An FDA committee selected under US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has voted to support easing manufacturing restrictions on four peptides for human use, despite limited evidence of their safety or effectiveness. The decision matters because it could expand access to unapproved substances through compounding pharmacies and reflects concerns that the advisory process was shaped to produce a predetermined outcome.

Peptides are short amino-acid chains whose biological effects can be difficult to establish, and many have not been adequately tested in animals or humans. Kennedy had previously signalled his intention to reverse restrictions introduced under the Biden administration, then added committee members with apparent interests in peptide manufacture or sales; those appointees supplied the decisive votes, while all pre-existing members opposed the change. No full clinical, pharmacological or safety evidence was presented, and an FDA official reportedly said the agency had not approved a product never tested in humans.