Want to hack your body with peptides? If only the science agreed
[
](https://www.economist.com/)
[
](https://www.economist.com/)
undefined undefined
Subscribe to The Economist
Unlock unlimited access to all our award-winning journalism, subscriber-only podcasts and newsletters
Subscribe to The Economist
Unlock unlimited access to all our award-winning journalism, subscriber-only podcasts and newsletters
Science & technology | Pep tide
Boosters say they will do everything from aiding strength, recovery and longevity
Illustration: Kyle Ellingson
Mar 11th 2026|12 min read
FIFTEEN YEARS ago, buying performance-enhancing drugs usually meant hanging around a bodybuilding gym until you met someone who knew someone. The deal could then be consummated in a quiet corner of the car park, in cash.
Already have an account?Log in
Continue with a free trial
Get full access to our independent journalism for free
Or create a free account to unlock just this article
Explore more
More from Science & technology
How good is infant formula?
Perhaps less than its marketers say
How plants keep tabs on the competition
They grow faster when their rivals are doing the same
Ancient DNA is rewriting the history of plague
Dense cities do not seem to have been necessary for outbreaks of the disease
The chocolate industry is built on the labour of bloodsucking midges
Researchers have now confirmed how cacao plants are pollinated
The coming El Niño could be the strongest ever recorded
That is bad news for a warming world
A new drug targets one of cancer’s master switches
The pancreatic-cancer drug could be the first of an entirely new class of treatments
readers loved this