Dr. Rudman Report

Why is there so much focus on growth hormone restoration, and what does all of this mean for those who suddenly have the HGH replacement substances available?

To put it simply, there is no other substance know to man that has such far reaching ability to prevent and reverse the aging process. At first appearance, it may seem too good to be true that a single hormone could have so many far–reaching effects. But as we look more closely at the scientific evidence from human studies and at the physiologic interaction between growth hormone and the body’s various symptoms that affect these areas, everything begins to fall into place.

Dr. Daniel Rudman, an endocrinologist from Madison, Wisconsin, pioneered the original peer–reviewed research on HGH in humans. By the time Dr. Rudman began his work in 1985, growth hormone use had already been well established through its use in children with HGH deficiency (dwarfs). Decades earlier, growth hormone from pituitary extract had been shown to decrease body fat significantly in laboratory rats.
Dr. Rudman hypothesized that the changes in body composition which became apparent around age 35 had to do with declining hormone levels, and he began by testing HGH to examine its effects on lean body mass and body fat.

Dr. Rudman studied 26 men between the ages of 61 and 81 (all patients in a Veterans Nursing Home) who experienced significant changes in body composition with age, but who were otherwise healthy. All these men had significantly low levels of growth hormone. Despite the fact they did not alter their diet, exercise or smoking habits—the men who were given HGH gained an average of %8.8 in lean body mass while losing %14 of their body fat. A large portion of these men were basically immobile, unable to get around without aids such as walkers or wheelchairs. After 6 months of closely monitored HGH intake, this group of men formed their own "jogging club". Body functions increased dramatically in all subjects.
The subjects of the study reversed the parameters of aging by 10–20 years.
This study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, represented the biggest breakthrough in anti–aging medicine at the time and led to a wide acceptance that, in the words of Dr. Rudman, "The overall deterioration of the body that comes with growing old is not inevitable".