Page 13 - The DHEA Debate - Life Extensions Magazine

improve anabolic drive via DHEA supplementation, and then go to the gym. They will suffer less
and achieve better results.

Naysayer: You don’t know that.

Stephen Cherniske: Yes, we do. In a study funded by the National Institutes of Health, Dr.
Dennis Villareal and his colleagues conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled human clinical
trial using 50 mg of DHEA per day with a group of elderly men and women. After only six
months, those taking DHEA experienced improvements in muscle mass and bone density, and
a reduction in body fat.2

As I explain in my book, The Metabolic Plan, this is one of the most important keys to living a
long and healthy life. As we age, most people lose muscle and gain fat. You have to understand
the profound effect this has on quality of life. Beyond the aesthetic effect, which affects our self-
esteem and outlook on life, the accumulation of fat and loss of muscle causes a progressive
loss of functional ability and a dramatic alteration in glucose metabolism. More than 70% of
obese individuals will become diabetic, and the diabetic state is like turbo-aging, producing rapid
degeneration throughout the body and brain.
Naysayer: So now you’re going to tell me that DHEA prevents diabetes?

Stephen Cherniske: Well, it prevents diabetes in animals48 and there is compelling evidence
that it reduces the risk for diabetes in humans. We all know that aging is associated with a
decreased muscle-to-fat ratio and decreased insulin sensitivity, which often lead to type II
diabetes. DHEA has been shown in human clinical trials to improve insulin sensitivity and to
help restore muscle mass.2,3 It has long been known that diabetics have reduced serum levels
of DHEA compared to age-matched controls.129,130 Importantly, new research shows that
even in healthy individuals, low DHEA levels are correlated with high plasma glucose,
suggesting that DHEA deficiency contributes directly to the diabetic state.131 Here is a quote
from one of many studies on DHEA and aging:
“Oral replacement of DHEA, which does not appear to cause important adverse effects,
may prevent, or even reverse, some age-associated conditions.”105

Naysayer: If DHEA is safe and beneficial, why are there two bills in Congress that seek to ban
it? One of the bills, H.R. 207, is aimed at keeping anabolic steroids out of the hands of teenage
athletes. You don’t condone drug abuse in sports, do you?

Stephen Cherniske: Of course not, but it is absurd to put DHEA in the same category as the
anabolic steroids that athletes and body- builders use. Those are synthetic testosterone analogs
that produce abnormal muscle growth and have dangerous side effects. You simply cannot
create abnormal muscle growth with DHEA. Because of this, there is no evidence whatsoever
that athletes of any age are abusing DHEA. The USOC began testing for DHEA abuse in 1996.
How many violations have they found? None. Regarding sports performance, a report in the
journal Clinical Chemistry states:
“Performance benefits for athletes are neither documented nor proven. DHEA is ‘guilty’
by virtue of its position in the biochemistry of gonadal hormone production.”132

Naysayer: Well, some doctors are worried about interactions with prescription drugs.

Stephen Cherniske: Only two possible interactions have been identified. Women taking
tamoxifen (an anti-estrogen) and men being treated for prostate cancer with testosterone