CJC-1295 Ipamorelin Stack: Doses, DAC vs No DAC, Evidence

How the stack works

Growth hormone release is driven by two inputs: growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) and ghrelin-type signals acting on GHS-R1a. In men infused with GHRH and the ghrelin-receptor agonist GHRP-2 together, researchers describe marked synergy in pulsatile GH secretion (Veldhuis 2009). CJC-1295 is the GHRH side and ipamorelin the ghrelin-receptor side, so the stack is built on that finding. The finding itself used GHRP-2, and we found no study that gave CJC-1295 and ipamorelin together.

Ipamorelin was chosen over older GHRPs for selectivity. In swine, GHRP-6 and GHRP-2 raised ACTH and cortisol while ipamorelin did not (Raun 1998), and in people GHRP-2 and hexarelin raised prolactin, ACTH and cortisol (Arvat 1997). We found no human study of cortisol after ipamorelin, so its advantage is shown in animals and assumed in people.

Which version of CJC-1295

Two products are sold as CJC-1295 and they are not interchangeable. The version published in trials is the albumin-binding one (with DAC). The no-DAC version, also called Mod GRF 1-29, is a modified GRF(1-29) peptide without that group, and the protocols below use it. The dosing section covers both.

Reported dosing protocols

These are what people report and not medical recommendations. The three differ in how often they inject, not in the CJC-1295 dose. The same protocols, costed per month, are the three tiers on the best peptide stack for muscle growth page. The ipamorelin guide and ipamorelin dosage page cover the second peptide on its own.

The no-DAC doses of 100 mcg have no published source, and the block lengths and breaks are convention. The 4 week break is meant to protect receptor sensitivity, and we found no study that tested whether it is needed.

CJC-1295 dosage

The only human dose data are for the DAC form, in kilograms. In Teichman 2006 doses of 30 or 60 mcg/kg were the best tolerated, and in Ionescu 2006 men received 60 or 90 mcg/kg. For a 70 kg adult, simple arithmetic puts 30 to 90 mcg/kg at 2.1 to 6.3 mg. The reported community dose for the DAC form, 2 mg once or twice a week, therefore sits at or below the low end of what was studied. It is not a tested human dose, and the trials tested the DAC form.

With DAC and without DAC

With DAC. The tetrasubstituted GRF(1-29) carries a maleimide group that binds serum albumin, and in rats it remained in plasma beyond 72 hours (Jette 2005). In people the half-life was 5.8 to 8.1 days in one trial and about 8 days in the other. Weekly or twice-weekly dosing in community protocols fits that long duration. Because GH and IGF-I stayed up for days, this version gives a sustained GHRH signal and not a pulse, though Ionescu found pulses persisted on top of a higher baseline. Users report more water retention with it, which we could not source.

Without DAC. We found no human pharmacokinetic study of this form, so we do not give a half-life. The unmodified hGRF(1-29) NH2 fragment had an elimination half-life of 10.4 minutes in rats, and only about 4% of a subcutaneous dose reached the circulation compared with an intravenous dose (Rafferty 1985). That supports the short-acting, daily-injection logic, but it is animal data on a related peptide. Community protocols use 50 to 100 mcg daily or 3 to 5 times a week.

Syringe units

A U-100 insulin syringe holds 100 units per millilitre, and units equal dose in mg divided by concentration in mg/mL, times 100. For a draw outside these tables use the CJC-1295 / ipamorelin calculator.

The no-DAC rows apply equally to ipamorelin at the same microgram dose. The DAC dose is in milligrams, so a dilute vial can overflow one syringe.

Timing

During slow-wave sleep growth hormone is released while cortisol is inhibited (Van Cauter 2008). That is the reason for the pre-sleep injection in the protocols above, which is meant to add to the existing night pulse. The common advice to inject 90 minutes or more after a meal rests on the idea that a recent meal blunts the response. We did not verify that, and found no trial of meal timing with this stack. If you inject once a day, the community reports before sleep as the priority slot.

What the evidence shows

No trial has measured sleep, recovery or body composition on this stack. Week-by-week timelines in circulation are anecdote. What exists is separate work on each peptide, in the table below, and most of it measures hormones and not outcomes.

On safety, Teichman reported no serious adverse reactions with CJC-1295 in healthy adults over 28 to 49 days, and in Beck's surgery patients adverse events were reported by 87.5% on ipamorelin and 94.8% on placebo over up to 7 days. Neither supports months of use. Users report water retention, flushing after injection, headache, tingling in the hands and injection-site irritation; none of those rates comes from a trial. The trial data are laid out in ipamorelin and CJC-1295 side effects.

FDA status

Neither peptide is an approved drug. The FDA's advisory committee reviewed all five CJC-1295 forms for the compounding list and the FDA proposed that none be included, with the committee agreeing; the use evaluated was growth hormone deficiency. Later committee meetings are covered in the FDA peptide vote article.

Adding BPC-157 or TB-500

People who train through injuries sometimes add BPC-157 or TB-500 to this base. They act through separate pathways and no study has tested any combination with this stack. Doses are on the BPC-157 guide and TB-500 guide, and the recovery peptide guide covers how people sequence them.

Where to source CJC-1295 and ipamorelin

Both arrive as lyophilised powder, and the useful quality check is a certificate of analysis that names the lot number on your vial. Three vendors on the 2026 vendor scorecard carry both CJC-1295 (without DAC) and ipamorelin with batch documentation:

• Amino Club stocks CJC-1295 (no DAC) and ipamorelin as separate vials, with published lab results per batch.
• Pantheon Peptides also carries CJC-1295 (no DAC) and ipamorelin with batch certificates and is a commonly cited option in the community for reliability.
• Apollo Peptides offers CJC-1295 and ipamorelin and is worth comparing on price when both are in stock.

Reconstitute with bacteriostatic water. The peptide reconstitution calculator has tables for common vial sizes, and the storage guide covers shelf life once mixed.

Frequently asked questions

What is the standard CJC-1295 ipamorelin dose?

The protocol people report is 100 mcg of CJC-1295 without DAC plus 100 mcg of ipamorelin, injected subcutaneously once or twice a day, often before sleep. That figure comes from community practice. We found no trial of the two peptides together, so there is no tested dose for the stack.

What is the difference between CJC-1295 with DAC and without DAC?

With DAC the peptide binds albumin and lasts days: in a trial in healthy adults the estimated half-life was 5.8 to 8.1 days, and people report 2 mg once or twice a week. Without DAC (also called Mod GRF 1-29) lacks that modification and is dosed daily at 50 to 100 mcg in community protocols. We found no published human half-life for the no-DAC form.

How long does CJC-1295 last?

The DAC form has an estimated half-life of 5.8 to 8.1 days in healthy adults (Teichman 2006), and growth hormone stayed raised for 6 days or more after one injection. For the no-DAC form we found no human pharmacokinetic study, so we do not state a figure. The unmodified human GHRH(1-29) fragment cleared in about 10 minutes in rats.

How many units is 100 mcg of CJC-1295 on an insulin syringe?

It depends on the vial and water. A 5 mg vial with 2 mL of water is 2.5 mg/mL, so 100 mcg is 0.04 mL, or 4 units on a U-100 syringe. A 2 mg vial with 1 mL is 2 mg/mL, so 100 mcg is 5 units.

Can CJC-1295 and ipamorelin go in the same syringe?

Many people draw both into one syringe to make a single injection. We found no published stability or compatibility study of the mixture, so that is practice and not tested guidance. Reconstituted vials should stay refrigerated.

Are CJC-1295 and ipamorelin FDA approved?

No. On 4 December 2024 the FDA's Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee voted against placing any form of CJC-1295 on the 503A bulks list, and the use it evaluated was growth hormone deficiency. We found no approved indication for either peptide, and both are sold as research chemicals.

Sources

1. Teichman et al, prolonged stimulation of growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor I secretion by CJC-1295, a long-acting analog of GH-releasing hormone, in healthy adults, J Clin Endocrinol Metab, 2006
2. Ionescu and Frohman, pulsatile secretion of growth hormone persists during continuous stimulation by CJC-1295, J Clin Endocrinol Metab, 2006
3. Jette et al, human growth hormone-releasing factor (hGRF)1-29-albumin bioconjugates activate the GRF receptor on the anterior pituitary in rats, Endocrinology, 2005
4. Rafferty et al, growth hormone-releasing factor analogue (hGRF1-29NH2): immunoreactive-GRF plasma levels after intravenous and subcutaneous administration, J Endocrinol, 1985
5. Raun et al, ipamorelin, the first selective growth hormone secretagogue, Eur J Endocrinol, 1998
6. Gobburu et al, pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic modeling of ipamorelin, a growth hormone releasing peptide, in human volunteers, Pharm Res, 1999
7. Beck et al, ipamorelin for the management of postoperative ileus in bowel resection patients, Int J Colorectal Dis, 2014
8. Veldhuis et al, determinants of GH-releasing hormone and GH-releasing peptide synergy in men, Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab, 2009
9. Arvat et al, effects of GHRP-2 and hexarelin on GH, prolactin, ACTH and cortisol levels in man, Peptides, 1997
10. Van Cauter, Spiegel, Tasali, metabolic consequences of sleep and sleep loss, Sleep Med, 2008
11. FDA, Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee final summary minutes, 4 December 2024
12. FDA, briefing document for the 4 December 2024 Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee meeting: CJC-1295-related bulk drug substances