PlainPill

DHEA vs Testosterone for hormones

Short answer: For hormones, users rate them about the same: 91% report improvement with DHEA (44 reports) and 91% with Testosterone (101 reports).

DHEA has 215 meta-analyses and 637 randomized trials on PubMed; Testosterone has 75 and 125.

Based on 306 reports about DHEA and 924 about Testosterone. Not medical advice.

DHEA
Supplement
Testosterone
Medication
Users say it helped56%helped98 reports · medium confidence76%helped425 reports · high confidence
Verdict
Mixed
Mostly positive
ResearchAResearch: StrongAResearch: Strong
Meta-analyses / RCTs215 / 63775 / 125
Mainly used for
Performance
% reporting improvement
75% (4)98% (180)
Mood
% reporting improvement
87% (30)89% (117)
Hormones
% reporting improvement
91% (44)91% (101)
Energy
% reporting improvement
92% (26)93% (88)
Libido
% reporting improvement
91% (32)90% (78)
Common side effectsacne, vivid dreams, rage, virilizationsuppression, hair loss, acne, water retention
Typical dose reported25 mg / 1 hour before bedNot listed
DHEA
Latest review conclusion

Vaginal estrogen, vaginal DHEA, oral ospemifene, and vaginal moisturizers may improve some GSM symptoms in the short term. Few long-term data exist on efficacy, comparative effectiveness, tolerability, and safety of GSM treatments.

Ann Intern Med, 2024 ↗
What a user said
“DHEA, minimum 50 mg was a huge game changer for my wife. More energy, libido, dopamine/happy mood, concentration- everything.”
Full DHEA profile →
Testosterone
Latest review conclusion

The guidelines also provide recommendations regarding identification of patients, dosing, monitoring, and follow-up. This Practice Pearl will discuss evidence-based testosterone therapy for management of HSDD in postmenopausal women.

Menopause, 2023 ↗
What a user said
“Feel the best I've ever felt in my life. TRT and peptides have been game changers for me!”
Full Testosterone profile →

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Percentages come from first-hand user reports and are not clinical outcomes. Talk to a doctor before starting, stopping or combining anything. How we rate