Issue 166 Item 12 DHEA Use Enhances Endothelial Function and Insulin Sensitivity

New study findings indicate that replenishment of this hormone with supplements can improve endothelial function and insulin sensitivity-which may lower the risk of heart disease.

Levels of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), which are inversely related to the risk of coronary artery disease, decrease with age. Now, new study findings indicate that replenishment of this hormone with supplements can improve endothelial function and insulin sensitivity-which may lower the risk of heart disease.

DHEA treatment, but not placebo, was associated with a significant improvement in endothelial function, which was apparent after just 4 weeks of treatment (p< 0.01), lead author Dr. Hiroaki Kawano, from Kumamoto University School of Medicine in Japan, and colleagues note.

The findings are based on a study of 24 older men with hypercholesterolemia who were randomized to receive DHEA 25 mg/day or placebo for 12 weeks. Endothelial function, insulin sensitivity, and fibrinolytic activity were evaluated at baseline and after 4 or more weeks of treatment.

Treatment with DHEA also produced a significant drop in steady stage glucose levels, but did not alter insulin level.

The duration of DHEA use was inversely tied to levels of plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (p < 0.01), another change that could protect against cardiovascular disease.

"DHEA has been demonstrated to have an antiatherosclerotic effect in animal models and there are some reports that DHEA may have a protective effect against age-related illnesses in humans," the investigators note. The current findings shed light on several mechanisms that may help explain these effects. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2003;88:3190-3195.