Therefore, I recommend you be skeptical of anyone who tries to convince you to take megadoses of this hormone because his pet mouse has been on it, does nonstop jumping jacks all day long, and has outlived (and outbred) all the other mice in the neighborhood.

Even given the beneficial effects that have been reporte, we don't know whether the ideal dosage is 100 mg, 50 mg, or 10 mg. Is it better to supplement once daily, twice, or every other day? Does the timing of the dosage make a difference, ie, morning or evening? Will men respond more favorably than women; or vice versa? Is bringing DHEA levels back to those of "youth" really the best strategy, or is it better to raise your DHEA levels into the upper half of the normal range for your age? What form (sublingual, cream, micronized, etc.,) should be used?

Having presented these uncertainties, I do not rule out that there could possibly be an anti-aging role for DHEA supplementation in middle-aged and older individuals. Many early studies show promise. Hormonal replacement therapy will continue being one of the most researched, and controversial, topics in health and medicine over the next few years, and even decades.

Without a doubt, patients will be continuously asking their doctors whether they should supplement not only with DHEA, but with melatonin, growth hormone, progesterone, testosterone, estrogen, thyroid hormones, etc. etc. The uncertainties and controversies will continue for a very long time.

If you are planning to supplement with DHEA, the very least I can recommend is that you make every effort to be supervised by a physician who is familiar with the research and has some amount of clinical experience with this steroid hormone.