Many of my patients have found relief from hot flashes, and fatigue using DHEA, but it has many other benefits.
DHEA is a natural steroid and precursor hormone produced by the adrenals. It’s also available at health food stores and on-line as an over-the-counter supplement. Manufacturers hype it as a magic cure-all for many things: muscle loss, weight loss, osteoporosis, and depression — even menopause.
Dehydroepiandrosterone, or DHEA, is a steroid hormone synthesized from cholesterol and secreted by the adrenal glands. The adrenals are walnut-sized organs located right above your kidneys. The average adult makes about 25 mg of DHEA per day (some more, some less) with dwindling production as we get older. Men at all ages have more DHEA than women.
Natural DHEA production is at its highest in your twenties: by the time we reach seventy we only make about 20% of the DHEA we had when we were young.
Another reason is that DHEA is a very powerful precursor to all of your major sex hormones: estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. (Its molecular structure is closely related to testosterone).
When DHEA levels are low, your body does not have enough working material for proper endocrine function. This throws off your hormone production and you feel a general sense of malaise, along with other symptoms of hormonal imbalance — how severe depends on how many other demands are being made on your body at the same time.
Most of the women we see at our practice have some indication of adrenal imbalance, including symptoms of low DHEA levels, such as:
Extreme fatigue
Decrease in muscle mass
Decrease in bone density
Depression
Aching joints
Loss of libido
Lowered immunity
Many of my patients in menopause who are taking bioidentical hormones also take DHEA to promote a good overall balance and vice-versa. DHEA can be a great bridge through menopause.
In one study they found that women ages 65-75 taking DHEA along with calcium and vitamin D increased their bone density 2% each year during a 2 year study. This study used a dose of DHEA of 50 mg. This is not a huge increase, but if you have failed bisphosphonates or do not want to take them, it is worth consideration. Even if you are on prescription medications, ask your doctor if you should add this for extra benefit.
I recommend checking your hormone levels before supplementing with any hormones. If DHEA levels are too high, people may experience acne, facial hair, oily skin, etc. So I evaluate a hormone panel before adding any hormone to a regimen. If used appropriately, results can be good... if used randomly, results can be random.
There are multiple ways to take DHEA, sublingual, transdermal, etc. Find the way that is easiest for you. The way you can be consistent, always works the best.
DHEA with resveratrol
DHEA Micronized 25 mg. - 180 Vegetarian Capsules
DHEA sublingual
DHEA transdermal cream
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