An approved product
At the September 2026 check, FDA approval applied to a specific medicine for specific uses, rather than every claim made about it.
Ask which approved use matches the problem discussed in the assessment.
Safety brief / Check the offer
Ask what is actually in the plan.
Sound familiar?
A service offers a blend and calls it personal care. Before paying, you want ingredient names and a clear reason for this mix.
Separate these product types
A prescription does not settle every question.
Medicine prepared to order
Compounding is the term for preparing a medicine to order. This differs from supplying a finished drug made in a factory.
Under US rules checked in September 2026, making medicine to order can be legal. There are rules for who makes it and which ingredients they may use.
For a regular pharmacy, the rules include a licensed pharmacist or doctor, plus a valid prescription that names the patient. Each raw ingredient must also meet the law’s tests. Ask the pharmacist which test each ingredient meets.
As of September 2026, FDA approval does not cover medicines prepared by compounding. FDA does not review their quality, whether they work or the harm they may cause before they go on sale.
Ask why a medicine made to order is needed and which pharmacy makes it. Request a list of ingredients and an explanation of how the pharmacy is allowed to use them.
A research-labelled product
FDA consumer guidance reviewed in September 2026 urges people to avoid weight-drug products marketed for human use with a research label.
FDA warns that these products may damage health and that their quality is not known.
Seeing a research label gives no assurance that the product is suitable for your medical care.
If these names come up
Why check sermorelin and ipamorelin?
Both are peptides that prompt the body to release growth hormone.
Ask why changing that hormone would help with your health problem. They are singled out here because their FDA approval records differ.
As of September 2026, sermorelin, once sold as Geref, no longer has FDA approval. Geref was discontinued, meaning it stopped being sold.
FDA found that neither safety nor effectiveness problems were the reason Geref left the market. This finding does not establish the safety of a sermorelin mixture offered now.
The old approval does not approve a medicine made to order now. The recorded sources leave open whether sermorelin may be made to order under current rules. Ask the pharmacist to explain the rule for the medicine being offered.
As of September 2026, FDA’s drug approval records contain no approved ipamorelin product.
For either peptide, ask the person writing your prescription and the pharmacist for the full ingredient list and whether it comes as a shot, pill or another form. Ask why it would help your health problem, what harms are known and what allows the pharmacy to make it.
Reasons to pause
Check the claims that sound reassuring.
A prescription is skipped
At the September 2026 check, federal law prohibited supplying prescription drugs when no valid prescription was present.
A compound is called approved
FDA guidance checked in September 2026 treats claims of FDA approval for a compounded medicine as false or misleading.
A code stands in for proof
At the September 2026 check, FDA said that an NDC—a code for a product in its drug directory—does not establish approval.
Help disappears after payment
FDA guidance reviewed in September 2026 flags services where a licensed doctor cannot be reached for questions once the medicine arrives.
Does a research label make a human-use offer legitimate?
As of September 2026, FDA says research-labelled weight-drug products marketed for people can be unapproved drugs sold illegally.
A practical check
Get the pharmacy’s actual name.
FDA guidance reviewed in September 2026 points out that online-care patients may be unaware of the medicine’s actual maker.
Ask for the maker’s name and the sender’s name. Match the pharmacy’s name to the state licence record using the FDA page below.
A state record can confirm that a pharmacy is licensed. It cannot establish whether each drug supplied is right for the patient.
FDA / Find your state pharmacy search