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What does '5-10%, 2x daily' mean for a topical peptide like Acetyl Hexapeptide-8?

Posted by fasted_scientist in Beginner Questions - 7 points, 6 comments.

I just got a small vial of Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 powder and the info sheet says typical dose is 5-10%, applied twice a day. I’m totally new to topical peptides so I’m not sure how to turn that percentage into something I can actually use. Do I mix the powder with a certain amount of cream or serum, and if so how do I measure it accurately?

I’ve seen people talk about using a microspatula or mixing into a base gel, but I’m nervous about getting the concentration wrong and either wasting it or irritating my skin. Ngl, the maths feels a bit like guessing at the moment. Has anyone here done this before and could walk through the exact steps they take, from weighing the powder to the final product? Any tips on storage or how long a batch stays stable would also be really helpful.

Comments

  • tracker_jade: The math is simpler than it feels. 5% means 5g of peptide per 100g of total product. So if you have 50mg of powder and want a 5% concentration, you'd mix that into roughly 1g of base cream. For 10%, you'd use 0.5g of base. You need a milligram scale, honestly. Eyeballing powder is gonna be inaccurate and you'll either waste it or get a weird concentration. What kind of base are you planning to use? I've only messed with GHK-Cu topically and I just mixed into a simple hyaluronic acid gel I alrea
  • sleep_coastal: Math checks out. One thing though, keep batches small like tracker_jade said. Anecdotally I mixed a peptide into a bigger batch once and it degraded before I finished it. Wasted half. 1g batches at a time, maybe 2g max. Hyaluronic acid gel works fine as a base from what I've seen, just make sure it's fragrance-free stuff. Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 is pretty stable compared to some others so you got that going for you.
  • curious_scientist: The math checks out. One thing though, 50mg into 1g of base is a tiny batch. You'll go through it fast at 2x daily. Maybe scale up to 200mg into 4g if your scale can handle it, keeps you from remixing every couple days. I've used a plain hyaluronic acid serum base too and it worked fine for mixing. Just make sure it's fragrance-free. Irritation from the base is more likely than from the peptide itself at 5%, imo.
  • fasted_scientist: Ngl, I hadn't thought about the batch size being that small. 50mg into 1g sounds like a proper headache to do accurately without a mess. I reckon I will try your suggestion of scaling it up to 200mg in 4g so I am not constantly messing about with it. Do you think using a hyaluronic acid serum might make it too runny compared to a thicker cream?
  • fasted_scientist: Ngl I was a bit worried about the stability, so it is good to hear this one is a bit more robust. I will definitely stick to the 1g batches like you suggested to avoid wasting it. If I use a hyaluronic acid gel, do you reckon I need a specific scale to hit that 5% mark accurately, or is it okay to just eyeball it with a microspatula?
  • fasted_scientist: Cheers for the maths, that makes it way clearer. I reckon I was overthinking it, ngl. I do have a milligram scale so I can actually be precise with the 50mg. I was thinking about using a basic aloe vera gel, but your mention of hyaluronic acid makes me wonder if that absorbs better. Do you think the HA gel might make the peptide more stable, or is it just a preference for the feel on the skin?

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