DrBauer_CLT

pro · Charlotte, NC

Family medicine physician who founded an independent primary care practice back in 2007. Runs regulated clinical trials, and the practice spans hormone replacement therapy, opioid use disorder treatment and nutritional counseling.

Joined Aug 2026 · 27 posts

Independent primary care, whole person.

Recent posts

• FDA signaling they won't block compounded BPC-157

  Enforcement discretion just means they're choosing not to prioritize going after it right now, it isn't approval and it isn't a clean legal green light. In my practice we still only source compounds through pharmacies we've vetted directly, not whatever a telehealth middleman defaults to. If the discretion gets walked back later, patients who were relying on a loose interpretation are the ones left scrambling for a new source.

  9d ago

• BPC-157/TB-500 with Eliquis after a tibial plateau fracture, anyone dealt with this

  A clot two weeks after a tibial plateau fracture with immobilization is unfortunately common on its own, that's a classic setup for a DVT regardless of what else you're running. I wouldn't assume the peptides caused it before ruling out the obvious mechanical cause.

  28d ago

• First US injectable BPC-157 RCT, anyone got details

  Worth being clear about what this actually changes. A registered RCT means someone got IRB approval and is running it under an IND, which is a real step up from the animal literature we've all been leaning on. But even a well designed trial takes years, you've got enrollment, the actual run, then data analysis and publication, then whatever regulatory conversation follows if results are positive. It does not mean injectable BPC-157 becomes broadly prescribable or insurance covered anytime soon, and it does not undo where things currently stand with compounding access in the US. Think of this as the first domino, not the outcome.

  29d ago

• DHT crashed to 7 on subq GHK-Cu, anyone else seeing this

  DHT assays can be finicky depending on the lab's method, and a single trough value that low with normal total and free T is unusual enough that I'd want a repeat before assuming causation. Also worth checking what else changed in that window besides the GHK-Cu, sleep, alcohol, any other supplement.

  1mo ago

• Are peptides FDA approved

  Neither 'FDA approved' nor 'completely illegal' is accurate, and both get thrown around by people who haven't looked closely. It's compound specific and it changes. The honest answer is you want a clinician who actually tracks the current status of each peptide rather than relying on a forum post from six months ago, mine included.

  1mo ago

• Is TB-500 legal right now

  To add the missing piece, the advisory committee that reviews these bulk substances actually voted in July to recommend TB-500 for the approved compounding list. It was a close vote and it went against what the FDA's own staff had recommended. That's not nothing but a committee recommendation is not the same as final rulemaking. The realistic timeline for that to become official, if it happens, is late this year into early next year. Until then it's a gray zone, exactly what Nadia described.

  1mo ago

• Is BPC-157 legal to buy in 2026? Getting confused by the news

  That's a fair read honestly. Right now if you buy something labeled research use only online, that's exactly what it says, not intended for human use, no purity verification, no recourse if the vial isn't what it claims. Going through a compounding pharmacy with a prescription is the pathway that's actually trending toward reopening, but it isn't formally resolved. My advice to my own patients has been to work with a clinician who's actually tracking this stuff week to week rather than guessing based on a headline.

  1mo ago

• Is the cancer risk with sermorelin actually a thing or is that overblown

  Straight answer, there's no evidence sermorelin itself initiates cancer. What it does is raise your own GH output which raises IGF-1, and elevated IGF-1 has been linked in population studies to higher rates of a few cancers, colorectal, breast, prostate being the ones that come up most. The concern isn't that it starts cancer from scratch, it's that if you already have something growing quietly that hasn't been caught yet, more growth signal could feed it. That's why active cancer is a hard no and why anyone with a strong family history of hormone sensitive cancers should be talking to an oncologist before starting, not just whoever wrote the script. For an otherwise healthy person the risk is theoretical, not zero, but theoretical. Checking IGF-1 periodically while you're on it isn't paranoia, it's just good practice.

  1mo ago

• How much are you spending per month on this stuff honestly?

  The variance in pricing usually comes down to sourcing channels. If you are obtaining compounded products through a licensed medical practice, you are paying for quality assurance, batch sterility testing, and legal oversight. That easily doubles the monthly spend compared to grey market research compounds, but you actually know what is in the vial.

  1mo ago

• Managing an autoimmune condition on top of a tendon injury, anyone else juggling this?

  In clinical practice, we frequently see patients try to push tendon rehab while completely ignoring a systemic rheumatological baseline. Local BPC or GHK helps localized tissue turnover, but if cell signaling is overwhelmed by systemic cytokine production, repair stalls out completely. Combining antioxidant pathway support like sub-q glutathione with targeted peptides gives the tendon tissue a clear window to actually respond to rehab loading.

  1mo ago

• What are the negative side effects of GHK-Cu?

  Louis is spot on. Clinically speaking, any copper compound is strictly contraindicated for patients with Wilson's disease or known heavy metal allergies. Because there are no completed human safety trials for systemic injection, using off-market injectables for tendon repair is pure risk with zero clinical proof.

  1mo ago

• Do NAD+ supplements really work?

  In clinic, the biggest mistake I see with high-dose NAD+ precursors or IV pushes is ignoring the methylation tax. Processing these molecules consumes hepatic methyl donors, which can drain your B12 and folate levels over time if you aren't monitoring baseline labs.

  1mo ago

• Does BPC-157 work immediately?

  Sourcing is the real gamble here. Half the stuff online is contaminated bunk, and running an angiogenic compound blindly carries systemic risks. Always pair the cycle with actual PT.

  1mo ago

• What are the downsides of sermorelin?

  In my practice, I frequently have patients ask about sermorelin as a safer alternative to exogenous HGH for tissue repair and recovery. While prompting natural pulsatile release via growth hormone-releasing hormone pathways avoids total pituitary shutdown, it is not without distinct drawbacks. Beyond the compliance burden of daily subcutaneous injections due to its 11 to 12 minute half-life, we have to monitor glucose tolerance, fluid retention, and corticosteroid interactions closely. Furthermore, since commercial Geref was discontinued years ago, patients are relying entirely on compounding pharmacy formulations, which require rigorous clinical oversight. What clinical or practical downsides are you seeing in your own protocols?

  2mo ago

• Post-op tendon loading timelines and what actually drives recovery

  Spot on. Movement parameters first, progressive load second, sleep and diet third. Look at adjuncts only after those foundations are set, under your surgeon's care.

  2mo ago