DHEA Supplements: Uses and Side Effects - WebMD

DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) is a hormone produced by your body's adrenal glands. These are glands just above your kidneys. woman holding ... Diet&WeightManagement Home News Reference Slideshows Quizzes Videos Questions&Answers DietPlansA-Z PopularDietPlans HealthyWeight ToolsandCalculators HealthyEating&Nutrition Best&WorstChoices AllGuideTopics RelatedTopics WeightLoss&Obesity Fitness&Exercise Food&Recipes FoodCalculator BMICalculator Diabetes CholesterolManagement MoreRelatedTopics Diet&WeightManagement Reference InthisArticle InthisArticle InthisArticle WhatIsDHEA? DHEASupplementsforAnti-Aging DHEASupplementsforHealthConditions SafetyofDHEASupplements DHEAandWeightLoss DHEAandAthleticPerformance TalkingWithYourDoctor   DHEAsupplementsareusedbysomepeoplewhobelievetheycanimprovesexdrive,buildmuscle,fighttheeffectsofaging,andimprovesomehealthconditions.Butthereisn'tmuchevidenceformanyoftheseclaims.Andthesupplementshavesomerisks. Here'sarundownofwhatscienceactuallyknowsaboutDHEAsupplementsandwhatyouneedtoknowabouttheirsafety. WhatIsDHEA? DHEA(dehydroepiandrosterone)isahormoneproducedbyyourbody'sadrenalglands.Theseareglandsjustaboveyourkidneys. DHEAsupplementscanbemadefromwildyamorsoy. Scientistsdon'tknoweverythingDHEAdoes.Buttheydoknowthatitfunctionsasaprecursortomaleandfemalesexhormones,includingtestosteroneandestrogen.Precursorsaresubstancesthatareconvertedbythebodyintoahormone. DHEAproductionpeaksinyourmid-20s.Inmostpeople,productiongraduallydeclineswithage. Testosteroneandestrogenproductionalsogenerallydeclineswithage.DHEAsupplementscanincreasethelevelofthesehormones.That'swhyanumberofclaimshavebeenmadeabouttheirpotentialhealthbenefits. Thoseclaimsrangefrombenefitssuchas: Buildinguptheadrenalgland Strengtheningtheimmunesystem Slowingnaturalchangesinthebodythatcomewithage Providingmoreenergy Improvingmoodandmemory Buildingupboneandmusclestrength DHEASupplementsforAnti-Aging SinceDHEAlevelsdeclinewithage,someresearchersspeculatethatsupplementingyourbody'sfallinglevelsofthehormonemighthelpfightaging.Andsomesmallstudieshavereportedpositiveanti-agingeffectsfromtheuseofDHEAsupplements.Butasimilarnumberofstudieshavereportednoeffect. AccordingtotheNaturalMedicinesComprehensiveDatabase,DHEAsupplementsdonotseemtoaffecttheagingprocess. Also,littleisknownabouttheeffectoflong-termuseofDHEA.AndthereissomeconcernthatcontinueduseofDHEAsupplementscouldbeharmful. DHEASupplementsforHealthConditions DHEAsupplementsshowsomepromiseforeasingmildtomoderatedepression.Butmoreresearchisneeded. Inasmall,six-weekstudy,researchersfromtheNationalInstituteofMentalHealthfoundthattreatmentwithDHEAsupplementshelpedrelievemildtomoderatedepressionthatoccursinsomemiddle-agedpeople.DHEAmayalsobeeffectiveforimprovingagingskinintheelderly. Continued Asforotherconditions,bothNationalStandardandtheNIHsaytheevidenceisunclearwhetherDHEAhasanysignificantbenefitintreatingconditionssuchas: Alzheimer'sdisease Lowbonedensity Heartdisease Cervicalcancer Myalgicencephalomyelitis/ChronicFatigueSyndrome Crohn'sdisease Infertility Rheumatoidarthritis Schizophrenia Sexualdysfunction BothagenciesalsosaythereislittleevidencetosupportclaimsthatDHEAhasvalueintreatingconditionssuchasfibromyalgia,addressingissueswithmemoryormusclestrength,orenhancingandstimulatingtheimmunesystem. SafetyofDHEASupplements PossiblesideeffectsofDHEAsupplementscaninclude: Oilyskinandacne,aswellasskinthickening Hairloss Stomachupset Highbloodpressure Changesinmenstrualcycle Facialhairinwomen Deepeningofthevoiceinwomen Fatigue Nasalcongestion Headache Rapidorirregularheartbeat Insomnia Unfavorablechangesincholesterollevels SomeofthesesideeffectscanresultfromDHEAraisingtheleveloftestosteroneandestrogeninaperson'sbody.Medicalexpertscautionthatlittleisknownaboutthelong-termeffectoftheelevatedhormonelevels.DHEAsupplementsshouldnotbetakenlong-termwithoutconsultingwithahealthcareprofessional. DHEAandWeightLoss AversionofDHEAsupplementknownas7-Ketohasbeenwidelypromotedasanaidforreducingbodyfatandraisingmetabolism.Theideaisthatleanerbodytissueandhighermetabolismwillburncaloriesmoreefficiently,makingiteasiertonotonlyloseweightbutalsokeepitoff. Unfortunately,mostofthestudiesthathavebeendonehaveshownlittleeffectfromDHEAinlosingweightorincreasingmetabolism.It'sagoodideatotalkwithyourdoctororanutritionistbeforeinvestinginaDHEAsupplementforweightloss. DHEAandAthleticPerformance DHEAsupplementsaresometimesusedbyathletesbecauseofaclaimthatitcanimprovemusclestrengthandenhanceathleticperformance.That'sbecauseDHEAisa"prohormone"--asubstancethatcanincreasethelevelofsteroidhormonessuchastestosterone. ThereislittleevidencetoshowthatDHEAhasanyeffectonenhancingmusclestrength.ItsuseisbannedbysportsorganizationssuchastheNationalFootballLeague,MajorLeagueBaseball,andtheNationalCollegiateAthleticAssociation. Continued Therearerisksassociatedwithusinganypre-steroidenhancer.Andthehigherthedose,thegreatertherisk.Possiblesideeffectsinclude: Permanentstuntingofgrowth Aggressivebehavior,knownas"roidrage" Moodswingsandotherpsychologicalsymptoms Higherbloodpressure Liverproblems Changesincholesterollevel SinceDHEAcanincreasethelevelofbothtestosteroneandestrogen,womenwhouseDHEAcansometimesexperiencesuchsideeffectsas: Voicechanges Hairloss Growthoffacialhair Mencansometimesexperiencesuchsymptomsas: Breastenlargement Shrunkentesticles Reducedspermproduction TalkingWithYourDoctor IfyouarethinkingofusingDHEAsupplements,thereareseveralreasonsyoushoulddiscussdoingsowithyourdoctorfirst: ManyoftheclaimsforDHEAinvolveseriousmedicalconditions.Theseconditionsneedtobeevaluatedandtreatedbyahealthcareprofessional. DHEAcaninteractwithsomemedicationsandcouldaltertheireffectiveness. BecauseDHEAcanraisethelevelofbothmaleandfemalehormones,thesupplementscanhaveanegativeeffectonhormone-sensitivecancers,suchasbreast,ovarian,orprostatecancer. UseofDHEAcarriessomeriskandcancausearangeofsideeffects.   Pagination 10WorstSandwichesandBetterChoices GuidetoEatingHealthyCarbs BecomingaVegetarian:FoodstoChooseFrom WhyAmIAlwaysHungry? SurprisingReasonsYou'reGainingWeight DietTipsforKneeOsteoarthritis AVisualGuidetoLowTestosterone NaturalWaystoBoostTestosterone IsLowTestosteroneAffectingYourLife? ShouldYouTakeaWeightLossPill? 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