Discover Your Simple Path to Nature's "Fountain of Youth"

DHEA is known in many medical circles as "the fountain of youth". Declining DHEA levels are tied to many age-related disorders and having a firm understanding of this important hormone can make a real difference in your life.

I'm excited to share with you the most up-to-date information on DHEA, but before I start, I want to give you a quick update on a recent newsletter that we shared. I feel it is so important for me to update you when new findings come to light, especially on subjects that we recently reviewed. Interestingly, you'll see quickly that it actual ties into this week's discussion as well.

Two weeks ago, we shared the benefits of various nutrients for the treatment of mild to moderate depression. One of the nutrients discussed was St. John's Wort. Shortly after our newsletter was released, there was a study published in the British Medical Journal using standardized St. John's Wort in patients with moderate to severe major depression. I reviewed the findings very carefully for you. In the study, 251 patients between the ages of 18 to 70 years old were treated with either St. John's Wort or the anti-depressant, Paxil. At the end of the six week study, approximately half of the patients taking the herbal extract reported improvement compared to only one third taking the drug. In addition, those people taking the St. John's Wort reported fewer side effects. The study reinforces in my mind the power of certain nutrients to safely and naturally promote a healthy mood. For further information, I refer you back to the original newsletter (need hyperlink here).

As we segue to this week's newsletter, there happens to be another study published earlier this month in the Archives of General Psychiatry regarding the treatment of mild to moderately severe midlife depression with the supplement DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone). The study involved 23 men and 23 women between the ages of 45 to 65 years old with midlife onset major or minor depression. The groups were randomized to receive six weeks of DHEA therapy (90 mg a day for three weeks and then 450 mg daily for three weeks) versus six weeks of placebo for the other group. The groups were then switched to receive the opposite therapy. At the end of the study, 23 of the 46 subjects treated with DHEA had a 50% or greater reduction in depression compared to 13 individuals out of 46 who improved with the placebo treatment. The authors of the study indicated that "we find DHEA to be an effective treatment for midlife onset major and minor depression."

As we stated earlier, DHEA is actually an amazing hormone. It has been labeled in the medical literature "the fountain of youth." It is also referred to as the "mother of all hormones." DHEA is a precursor hormone, meaning it produces either androgen (testosterone) or estrogen. DHEA levels in the body begin to decline by around age 35. By the time you reach 80 to 85 years old there are usually only trace amounts measurable.

There have been multiple animal studies showing that DHEA may have beneficial effects with several health concerns, including obesity, diabetes mellitus, immunity, arteriosclerosis and other disorders associated with normal aging.

DHEA appears to have particular benefit with SLE (lupus), a disabling and, at times, fatal disorder, causing arthritis, kidney failure and other problems. Several studies published in the medical literature (including double blinded studies) in the last several years have indicated that DHEA, when supplemented up to 200 mg a day, significantly reduced the number of SLE flare-ups.

And the benefits don't stop there. DHEA, being a precursor to sexual hormones, has naturally been studied extensively from the standpoint of sexual function and dysfunction. In the journal, Urology, two groups of twenty patients were treated with 50 mg daily of DHEA or placebo for six months. At the end of the study, it was concluded that oral DHEA treatment may benefit in the treatment of erectile dysfunction. It also appears that DHEA benefited women by improving libido.

In yet another study published late last year in the Journal of American Medical Association, a preliminary finding using 50 mg of DHEA daily appeared to decrease abdominal fat and, in doing so, improving diabetes mellitus and the development of metabolic syndrome. Fifty six elderly individuals participated in the study, taking 50 mg a day of DHEA or placebo for six months. At the end of the study, those in the treatment lost an average of 6% of abdominal fat which amounted to about 2.2 pounds of weight loss per individual. The authors of the study did warn that this was only a preliminary study. A larger 5 year trial involving 176 subjects is currently underway. The authors further warned that DHEA supplement might be harmful for people with a history of hormone sensitive cancers, such as cancer of the breast or prostate.

As you know, one of the major problems with aging is that of osteoporosis, seen in both men and women. In a study out of China published three years ago, 86 men were randomly divided to receive either 100 mg daily of sulfated DHEA (DHEAS) or placebo. At the end of the six month trial, those men treated with DHEAS showed improved bone density to a statistical degree over the placebo group.

In another interesting study out of Boston, 61 young women with a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa were randomized to receive a DHEA treatment of 50 mg daily for one year versus standard hormonal replacement therapy. It was previously known that women with anorexia nervosa have sub-normal levels of DHEA and estrogen and with that, excessive bone loss. At the end of the one year trial, bone density improved with both groups, although DHEA seemed to be more effective. Additionally, those young women treated with DHEA exhibited improvement in several psychological parameters.

In a related study published February 2003 in the Archives of General Psychiatry, patients with schizophrenia were randomized to receive either 100 mg daily of DHEA or placebo for six weeks. At the end of the study, those individuals treated with DHEA had statistically significant improvement in the negative symptomatology of schizophrenia along with improvement in depression and anxiety symptoms of schizophrenia.

These amazing studies are causing researchers to postulate that the age-related decline in DHEA may explain some of the degenerative changes associated with aging. However, because it is a hormone, there is some controversy and concern about the long term effects of DHEA in regard to the development of certain cancers, such as prostate cancer and cancer of the breast.

Interestingly, there have been some animal studies indicating that the DHEA actually has some cancer protective effects. And fortunately, I am not aware of any studies in humans demonstrating an actual increased incidence of cancer in individuals taking DHEA. Nevertheless, if you have a history of hormonally sensitive cancer, especially cancer of the breast or prostate, DHEA is generally not recommended. Further I highly recommend that people who take DHEA also consume vitamin E in the d-alpha-tocopherol succinate form at 400 - 1,000 IU per day, standardized green tea at 250 - 500 mg per day, standardized lycopene in the Lyco-O-Mato form at 15 - 30 mg per day and selenium at 200 - 400 mcg per day in the selenomethionine form. These life saving nutrients have been proven in numerous published clinical studies to dramatically reduce the risk of cancer and/or induce cancer cell death.

I will tell you that I've personally been taking 25 mg of DHEA daily for the last couple of years. It gives me an overall sense of well being. I'm personally convinced that it slows down the aging process, although that still is yet to clearly be demonstrated scientifically.

I hope you'll join me in tapping into this "fountain of youth" if you feel it is right for you too.

Nutraceutical Sciences Institute (NSI) offers a pharmaceutical grade time release 25 mg DHEA 100 capsules for the low price of only $9.95, a tremendous value for a superior quality product. Generallly I do not recommend time release supplements, they can actually reduce and impair absorption. In the case of DHEA I do recommend time release because it more closly simulates the bodies natural up and down DHEA levels if taken in the morning upon rising. For those who prefer a higher dosage and do not want time release, Smart Basics has a 180 count 50 mg pharmaceutical grade product for the low price of $19.99.

I would also strongly recommend the nutrients mentioned above that may reduce the risk of cancer. The best option is to choose a NSI Synergy multivitamin that contains all of these nutrients and other beneficial nutrients. NSI is one of the only to exclusively use the succinate form of natural vitamin E in their formulations, the only form proven to have anticancer benefits in several studies.

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