agency had verified the submitted information.
Read the FDA explanation of product codesA committee meeting does not give permission
An FDA committee met in July 2026 to discuss adding peptides to the list of ingredients allowed for medicines made for individual patients.
The committee’s voting record remained unpublished by FDA on September 26, 2026.
Under the U.S. rules reviewed on September 26, 2026, the committee’s role was advisory: its vote could not alter ingredient rules.
Adding ingredients to that list required FDA to finish a formal change to the rules, including an opportunity for public comments.
If someone says the meeting allowed your medicine, ask to see the changed rule that applies to its ingredient.
Evidence cardWhat FDA staff proposed before the meetingRead the source
What FDA staff proposed before the meeting
In documents checked September 26, 2026, FDA staff recommended keeping all the peptides discussed at that meeting off the allowed-ingredient list.
The peptides were BPC-157, KPV, TB-500, MOTS-c, emideltide, epitalon, and semax.
These are names of peptide ingredients; epitalon and MOTS-c are also discussed on the start page.
A staff recommendation tells you what staff wanted. Ask for the final rule before treating any meeting news as permission to make your medicine.
Read the FDA meeting-materials pageDoes the study match the change you want?
What did the result mean?
Ask what was measured and how long it was followed. Ask the doctor to explain how that result relates to your own health problem.