Research
Hormonal
Growth hormone causes fluid retention (edema) and weight gain in the first week of treatment, which resolves after treatment stops, resulting in no net difference in total weight loss compared to placebo.
Expect to gain 1-2 pounds in the first week of Growth Hormone therapy due to water retention. This is normal and temporary. Do not stop treatment because of this initial weight gain; it will resolve after you stop the injections.
GoodQualifiesHIGH confidence
injection of GH caused fluid retention that was manifest as failure to lose weight during the first week of GH injections, and as mild peripheral edema in some subjects.
Why this rating
RCT with daily weighing and clinical observation of edema.
Source
Treatment of Obese, Diet-Restricted Subjects with Growth Hormone for 11 Weeks: Effects on Anabolism, Lipolysis, and Body Composition*
David K. Snyder et al. · The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism · 1988
DOI 10.1210/jcem-67-1-54
rct · n=20Cited 185×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Growth hormone (GH) administration during caloric restriction preserves lean body mass (nitrogen retention) for approximately 5 weeks, after which the anabolic effect is lost despite continued GH treatment.Good
- Growth hormone does not accelerate fat loss in obese subjects during caloric restriction, despite increasing free fatty acid (FFA) mobilization.Good
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