Can peptides cause headaches?

Each answer says whether headaches was reported, and how often where that’s known. “Not reported” means the label or trials didn’t list it, not that it can’t happen. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist about any symptom that worries you.

From a product label 37

What the prescribing information says, with rates against placebo where the label gives them.

AbaloparatideApproved drug

LabelHeadache 8% vs 6% on placebo in women; 1% of women stopped treatment because of it.

CalcitoninApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 3% on the nasal spray vs 5% on placebo. The UK injection label lists it as common, up to 1 in 10 people.

CerebrolysinApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 1.3% vs 1.2% on placebo in pooled trials (EU label). It can also be part of a rare allergic reaction.

CetrorelixApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 1.1% of 949 women in trials (US label); uncommon in the EU label.

CosyntropinApproved drug

LabelHeadache is listed with repeated Synacthen Depot treatment (UK label, frequency unknown); it isn’t listed after the single US test dose.

DasiglucagonApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 11% vs 4% on placebo in adults, within 12 hours of a dose.

DesmopressinApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 2–4% on Nocdurna vs 1–3% on placebo. A persistent headache can be an early sign of low sodium.

ExenatideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 9% vs 6% on placebo in the 30-week trials, and 14% vs 4% when added to insulin glargine.

GanirelixApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 3.0% of 794 women in the US trials; uncommon in the EU label.

GHRP-2Approved drug

LabelHeadache is listed in the Japanese label with frequency not known.

GlucagonApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 18% with Baqsimi and 5% with Gvoke in adult rescue trials, and 10.8% after an IV radiology dose in healthy adults.

GonadorelinApproved drug

LabelRare (fewer than 1 in 1,000 people) in the UK label for the single diagnostic dose.

hCGApproved drug

LabelListed in the US labels without a rate; a UK label rates it common (1–10 in 100).

IcotrokinraApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 4.1% vs 3.3% on placebo through week 16, the most common reaction in the US label.

L-CarnitineApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 22% vs 16% on placebo in the label’s dialysis trials, highest at the 20 mg/kg dose (37%).

LeuprolideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 32% vs 6% on placebo in endometriosis trials and 26% vs 18% in fibroid trials. Rarely, a sudden severe headache with vomiting signals bleeding into the pituitary.

LinaclotideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 4% vs 3% on placebo in the IBS-C trials; it wasn’t more common than placebo in the chronic constipation trials.

LiraglutideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 13.6% vs 12.6% on placebo in Saxenda’s adult trials, and 10–11% vs 7% in Victoza’s diabetes trials.

LixisenatideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 9% vs 6% on placebo with lixisenatide alone, and 5.4% with Soliqua in its 30-week trials.

MacimorelinApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 3.9% after the single test dose.

MecaserminApproved drug

LabelHeadache in 5% or more of children in trials. Raised pressure in the skull, with headache, vision changes or vomiting, occurred in 3 of 71.

Melanotan 1Approved drug

LabelHeadache was very common (20%) in the EU label’s pooled trials of 425 patients, usually mild; migraine is listed as common. It isn’t in the US label’s placebo-controlled table.

OctreotideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 6% on daily injections and 15% on the depot in acromegaly trials, and 33% in an open-label Mycapssa study.

OrforglipronApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 8–9% vs 7% on placebo in the 72-week weight trials.

OxytocinApproved drug

LabelCommon with IV use (UK label), and can be an early sign of water intoxication. In a 24-week nasal trial, headache was less frequent than on placebo (7.5% vs 15.3%).

PalopegteriparatideApproved drug

LabelHeadache 21% vs 10% on placebo in the US label; 18.7% across trials in the EU label.

PramlintideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 13% vs 7% on placebo in type 2 diabetes. In a study of 36 people with migraine, a pramlintide infusion set off migraine-like attacks in 41%.

PT-141Approved drug

LabelHeadache: 11.3% vs 1.9% on placebo. One case was severe enough for a hospital stay, and 1% stopped treatment because of headaches.

SemaglutideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 14% vs 10% on placebo at 2.4 mg; 9% vs 7% in the 7.2 mg trials.

SetmelanotideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 37% vs 31% on placebo in hypothalamic obesity, and 41% in the POMC, PCSK1 and LEPR trials.

Somatropin (HGH)Approved drug

LabelHeadache: 9.9% vs 7.7% on placebo in adults. A severe headache with vision changes or vomiting can mean raised pressure in the skull, usually in the first 8 weeks.

TeduglutideApproved drug

LabelHeadache was very common in the EU label’s pooled trials (16% of 109 adults), though it isn’t in the US label’s list of reactions more common than placebo.

TeriparatideApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 7.5% vs 7.4% on placebo, about the same. It is listed as common in the EU label and can follow an overdose.

TriptorelinApproved drug

LabelHeadache: 5.0–7.5% of men in US trials and 13.6% of children; very common in women (UK label). Rarely, sudden severe headache with vomiting or vision loss signals a pituitary stroke.

VIPApproved drug

LabelHeadache is uncommon with Invicorp, affecting between 1 in 1,000 and 1 in 100 men, as is dizziness.

ZiconotideApproved drug

LabelHeadache 13% vs 11% on placebo. Headache with fever or a stiff neck can signal meningitis and needs urgent care.

SermorelinHuman studies

LabelHeadache occurred in under 1% of 350 patients given nightly shots in the Geref trials, and was also noted after IV test doses.

From human studies 17

What published trials and case reports found.

DSIPApproved drug

TrialIn a 107-person IV withdrawal study, a few patients reported headaches; FDA counts 9 with minor effects such as headache, sweating, nausea or vertigo.

EcnoglutideApproved drug

TrialHeadache: 2.8% on ecnoglutide and 2.8% on placebo in a 20-week phase 2 trial of 145 adults with type 2 diabetes.

MazdutideApproved drug

TrialHeadache: 10.0% on 3–16 mg vs 10.6% on placebo in the 56-week US phase 2 trial (177 adults), so no clear excess.

AOD9604Human studies

TrialThe most common complaint: 25.9% of all 502 people in the 24-week trial, placebo included, with no pattern by treatment. A 54 mg daily dose brought more headaches.

ARA-290Human studies

TrialHeadache was the most common complaint: 8 of 46 people on 1–8 mg vs 0 of 16 on placebo over 28 days. One case at 1 mg counted as serious.

CagrilintideHuman studies

TrialHeadache: 5–11% across doses vs 12% on placebo in the 26-week trial of cagrilintide alone, so no more common than placebo.

CJC-1295 with DACHuman studies

TrialHeadache hit 63% vs 14% on placebo in one trial; in a second, 20–80% across dose groups vs 50% on placebo.

DihexaHuman studies

TrialUsers report headaches at higher amounts. In the prodrug’s 26-week trial, headache was no more common than on placebo (2.7% vs 4.1%).

LarazotideHuman studies

TrialThe most common side effect in a 14-day trial of 86 people: 17 had headaches, with no difference between larazotide and placebo groups.

MK-677Human studies

TrialHeadache was among drug-related side effects more common than on placebo in the 563-person Alzheimer’s trial, and is reported across smaller studies.

NAD+Human studies

TrialHeadache was among the most common side effects in a review of 10 oral NADH and precursor trials (489 people); users of shots also report it.

RetatrutideHuman studies

TrialHeadache: 0–11.4% across doses vs none on placebo in the 48-week phase 2 trial of 338 adults.

SurvodutideHuman studies

TrialHeadache: 7.5% vs 12.9% on placebo in SYNCHRONIZE-MASLD and 9.7% vs 7.8% in the phase 2 obesity trial, so no clear excess.

TesofensineHuman studies

TrialMore than 25% of people had headaches at every dose in the 24-week obesity trial. With metoprolol, 36% vs 0% on placebo in a small trial.

Thymosin Beta-4Human studies

TrialHeadache in 2 of 53 people on the gel vs 0 of 18 on placebo in a pressure-ulcer trial; not listed in the Chinese IV trial.

BPC-157Preclinical

TrialHeadache was among the most common side effects in the enema safety study (24 healthy volunteers on BPC-157), with no clear difference from placebo.

GlutathioneApproved drug

TrialNot listed in the label. Headache was among symptoms in the 2026 outbreak tied to contaminated supplement-grade injections (over 25 people, at least 4 states).

From user reports 6

Commonly reported by people who use it, not established in a study.

SemaxApproved drug

CommunityUsers report headaches. They aren’t listed in the Russian labels or reported in the small Russian trials, whose abstracts give few safety details.

GHK-CuHuman studies

CommunityUsers who inject report occasional mild headache. It wasn’t reported in the small topical studies (13–86 people, mostly 8–12 weeks); injection hasn’t been studied in people.

IpamorelinHuman studies

CommunityUsers report headaches. FDA’s adverse-event database holds one report of headache and watery eyes from a compounded nasal spray, possibly a product-quality problem.

CJC-1295 (no DAC)Preclinical

CommunityUsers report headaches. This peptide has no human safety data; in a trial of CJC-1295 with DAC, a different molecule, 63% had headaches vs 14% on placebo.

KPVPreclinical

CommunityUsers report occasional mild headache. FDA found no human study and no reports in its adverse-event databases through December 2025.

TB-500Preclinical

CommunityUsers report mild headaches, mostly early on. No human study exists to measure how often they happen.

A precaution, not measured 3

A concern that follows from how it works or from a related drug.

Melanotan 2Human studies

PrecautionNot reported in the three small trials. Bremelanotide, its near-identical relative, causes headache in 11.3% vs 1.9% on placebo; FDA cites melanotan case reports of PRES, a brain-swelling syndrome.

IGF-1 DESPreclinical

PrecautionNo human data for DES. The related drug mecasermin lists headache in 5% or more of patients, and raised pressure in the skull with headache in 3 of 71.

IGF-1 LR3Preclinical

PrecautionNo human data for LR3. The related drug mecasermin lists headache in 5% or more of patients, and raised pressure in the skull with headache in 3 of 71.

Studied in people, not reported 16

Labels or trials covered enough people and didn’t report it. It can still happen.

DulaglutideApproved drug

Not reportedHeadache isn’t among the label’s common side effects, from placebo-controlled trials of 1,670 adults treated for about 24 weeks on average.

EnlicitideApproved drug

Not reportedHeadache isn’t listed in the label; in the 52-week trials (about 3,200 adults), side effects overall matched placebo.

PlecanatideApproved drug

Not reportedHeadache isn’t listed in the label, whose 12-week trials gave 3 mg to about 1,600 adults.

SelankApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed in the Russian label or reported in the small Russian trials of 60–70 patients each, whose abstracts give few safety details.

SS-31Approved drug

Not reportedNot a listed side effect. Headache: 0 of 30 adults on it vs 2 on placebo in a 4-week trial, and under 5% in a 48-week trial of 117.

TesamorelinApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed as a side effect in the label’s 26-week trials, in which 543 people with HIV took tesamorelin.

ThymalinApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed in the Russian label, which names only allergic reactions; published trials, mostly small and from Russia, gave few safety details.

Thymosin Alpha-1Approved drug

Not reportedNot listed in either label; the Indonesian label cites use in over 2,000 people, with drug-related side effects in under 1%.

TirzepatideApproved drug

Not reportedNot listed as a side effect in Zepbound’s or Mounjaro’s labels, whose weight trials followed 2,519 adults on tirzepatide for up to 72 weeks.

ArgirelineHuman studies

Not reportedNot reported in the small skin trials (up to 60 people, mostly 4–8 weeks); the most reliable lab tests found almost none reaches deeper skin.

GHRP-6Human studies

Not reportedNot reported in single-dose studies, including a 250-person diagnostic study that found no side effects. Repeated use hasn’t been studied.

HexarelinHuman studies

Not reportedNot reported: 60 children and young people had no side effects after one IV dose, and studies of up to 16 weeks gave few safety details.

Kisspeptin-10Human studies

Not reportedNot reported in small, short human studies (about 300 people, single doses to 12 days), which often didn’t track side effects.

LL-37Human studies

Not reportedNot among the side effects reported in the ulcer trials (about 200 people, up to 13 weeks), which applied it to wounds. Injected use hasn’t been studied.

MatrixylHuman studies

Not reportedNot reported in the skin trials (93 women for 12 weeks; 196 using a mix for 8 weeks), where it was well tolerated.

SNAP-8Human studies

Not reportedNot reported in two small patch studies that mixed it with other actives (24 people for 28 days; another for 12 weeks); SNAP-8 alone hasn’t been studied.

No human safety data 15

No one has been given it in a published study, so it can’t be ruled in or out.

5-Amino-1MQPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data: no published study has given it to a person.

AdamaxPreclinical

No dataNo safety data for Adamax. Users of Semax, its parent peptide, report headaches, so they may occur.

AHK-CuPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data: AHK-Cu has never been tested in people, on the skin or by injection.

CartalaxPreclinical

No dataNo human data: no study of cartalax in people has been published, so side effects are unknown.

EpithalonPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data: FDA found no study that assessed safety, and its one placebo-controlled trial (40 women, 20-day spray) didn’t report side effects.

Follistatin-344Preclinical

No dataNo human data for injected follistatin; headache wasn’t reported in the muscle gene-therapy trials (18 people in two trials).

FOXO4-DRIPreclinical

No dataNo human data: no one has been given FOXO4-DRI in a published study, so side effects are unknown.

HGH Fragment 176-191Preclinical

No dataNo human safety data for this peptide. Headache was the most common complaint in trials of AOD9604, a related peptide, at rates similar to placebo.

HumaninPreclinical

No dataNo human data: no one has been given humanin or its stronger version HNG in a published study, so side effects are unknown.

MGFPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data: no published study has given MGF to a person, and FDA’s public adverse-event data hold no reports naming it.

MOTS-cPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data for MOTS-c itself. In a 4-week trial of a modified version, CB4211, injection-site reactions were the only side effect in over 10% of the 11 treated.

PE-22-28Preclinical

No dataNo human data: PE-22-28 has never been given to a person in a study.

PEG-MGFPreclinical

No dataNo human safety data: FDA found no human exposure data for PEG-MGF by any route, and no animal study has been published.

PinealonPreclinical

No dataNo useful human safety data: the few small Russian reports on pinealon gave no details of side effects.

SLU-PP-332Preclinical

No dataNo human safety data: no published study has given it to a person.

Sources

Each answer comes from the compound’s own page, under “Can it cause …?”, where its sources are listed.