3 replies to this topic

[mkmossop]

So I want to try pregnenolone based on all the positive reviews I've read related to cognitive function. I'm a bit concerned about potential side effects or long term effects, however I figure I'll start very slow (2.5 mg sublingual every few days).

 

Anyway, my question is about pregnenolone related to DHEA. I had my DHEA levels tested a while ago and it came back with DHEAS as 9.7 umol/L (range = 4.34 - 12.2). DHEA is made from pregnenolone... so does this suggest that my pregnenolone levels are normal since my DHEA levels are normal, or might I still benefit from pregnenolone.

 

I'm also curious to try pregnenolone because I read that low levels may result from mononucleosis, which I had when I was younger.

 

Thanks for any input!

[PeaceAndProsperity]

You can take larger dosages up to 100mg, just start with 10mg at a time. It's mild in this regard that larger dosages don't necessarily feel much stronger than lower dosages, the biggest side-effect with larger dosages is in my experience the adrenergic properties which can cause a bit dizziness and similar effects. From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia...ne#Pharmacology

 

Oral administration of 50 or 100 mg pregnenolone has been found to have minimal or negligible effect on urinary levels of testosterone and testosterone metabolites, including of androsterone, etiocholanolone, 5β-androstanediol, androstadienol, and androstenol (and/or their conjugates), and this suggests that only a small amount of pregnenolone is converted into testosterone.^[17][18] This is in accordance with findings on the conversion of DHEA into testosterone, in which only 1.5% of an oral dose of DHEA was found to be converted into testosterone.^[17] In contrast to the androstanes, 50 or 100 mg oral pregnenolone has been found to significantly and in fact "strongly" increase urinary levels of the progesterone metabolites pregnanediol and pregnanolone (and/or their conjugates), whereas pregnanetriol was unaffected.^[17][18] Unlike the case of oral administration, transdermal administration of 30 mg/day pregnenolone cream has not been found to affect urinary levels of metabolites of any other steroids, including of progesterone.^[18]

Sripada et al. reported that oral pregnenolone is preferentially metabolized into the neurosteroid allopregnanolone rather than into other steroids such as DHEA or cortisol.^[19] In further research by their group, a single 400 mg dose of oral pregnenolone at 3 hours post-administration was found to result in a 3-fold elevation in serum levels of pregnenolone and a 7-fold increase in allopregnanolone levels.^[19] Pregnanolone levels increased by approximately 60% while DHEA levels decreased non-significantly by approximately 5% and cortisol levels were not affected.^[19] Another study found that allopregnanolone levels were increased by 3-fold at 2 hours post-administration following a single 400 mg oral dose of pregnenolone.^[19]

In addition to allopregnanolone, exogenous pregnenolone also functions as a prohormone of pregnenolone sulfate.^[20]

Pregnenolone is lipophilic and readily crosses the blood-brain-barrier.^[19]

From personal experience I don't find that it converts to dhea but I haven't had blood tests

[mkmossop]

Interesting... so it looks like oral pregnenolone increases allopregnanolone (which according to wikipedia has a bunch of positive effects), but not DHEA.

 

This article also discuses the association low allopregnanolone with anxiety and depression:

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm...pubmed/24215796

Edited by mkmossop, 10 December 2016 - 01:56 AM.

[PeaceAndProsperity]

Personally I don't think I felt the positive gaba modulation at any dosage, only something that seemed dopaminergic and serotonergic.