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Does DHEA help?

Messages
84
Location
Canada
I've been taking 25mg DHEA since I stopped prednisone in the summer time. It has helped immensely, but because I'm young (early 30's) I'm afraid that I might've replaced one harm with another. When I stop DHEA I get unremitting diarrhea within 48 hours. For now I'm trying to titrate the dose down with the hopes that I can avoid this, but so far my gut is still disturbed by this.

I can't find any explanation online for this diarrhea.

All the generic data online scares people into not taking DHEA long-term but for someone like me who has long-term auto-immune, many rounds of prednisone (and its side effects like bone loss), and CFS, I'm wondering if I should just stay on it. The diarrhea effect, to me, is not a good sign.

I feel awesome on DHEA I just don't want to hurt myself. I'm also concerned about androgenic effects like hair loss, which I have been experiencing.
 

helios

Senior Member
Messages
136
Location
Brisbane
Can I ask, how has it helped you and what is the danger from taking it long term?
The typical worry about hormones is suppressing your body's ability to generate them.
I am wondering about giving it a go. I tried to ages ago, and I thought the dose was 25mg but I got major hair loss on it and it freaked me out from using it. I cant remember if I got any benefits from it that I could isolate from also taking testosterone as well around that time. My dhea levels were at rock bottom.
 
Messages
84
Location
Canada
Can I ask, how has it helped you and what is the danger from taking it long term?
The typical worry about hormones is suppressing your body's ability to generate them.
I am wondering about giving it a go. I tried to ages ago, and I thought the dose was 25mg but I got major hair loss on it and it freaked me out from using it. I cant remember if I got any benefits from it that I could isolate from also taking testosterone as well around that time. My dhea levels were at rock bottom.

Did your hair loss reverse once you stopped the DHEA?
 

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,089
Location
australia (brisbane)
Its my understanding from what ive read that hormones like dhea and pregnenolone dont have any negative feedback loops like some other hormones eg male takes testosterone his own production will stop, it can restart when outside sources of testosterone stop.

@Chiron did you have dhea blood levels tested prior to taking dhea? Its possible you were low and adding dhea got your levels to a normal range so fely good but when you stop you revert back to your pre dhea levels.

For a guy 25mg dhea is a conservative dose. Many guys on hrt will take 50 to 100mg a day. Me personally 25mg of dhea a day gets me to the upper third of the normal range. Hard to explain its effects but improves general wellbeing. Ive stopped it a few times in the past and wellbeing has decreased. It can help reduce the effects of inflammatory cytokines and counteract the negative effects of cortisol, maybe why they say it has anabolic properties, mild at best.
 
Messages
84
Location
Canada
Its my understanding from what ive read that hormones like dhea and pregnenolone dont have any negative feedback loops like some other hormones eg male takes testosterone his own production will stop, it can restart when outside sources of testosterone stop.

@Chiron did you have dhea blood levels tested prior to taking dhea? Its possible you were low and adding dhea got your levels to a normal range so fely good but when you stop you revert back to your pre dhea levels.

For a guy 25mg dhea is a conservative dose. Many guys on hrt will take 50 to 100mg a day. Me personally 25mg of dhea a day gets me to the upper third of the normal range. Hard to explain its effects but improves general wellbeing. Ive stopped it a few times in the past and wellbeing has decreased. It can help reduce the effects of inflammatory cytokines and counteract the negative effects of cortisol, maybe why they say it has anabolic properties, mild at best.

Thanks for this info. Another forum (called raypeat) scared me because they said you should only take 5mg if you're my age.

My doctor wants me to stop all hormones before getting bloodwork done - I'm taking pregnenolone and DHEA - but when I try stopping my diarrhea comes back with a vengeance. My intention is to get the bloodwork done while taking the hormones to see what exactly they're doing to me. Then I can adjust from there.

For me DHEA has been a game changer. I even wonder if low DHEA is why I developed inflammatory bowel in the first place.
 

pamojja

Senior Member
Messages
2,384
Location
Austria
My intention is to get the bloodwork done while taking the hormones to see what exactly they're doing to me.

Makes the most sense for knowing how to adjust the dose. I do already know through repeated testing that I have below normal without. Only it the test came back with higher than normal levels would I retest after being off for some time.
 

helios

Senior Member
Messages
136
Location
Brisbane
Did your hair loss reverse once you stopped the DHEA?
It certainly stopped but recover what I lost, maybe a little but not enough for me to be happy...no. It was not so much the change in the hair on my head that really got to me but the amount of hairs I saw on the pillow or in the shower very soon after I took it. I gather it aromatizes very easily to estrogen. The doctor who prescribed it to me said many of his patients really loved the boost they got from it and even if its just boost to libido that often is considered a marker of improved health
 
Messages
84
Location
Canada
It certainly stopped but recover what I lost, maybe a little but not enough for me to be happy...no. It was not so much the change in the hair on my head that really got to me but the amount of hairs I saw on the pillow or in the shower very soon after I took it. I gather it aromatizes very easily to estrogen. The doctor who prescribed it to me said many of his patients really loved the boost they got from it and even if its just boost to libido that often is considered a marker of improved health

How do you know it was the DHEA that did that, and not the testosterone you were also taking? T converts to DHT which is known to cause hair loss.

I'm sorry to hear that your hair did not grow back :( This is a worry of mine too.
 

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,089
Location
australia (brisbane)
Thanks for this info. Another forum (called raypeat) scared me because they said you should only take 5mg if you're my age.

My doctor wants me to stop all hormones before getting bloodwork done - I'm taking pregnenolone and DHEA - but when I try stopping my diarrhea comes back with a vengeance. My intention is to get the bloodwork done while taking the hormones to see what exactly they're doing to me. Then I can adjust from there.

For me DHEA has been a game changer. I even wonder if low DHEA is why I developed inflammatory bowel in the first place.

Id usually advice cfsers especially to start off low with preg and dhea. Initially for many can become overstimulated or other side effects. I had to start low like 5mg of preg and even take it intermittently. Dhea i did the same . I cant remember which i started first and think its probably best to introduce 1 at a time.

If you've stopped and started a few times and had worsening symptoms, i think that gives you your answer. It doesnt seem worth stopping these treatments just to get a base line reading of these hormones.

Diarrhoea when you stop these adrenal hormones isnt too different to what happens in patients with addisons disease when they stop their hydrocortisone. Not saying it addisons, just noting the symptoms.
 
Messages
5
My doctor wants me to stop all hormones before getting bloodwork done

How long (days) did your doctor require you to stop taking hormones before the blood tests?


It doesnt seem worth stopping these treatments just to get a base line reading of these hormones.
How would you know the difference the hormones you are taking are making to your blood levels without any testing? Is it safe to keep taking without monitoring levels?


I tested low on DHEA over a year ago and started on DHEA capsules. I started very low on 1 mg and slowly increased to 20 mg. Now I want to work out if all this has actually made any difference to the original test reading before I had started supplementing.

I had read somewhere that you need to stop the DHEA for some 7 -9 days before the test. I did this and the test results came back to the same low levels they were before I had begun the DHEA supplementation so it was not helpful.

Then I stopped 2 days before the test and the result showed some improvement in levels.

I tested last week without taking a break - I took my DHEA in the morning and tested in the afternoon - the result showed above normal level of DHEA.

I trying to find out what is the best way in which to test my DHEA levels so as to get a correct reading and determine my dosage. For those who do supplement with DHEA, how do you test? Do you take a break from the DHEA supplements before the blood tests?
 
Messages
92
I took a blood test for hormones and found out that I have a slightly lowered level of DHEA-S (119 µg / dL), although cortisol is normal (14 µg/dL). Should I try to take DHEA-S? Can it help alleviate my CFS? I am 36 years old, male.
And the second question: I can not find DHEA-S for sale. Is it possible to take DHEA instead to increase the level of DHEA-S in the blood?
 
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Messages
92
@chrys, I have been taking DHEA for the third day and do not feel any improvement. I feel only a little drowsiness and some derealization. Share your experience, on what day did you feel improvement?