The drug finasteride, already used to treat hair loss and enlarged prostates, may also help reduce the risk of heart disease.

Analysis of data from both male humans and mice showed that the drug improved health and lowered cholesterol levels.

It is well known that too much cholesterol in the body increases the risk of heart disease by promoting atherosclerosis (fat deposits in blood vessels that block blood flow through them). It can eventually lead to stroke or heart attack.

A research team from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Maryland wanted to study the link between finasteride and heart disease. That’s because finasteride works by blocking a protein that activates the hormone testosterone. And testosterone and atherosclerosis have previously been tentatively linked.

The study used records Included in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey database collected between 2009 and 2016. The research team investigated the relationship between cholesterol levels and finasteride use in 155 adult men aged 50 and older. Because the sample size was relatively small and there were no records showing how long each person had been taking the drug, this conclusion provides a weak but interesting indication of finasteride’s potential cardiac effects. Masu.

“When we looked at men who took finasteride in our study, their cholesterol levels were, on average, 30 points lower than men who weren’t taking finasteride,” said Jaume Amengual, a food scientist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. says.

The researchers also conducted a more comprehensive test using mice. Genetically engineered to be prone to atherosclerosisunder experiment Three different levels of finasteride and a control group that received no drug.. Mice were also given: high calorie diet Over 12 weeks.

At the highest dose of 1,000 milligrams per kilogram of food, animals showed signs of health benefits despite poor diet quality. These signs included decreased cholesterol.

“Mice given high doses of finasteride had lower cholesterol levels not only in their arteries but also in their plasma,” says Donald Molina, a food scientist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “Lipids and inflammatory markers in the liver were also reduced.”

The mice were given more finasteride relative to their size (approximately 2.5 milligrams daily in the highest dose mice) than the 1 or 5 milligram doses humans are typically prescribed to take daily. It is important to note that However, it is encouraging that the results were consistent between mouse and human subjects.

The next step in the research will be to look more closely at cholesterol levels in a more diverse group of people taking finasteride – a clinical trial – but the fact that finasteride is already an approved drug could speed up the process. It should be helpful.

“Over the past decade, doctors have started prescribing this drug to people transitioning from male to female or female to male,” Amengual says. “In both cases, hormonal changes can cause hair loss.”

“What’s interesting is that transgender people also have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, so this drug has a potential beneficial effect on preventing cardiovascular disease not only in cis men, but also in transgender people. There may be.”

This study lipid research journal.