What happens when millions of people want drugs their doctors can’t prescribe?

Very few doctors become household names. Dr Terry Dubrow is one of them.

For more than two decades, the board-certified plastic surgeon and star of Botched has sat at the intersection of medicine and popular culture, becoming one of the most recognizable doctors in America.

Then peptides changed the direction of his career.

Decades into an already established surgical career, Dr Dubrow went back to study, became board-certified in obesity medicine, and developed what he describes as an obsession with peptides, longevity and what could become the next frontier of medicine.

He believes peptides could transform healthcare. But as unapproved compounds move online, patients bypass doctors and regulation struggles to keep pace, he is warning that the same revolution could also produce a serious medical backlash.

He explains:

■ Why GLP-1s changed the direction of his career and pulled him into peptide medicine
■ Why he believes peptides could eventually change how we age
■ Why retatrutide is already being accessed before FDA approval
■ Why pushing peptides outside the medical system could make them more dangerous, not less
■ The peptide safety event he fears could trigger a major backlash

Chapters

• (00:00) - Intro
• (02:07) - From GLP-1s to peptides
• (05:07) - Can peptides reverse aging?
• (07:54) - Peptides and the regulatory Wild West
• (09:59) - Retatrutide and the next GLP-1s
• (14:00) - Microdosing GLP-1s for longevity
• (16:14) - The biggest myths about peptides
• (18:12) - Why doctors need better peptide data
• (19:57) - The danger of unregulated peptides
• (21:52) - The future of peptides and longevity

Watch the full episode on YouTube

Further reading

FDA: July 2026 Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee meeting covering BPC-157, TB-500, MOTS-c and other peptide-related bulk substances: FDA PCAC July 2026 meeting

ClinicalTrials.gov: Phase 3 TRIUMPH-1 study of retatrutide in obesity and overweight: Retatrutide TRIUMPH-1 trial

Read the full transcript

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Instagram: Instagram.com/drdubrow
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Website: DrDubrow.com

Follow Richard Skaife

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardskaife/

The Peptide Show

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The Peptide Show explores the science, medicine, business and people shaping the rapidly evolving world of peptides.

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This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Some compounds discussed in this episode are investigational, unapproved for the uses discussed, or subject to changing regulatory requirements.