The basics
The basics: 5 articles from What Are Peptides. Plain-English answers about peptides.
Where Do Peptides Come From?
Some peptides your body makes, some come from other living things, and many are built from scratch in a laboratory. Here is how each of those actually happens, and why the word "synthetic" tells you far less than most people assume.
Why Most Peptides Cannot Be Swallowed
Almost no peptide works as a pill, and the reason is simpler than it sounds. Your digestive system is built to take apart exactly this kind of molecule, and it is very good at its job.
What Is the Difference Between a Peptide and a Protein?
There is no chemical difference between the two. They are the same kind of molecule, and the only thing separating them is length — plus a line that people agreed to draw.
What Are Amino Acids?
Amino acids are the small parts your body links together to make proteins and peptides. Here is what one of them actually is, why there are twenty, and what the word "essential" really means.
What Is a Peptide?
A peptide is a short chain of amino acids. Here is what each of those words means, why the order of those amino acids decides everything, and why your body is making peptides as you read this.