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Goal · 05

Skin & hair

Prescription hair and skin treatments plus the cosmetic peptides beside them.

10 compounds: 6 FDA-approved, 3 over the counter, 1 research only.

Skin & hair checklist Start My Journal

Updated October 7, 2026

Unbranded dropper bottle and cream jars arranged on a bright white-tiled bathroom shelf.

compounds for skin & hair, each with its US status

licensed providers list at least one of them

%

sold over the counter, no prescription needed

Unbranded amber dropper bottles and a wooden soap dish beside a bright white sink.
An unlabeled amber glass dropper bottle standing on a wooden pedestal against a bright white wall with soft palm-leaf shadows.
Extreme close-up texture of brown hair strands fanned across a bright white textile surface.
A blank-label dropper serum bottle on a bright marble bathroom counter with a gold faucet.
10 compounds

A protein supplement made from animal collagen, popular for skin, joints and recovery.

No prescriptionEmerging evidence
14 providers

GHK-Cu

peptide

A copper peptide common in skin-care serums. Injectable versions are not approved.

No prescriptionEmerging evidence
6 providers

Finasteride

medication

A prescription pill that slows male-pattern hair loss by lowering DHT.

PrescriptionStrong human evidence
9 providers

Minoxidil

medication

A hair-growth drug: topical over the counter, or a low-dose pill prescribed off-label.

PrescriptionStrong human evidence
19 providers

Tretinoin

medication

A prescription vitamin A cream for acne and sun-related skin aging.

PrescriptionStrong human evidence
10 providers

An FDA-approved implant for erythropoietic protoporphyria, distinct from online tanning products.

PrescriptionModerate human evidence
1 provider

An unapproved pigment-stimulating peptide sold online for tanning and sexual effects.

Research onlyAnimal & lab studies only
Education only

Dutasteride

medication

A prescription prostate drug that lowers DHT, used off-label in the US for male pattern hair loss.

PrescriptionModerate human evidence
5 providers

Spironolactone

medication

A heart and blood pressure pill, also used off-label for hormonal acne and hair loss in women.

PrescriptionModerate human evidence
5 providers

Retinol

cosmetic

An over-the-counter vitamin A ingredient in skin care, a gentler and weaker cousin of prescription tretinoin.

No prescriptionModerate human evidence
9 providers
Example journals

Journals for skin & hair.

Overhead view of unbranded skincare cream jars, open, on a bright white surface with petals.
Jordan
From a creator
Example

Hair & skin, the proven list

The treatments with actual trials behind them, and one cosmetic peptide I like.

FinasterideMinoxidilTretinoinGHK-Cu