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DHEA Risks

Are There Risks to Women Taking DHEA?

Buying Hormone Supplements

I hope you realize no woman should take DHEA over 5 mg. unless you have autoimmune disease!

DHEA is not you primary hormone, estrogen is. The side effect can be dangerous!!

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Thank you for your thoughts. I searched for more recent research to support your very conservative recommendation which, by the way, is in line with that of Dr. Ray Sahalian.

Dr. Sahalian is well known for his herbal product formulas and the promotion of natural supplements for maximum health. Not surprisingly he recommends his natural supplement products over DHEA.

Another medical source, The University of Maryland Medical Center, advises women to limit their dose to 25 mg a day and adds that doses as low as 5 mg a day have shown benefits in both sexes.

As I note in my first article on DHEA Do the Benefits Outweigh the Risks?, “It is generally suggested that the proper dosage would be that amount to bring blood DHEA measurements closer to those typical for a healthy same sex young adult.” Periodic blood testing for blood serum levels of DHEA is recommended when taking DHEA supplements.

While DHEA is not the primary hormone for women or men, it is the most abundant steroid in the blood of adult humans. DHEA levels peak in early adulthood and decline with age – as do vim, vigor and vitality.

As for the risks, I read the latest reports on DHEA supplementation in MedScape Today (WebMD’s network for physicians and healthcare professionals), the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy and the Delano Report, as well as searched the Internet in general.

The research result landscape hasn’t changed much since I wrote the article above. However I did learn about a (so far) non-controversial alternative to DHEA supplementation and have added that information to the DHEA article.

For anyone suffering from symptoms which could be alleviated by DHEA but concerned about the risks of hormonal supplements, there is now a generally regarded safer alternative. 7-Keto DHEA Metabolite.

7-Keto DHEA Metabolite is a natural metabolite of DHEA but does not convert to estrogens or androgens. Research indicates that 7-Keto is a more active inducer of thermogenic enzymes than DHEA and is well tolerated by the body.

So again, I thank you for writing. If you can direct me to other studies about the long term safety of DHEA supplementation, I would gladly read them.

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DHEA as a Fertility Treatment

I continue to watch developments regarding DHEA supplementation and provide updates when I learn anything new.

I recently heard from a reader who lives in Greece. She is only 40 but has signs of early menopause. She is undergoing fertility treatment and, after failed attempts with IVF and other protocols, her gynecologist put her on DHEA (50mg a day).

Fascinated, I wanted to learn more and quickly found the website for the Center for Human Reproduction based in New York and Illinois.

The doctors at CHR are also having success treating infertility with DHEA supplementation. In addition to the benefits, I've mentioned elsewhere (increased strength and libido, improved mood and cognitive function), the doctors list the following for women with aging ovaries who are trying to conceive.

• Increases egg (oocyte) and embryo counts

• Improves egg and embryo quality

• Increases number of embryos available for embryo transfer

• Increases euploid (chromosomally normal) embryos available

• Speeds up time to pregnancy in fertility treatment Increases spontaneously conceived pregnancies

• Improves IVF pregnancy rates

• Improves cumulative pregnancy rates in patients under treatment

• Decreases spontaneous miscarriage rates

• Likely reduces aneuploidy (chromosomal abnormalities ) in embryos

This article is for informational purposes only. It does not purport to render medical advice.

 

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