Page 14 - The DHEA Debate - Life Extensions Magazine

blockade will not want to take DHEA. These are well-known and well-publicized caveats. On the
other hand, studies show that many prescription drugs alter DHEA metabolism or reduce DHEA
blood levels.133 Unfortunately, no one seems to be concerned about this.
Remember that adverse interactions between prescription drugs are extremely common.
Popular non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), including ibuprofen, have scores of
adverse interactions that can be life threatening. Again, it is a matter of informed choice. You
can’t champion informed choice everywhere else and then call for a ban on DHEA because
someone, somewhere might be harmed someday.

I come back to the double standard that is being used to evaluate DHEA. More than 600
Viagra® users have died since that drug was approved. No one has died from taking DHEA and
members of Congress are trying to ban it.
Naysayer: But that’s a good case in point. The effects and side effects of Viagra® are well
known, whereas the long-term effects of DHEA are unknown.

Stephen Cherniske: You’ve fallen for the biggest myth in all of health care—that the long-term
effects of prescription drugs are known. Nothing could be further from the truth. A study
published in the Journal of the American Medical Association reports that “51% of approved
drugs have serious adverse effects not detected prior to approval.”134 Using Viagra® as an
example, there are very troubling questions regarding long-term use. Viagra® has been shown
to trigger migraines in the vast majority of migraine sufferers.135 This was unknown until 2003.
How the drug affects cardiovascular health is a continuing debate. But whether or not you
believe that Viagra® causes heart attacks, you can’t ignore the vast number of reported adverse
events associated with the drug. The Journal of the American College of Cardiology published
an analysis of the first 13 months Viagra® was on the market. It found 1,473 major adverse
reactions reported to the FDA, including 522 deaths, 517 heart attacks, 161 cardiac
arrhythmias, and 119 strokes.136 In reality, of course, this is most likely the tip of an iceberg, as
only about 5% of serious adverse drug reactions are reported to the FDA.

Naysayer: Well, what about people on steroid therapy like prednisone?

Stephen Cherniske: DHEA does not reduce the efficacy of prednisone.137 In fact, it appears to
enhance the effectiveness of prednisone therapy by reducing the immune suppression
associated with the drug.138 For this reason, a growing number of researchers and clinicians
are recommending that DHEA be used along with prednisone. Studies with lupus patients who
are normally treated with prednisone show that supplemental DHEA can significantly reduce
symptoms, and many are able to reduce or even eliminate the prednisone.139
And while we’re talking about chronic inflammatory disease, please remember the Catch-22 of
conventional corticosteroid therapy where the desired anti-inflammatory effect is often followed
by adverse side effects, including immune suppression, osteoporosis, and the stimulation of
pro-inflammatory cytokines including IL-6, nuclear factor-kappa B, and tumor necrosis factor
(TNF). Recent research shows that:

1. IL-6 levels tend to increase with advancing age.140
2. DHEA is a potent inhibitor of IL-6 in animals and humans.141
3. In every chronic inflammatory disease tested, including sys- temic lupus erythematosus
(SLE), rheumatoid arthritis, polymyalgia rheumatica, and inflammatory bowel diseases, DHEA
and/or DHEAS levels in patients have been found to be lower than in healthy controls.142-
144
4. Oral administration with DHEA shows significant promise in the treatment of chronic
inflammatory diseases.145,146