Comparison
Epitalon vs Magnesium Glycinate
Side-by-side of Epitalon and Magnesium Glycinate. Every row below is pulled from the compound schema and will update as our data grows. For deeper reads, follow through to each compound page.
Epitalon
Epitalon peptide (Epithalon, tetrapeptide AEDG): telomerase activation, lifespan extension data, anti-aging trials, dosage, half-life, and safety.
Magnesium Glycinate
Magnesium glycinate supplement guide: chelated bisglycinate form, 200 to 400 mg dosage, sleep architecture benefits, low GI side effects, glycine co-effect.
Effects at a glance
Epitalon
- •Synthetic tetrapeptide (Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly) developed at the St. Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation
- •Russian clinical literature reports mortality reduction in elderly cohorts and improved melatonin output
- •Reported telomerase activation in human somatic cell culture and lifespan extension in mice and Drosophila
- •Independent Western replication is essentially absent; no FDA-standard RCTs
- •Anecdotal protocols use 5 to 10 mg subcutaneously daily for 10 to 20 day cycles, 2 to 4 times yearly
- •Not currently on the WADA Prohibited List
Magnesium Glycinate
- •Shortens sleep onset latency in older adults and in deficient populations supplementing 200 to 400 mg elemental Mg
- •Improves subjective sleep quality scores (PSQI, ISI) modestly versus placebo over 4 to 8 weeks
- •Reduces nocturnal leg cramps and exercise-induced muscle cramping in some controlled trials
- •Lowers self-reported anxiety in mild-to-moderate cases, with smaller effect than first-line pharmacotherapy
- •Glycinate form delivers fewer GI side effects than oxide or citrate at equivalent elemental doses
- •Insufficient as a stand-alone hypertension treatment; small adjunctive blood-pressure reductions only
Side-by-side
| Attribute | Epitalon | Magnesium Glycinate |
|---|---|---|
| Category | peptide | supplement |
| Also known as | Epithalon, Ala-Glu-Asp-Gly, AEDG, Epithalamin (precursor extract) | magnesium bisglycinate |
| Half-life (hr) ↗ | 0.5 | 5 |
| Typical dose (mg) ↗ | 5 | 300 |
| Dosing frequency | daily during cycle | daily (often evening) |
| Routes | subcutaneous, intramuscular, intranasal | oral |
| Onset (hr) | 24 | 1 |
| Peak (hr) | 168 | - |
| Molecular weight | 390.35 | - |
| Molecular formula | C14H22N4O9 | - |
| Mechanism | Synthetic tetrapeptide proposed to interact directly with DNA and chromatin to modulate tissue-specific gene expression. Reported effects include telomerase activation, increased melatonin output from pineal cells, and circadian normalization. | Magnesium acts as a cofactor for 300+ enzymes and as a voltage-dependent antagonist at NMDA receptors; glycine serves as an inhibitory neurotransmitter and co-agonist at glycine receptors. |
| Legal status | Not FDA approved; registered in Russia under domestic pharmaceutical framework; research-use-only grey market in US/EU | Dietary supplement |
| WADA status | unknown | allowed |
| DEA / Rx | Not scheduled (research chemical) | OTC supplement |
| Pregnancy | Insufficient data; not recommended | Generally considered acceptable at RDA doses; consult clinician |
| CAS | 307297-39-8 | 14783-68-7 |
| PubChem CID | 219042 | 84645 |
| Wikidata | Q5384126 | - |
Safety profile
Epitalon
Common side effects
- injection-site reactions
- occasional mild headache (rare)
Contraindications
- pregnancy
- lactation
- active malignancy (theoretical telomerase concern)
- concurrent immunosuppression
Interactions
- melatonin: potential additive effect on circadian and pineal output; no controlled data(minor)
Magnesium Glycinate
Common side effects
- mild GI upset at high doses
- loose stools (dose-dependent, less than with oxide/citrate forms)
Contraindications
- severe renal impairment
- myasthenia gravis
- heart block
Interactions
- tetracycline and fluoroquinolone antibiotics: magnesium chelates antibiotic, reducing absorption; separate by 2+ hours(moderate)
- bisphosphonates: reduced absorption of bisphosphonate(moderate)
- potassium-sparing diuretics: possible hypermagnesemia in renal impairment(moderate)
Which Should You Take?
Magnesium Glycinate comes out ahead for most readers on the criteria we weight: 3 catalogued goals, OTC dietary supplement, oral dosing, with a Tier-A outcome catalogued. Epitalon is the right call when one of the conditionals below applies.
- → If your priority is healthspan extension, pick Epitalon.
- → If your priority is circadian regulation, pick Epitalon.
- → If your priority is post-training recovery, pick Magnesium Glycinate.
- → If your priority is stress and HPA-axis regulation, pick Magnesium Glycinate.
Edge case: If you want to avoid research-only / gray-market sourcing, Magnesium Glycinate is the more accessible choice.
Default choice: Magnesium Glycinate. Lower friction to source, a Tier-A evidence outcome catalogued, and broader goal coverage. Reach for Epitalon only if your priority sits squarely in the goals it owns above.
This verdict is generated from each compound's schema (goals, legal status, evidence outcomes, dosing route). It updates automatically as our compound data evolves; the deeper read sits on each individual compound page.
Common questions
What is the difference between Epitalon and Magnesium Glycinate?
Epitalon and Magnesium Glycinate differ in category (peptide vs supplement), mechanism, and typical dosing. See the side-by-side table for full details.
Which has a longer half-life, Epitalon or Magnesium Glycinate?
Epitalon half-life is 0.5 hours; Magnesium Glycinate half-life is 5 hours.
Can you stack Epitalon with Magnesium Glycinate?
Stack compatibility depends on mechanism overlap, legal status, and individual response. Check each compound page for specific interactions and contraindications before combining.
Go deeper