Is DHEA Helpful and Safe?

DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) is secreted by our adrenal glands. While it has no known effects itself, it is a precursor to several hormones, including male and female sexual hormones called androgens and estrogens.

It has attracted much attention: first, because it is the most widely circulating adrenal hormone in our bodies, and second, because its levels in our bodies peaks in our mid-20s, and then slowly decline as we age. By the time we are in our 70s, levels are 15-20% of what they were at their peak.

Beginning in the 1980s when a synthetic version appeared as an over-the-counter supplement, it was advertised as a superhormone, since its rate of decline is roughly similar to common age changes including loss of bone density, lower muscle mass and a weaker immune system. Its proponents argued that by keeping these levels high, one could slow or prevent such age-related changes.

In 1985 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned its use in products, citing a lack of clinical data on effectiveness and safety.

It returned to the U.S. market in 1994 with passage of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, which allowed many products to escape FDA regulation.

In most other countries, it is regulated and sold only with prescription.

Does It Slow the Aging Process?

According to Dr. K. Sreekumaran Nair, an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic, the answer is no. The difference in opinion between those in the medical and scientific community and those who promote it’s anti-aging benefits is the level and type of evidence each group feels is sufficient.

For example, before it was banned by the FDA in 1985, wild yam extract was sold as a dietary supplement based on some laboratory experiments showing that this extract could be converted to DHEA in humans. However, no clinical experiments (using live human subjects) could support the laboratory results. The Mayo Clinic’s Dr. Nair wrote in a 2007 article that there are short term scientific studies with both humans and primates showing that those with higher levels seem to live longer. But there is no data to suggest that giving more DHEA to a person can prolong life.

It does prevent many aging changes in rats. But since rats have very little of this hormone to begin with, it is unclear how this applies to humans.

A two year long study by the Mayo Clinic published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2007 compared older adults who had been taking DHEA supplements with those who had not. They found elevated levels of the hormone in the test group, but no difference between the groups in bone density, insulin sensitivity, endurance or body composition. The authors concluded that there is no anti-aging benefit to this supplement.

What Are the Risks?

DHEA is currently used by health professionals when treating adrenal insufficiency, depression, induction of labor and systemic lupus erythematosus. These same professionals caution that since it may cause higher than normal levels of the sex hormones androgen and estrogen, this may increase the risk of hormone-sensitive cancers such as those of the prostate, breast or ovaries, particularly if you are already in a higher risk class.

Since it may interfere with other supplements, prescription drugs or skew laboratory tests, consult your physician before using it.

Return From DHEA to Aging Gracefully