# IGF-1 DES

Short-acting, truncated IGF-1 injected into the trained muscle; very potent at dropping blood sugar.

- Page: https://peprank.xyz/peptides/igf-1-des
- Category: Hormones & libido (Research peptide)
- Also known as: des(1-3)IGF-1; truncated IGF-1; 'IGF-DES', 'DES'
- Routes: Injection
- Safety tier: Strict: Avoid · Balanced: Avoid · Evidence only: Caution
- Risk axes (0 none to 3 severe): Seen harm 0, Mechanism 3, Data gap 3, Silent harm 3, Product 3
- Positive: 49% of 4 graded reports glowing or positive, shrunk toward the 49% all-report average by 8 reports' weight
- Rank: #37 of 61 research peptides
- Graded reports: 4 (Positive 2, Nothing 1, Negative 1)
- Evidence: Animal only — No human study of des(1-3)IGF-1. It occurs naturally in small amounts (in colostrum, brain and uterus), was characterised in Adelaide in the late 1980s and 1990s, and was tested only in cells, rats, pigs and marmosets. Full-length IGF-1 (mecasermin) is the closest human comparison, and DES is several times more potent per microgram.
- Access: Grey market
- Onset: Users inject it around the workout and describe the pump within the session.
- Lasts: Users describe a half-life of about 30 minutes, so it acts briefly and is injected each training day.
- Cost per month: ≈ €22–180 (researchers' estimate)
- Updated: 2026-10-30

**Why Avoid under the strict bar:** An IGF-1 receptor agonist about ten times as potent as IGF-1 in cells and the most hypoglycaemic of the IGF-1 variants in primates, with no human data, the same tumour-promotion concern as LR3, and grey-market vials that are rarely tested.

## What users report

Very few first-hand reports exist; most Reddit mentions are questions, vendor guides or comparisons with LR3. Its appeal is 'site injection': users inject it into the muscle they just trained, hoping for local growth, and some women ask about it for glutes after TikTok called it a 'BBL peptide'. The handful of users describe a muscle 'blowing up' or localised growth, usually on top of steroids or SARMs. Others felt nothing, and one overdosed calf brought on an odd full-body reaction mid-workout. One user warns it drops blood sugar harder than LR3, and another notes that DES vendors rarely post a third-party test. Felt nothing: Too few reports to judge: one first-time user felt no pump, only extra soreness in the injected bicep..

**Effects:** local pump and fullness in the injected muscle; claimed local growth ('site injection')

**Downsides:** hypoglycaemia risk, described as worse than LR3 without carbs; painful intramuscular injections into many sites; extra soreness in the injected muscle; short-lived, so it has to be injected around every session

**Risks:** IGF-1 receptor agonist that binding proteins do not restrain at all: theoretical promotion of existing or undiagnosed cancers, as with LR3, which accelerated tumour growth in mice; The most potent hypoglycaemic of the IGF-1 variants in pigs and marmosets; full-length IGF-1 causes hypoglycaemic seizures in humans; Organ growth: severalfold more potent than IGF-1 at enlarging the gut in rats; No human data; vendors rarely publish third-party tests and the peptide degrades easily

**Caveat:** There are almost no first-hand reports to judge it by, and no data at all on whether local injection gives local growth in people. Its short half-life is sometimes sold as making it safer than LR3, but its glucose-lowering potency per dose is higher.

**Typical use:** No clinical dose exists. Community guides suggest roughly 25-100 mcg injected into the just-trained muscle, with fast carbs, for about 4 weeks.

**Getting it:** Research-peptide vials only; fewer vendors stock it than LR3 and third-party test reports are rare. Banned in sport by WADA (S2).

**Stacked with:** PEG-MGF (Forum protocols pair it with PEG-MGF for injury recovery or local growth; DES is said to be compatible on the same day where LR3 is not. No data supports either claim.); Testosterone, SARMs and MK-677 (The few positive reports all come from users on other anabolics at the same time.)

## Risk profile

- **Seen harm 0/3:** No published case report, trial or regulator warning involves des(1-3)IGF-1, and the few first-hand Reddit reports describe no serious harm. The zero reflects almost no documented human exposure, not reassurance; the gap is carried by dataGap.
- **Mechanism 3/3:** DES is an IGF-1 receptor agonist that IGF-binding proteins do not restrain, about ten times as potent as IGF-1 in cells. In pigs and marmosets it lowered glucose more, and for longer, than any other variant. Its class has shown serious harm in vivo: the sister analogue LR3 accelerated tumour growth in mice, and full-length IGF-1 causes hypoglycaemic seizures in humans. It also grew the rat gut at severalfold lower doses than IGF-1.
- **Data gap 3/3:** No human has received des(1-3)IGF-1 in any published study, and the original developers noted it was never clinically evaluated. Full-length IGF-1 (mecasermin) trials do not transfer, because DES escapes binding proteins and is several times more potent per microgram.
- **Silent harm 3/3:** Its short action makes hypoglycaemia acute and noticeable, but the more serious feared harm, promotion of an existing tumour by repeated IGF-1 receptor activation, would be silent and delayed and invisible to testimonials.
- **Product 3/3:** Sold only as grey-market vials and injected IM into the trained muscle, often into several sites per session. Fewer vendors stock it than LR3, and users point out that DES sellers rarely publish an independent test.
- **Never if:** Active or past cancer, or a known predisposition to cancer; Pregnancy or breastfeeding (no human reproductive data); Children and teenagers with open growth plates; Diabetes, insulin or sulfonylurea use, or a history of hypoglycaemia; Use without food or before driving

## Top reports

- Positive, recovery: “the bottles went quick as I had to inject into each muscle group and there are pairs of those muscle groups because I am a symetrical bi-ped. it seemed to blow up each muscle” — [r/moreplatesmoredates](https://www.reddit.com/r/moreplatesmoredates/comments/1346n75/any_bruhs_dabble_with_either_pegmgf_or_igfdes/)
- Positive, recovery: “I used igf-1 years ago, but back then it was short acting and localized muscle growth in areas of injection. Never used lr3.” — [r/BodyHackGuide](https://www.reddit.com/r/BodyHackGuide/comments/1q2njfd/igf1_lr3_follistatin_344_gh_morning_test_nppdeca/nxjtca5/)
- Nothing, recovery, 25 mcg into one bicep: “I tried the First time 25mcg only left Bizeps and i didnt felt a pump or something. Just after one day my muscle on the left biceps was more hurting than after a normal training.” — [r/BiohackingU](https://www.reddit.com/r/BiohackingU/comments/1hd7z5h/how_to_use_igfdes_in_2024_ultimate_igfdes_guide/o9wqlem/)
- Negative, recovery: “one time i put too much into my calves and got a weird reaction where i literally had to do a full body stretch every minute or so. i had to leave the gym” — [r/moreplatesmoredates](https://www.reddit.com/r/moreplatesmoredates/comments/1346n75/any_bruhs_dabble_with_either_pegmgf_or_igfdes/k6ixopo/)

## Studies

- [Ross et al. 1989: IGF-binding proteins inhibit the biological activities of IGF-1 and IGF-2 but not des(1-3)IGF-1](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2539101/) (in-vitro, 1989): Binding proteins blunted IGF-1 and IGF-2 in fibroblasts but not des(1-3)IGF-1, explaining its higher potency.
- [Ballard et al. 1996: des(1-3)IGF-I, a truncated form of insulin-like growth factor-I (review)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8930132/) (review, 1996): About 10 times more potent than IGF-1 at driving growth of cultured cells, with part of that potency retained in vivo, especially in the gut; no clinical evaluation has been done.
- [Tomas et al. 1992: IGF-I and especially IGF-I variants are anabolic in dexamethasone-treated rats](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1371669/) (animal, 1992): Des(1-3)IGF-I and LR3 were about 2.5 times more potent than IGF-I at reversing steroid-induced weight and nitrogen loss, and reduced muscle protein breakdown.
- [Martin et al. 1991: IGF-I and des(1-3)IGF-I enhance growth in rats with reduced renal mass](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1928375/) (animal, 1991): In partially nephrectomised rats, a week of des(1-3)IGF-I improved weight gain and nitrogen balance, partly by reducing muscle protein breakdown.
- [Read et al. 1992: IGF-I and its N-terminal modified analogues induce marked gut growth in dexamethasone-treated rats](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1613443/) (animal, 1992): IGF-I raised gut weight by up to 60% in a week; des(1-3)IGF-I and LR3 did the same at severalfold lower doses.
- [Tomas et al. 1997: IGF-I variants that bind poorly to IGF-binding proteins show more potent and prolonged hypoglycaemic action in pigs and marmosets](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9415072/) (animal, 1997): Des(1-3)IGF-I was the most potent glucose-lowering variant tested, 2-3 times IGF-I at the nadir and with 4-8 times the total hypoglycaemia over four hours.
- [Increlex (mecasermin, recombinant IGF-1) prescribing information: pooled clinical studies in primary IGF-1 deficiency](https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2025/021839s033lbl.pdf) (open-label, n=71, 2025): The closest human data, from a different molecule: 42% of children had hypoglycaemia and 4 had seizures or loss of consciousness, with tonsil, kidney and spleen growth; it is contraindicated in cancer.

## Sources

- [Tomas et al. 1997: des(1-3)IGF-I is the most hypoglycaemic IGF-I variant in pigs and marmosets](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9415072/)
- [Levolger et al. 2019: the related analogue LR3 IGF-I accelerated tumour growth in mice](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31285507/)
- [Increlex (mecasermin) prescribing information, revised 07/2025](https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2025/021839s033lbl.pdf)
- [Mongongu et al. 2021: detection of LongR3-IGF-I, des(1-3)-IGF-I and R3-IGF-I for anti-doping](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33587816/)
- [WADA Prohibited List 2026 (S2.3: IGF-1 and its analogues)](https://www.wada-ama.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/2026list_en_final_clean_september_2025.pdf)
- [PeptideReferee: IGF-1 DES prices across 8 vendors (Oct 2026)](https://peptidereferee.com/prices/igf-1-des/)