The Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday it will hold a meeting this summer to consider easing restrictions on more than half a dozen peptide injections, following repeated pledges by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to loosen regulations on the unapproved therapies.

The FDA said it will ask a panel of outside advisers to review seven peptides at a July meeting, specifically whether they should be removed from a restrictive category reserved for risky, customized drugs. The peptides under discussion include BPC-157, which is marketed to heal injuries and reduce inflammation, and TB-500, along with five others that have become popular among wellness influencers, fitness enthusiasts and celebrities.

Kennedy has been vocal about his support for peptides, telling podcast host Joe Rogan he is "a big fan" and has "used them myself and with really good effect on a couple of injuries." Some major supporters of his Make America Healthy Again movement are also proponents, including Gary Brecka, who sells various peptide formulas through his website.

Under the Biden administration, the FDA added nearly 20 of the most popular peptides to a federal list of substances that should not be produced by compounding pharmacies. At that time, FDA advisers voted overwhelmingly that the peptides did not meet safety criteria for compounding, with regulators citing "significant safety risks" including potential cancer and liver, kidney and heart problems.

Peptides are building blocks of proteins that trigger hormones needed for growth, metabolism and healing. While some FDA-approved peptides exist, including insulin and GLP-1 medications for diabetes and obesity, many promoted online have never been approved. Several peptides like BPC-157 and TB-500 are banned by international sports authorities as doping substances.

Critics warn that allowing peptides on the market without clinical testing could undermine the FDA's drug approval system. Even if the panel votes to make the peptides available and the FDA agrees, the agency would still need to draft and publish new rules implementing any changes.