Herb & supplement monograph

Pregnenolone Drug Interactions, Uses, Effectiveness, Safety & More

Medically reviewed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS ·Updated July 2026

What is this page for?

First and foremost: how Pregnenolone interacts with medications. The heart of this page is the interaction list — every drug Pregnenolone is known to interact with, and how serious each one is.

But these pages have grown well beyond that into a full monograph — what Pregnenolone is, what people use it for and how strong the evidence is, its safety and side effects, and answers to the questions we’re asked most — written and reviewed by the clinical staff at HelloPharmacist. It’s educational information from our licensed clinical databases, not medical advice, and we don’t sell or endorse products. Our editorial policy

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On this page

Pregnenolone Drug Interactions: The Bottom Line

From the HelloPharmacist Editorial Team · Updated July 2026

Based on the available evidence, the overall risk of a clinically significant Pregnenolone drug interaction is moderate rather than low, mainly because pregnenolone can influence sedative medicines and hormone therapies. None of the listed interactions are rated major, but none are minor either, and only one is backed by meaningful human evidence.

Interactions deserving the most attention

The best-documented concern involves benzodiazepines such as diazepam: early human research found that taking pregnenolone regularly may blunt their calming, sedative effect, likely because it acts on the same brain receptors. Because the body uses pregnenolone as a raw material to build steroid hormones, it could in theory strengthen hormone therapies including estrogens, progesterone, progestins, and testosterone. These hormone effects remain largely unproven, but they matter most for anyone whose treatment depends on steady hormone levels.

What the rest of the list means

Most of the long list of interacting medications traces back to that theoretical hormone connection, not to proven harm in people. In fact, human studies found pregnenolone did not raise testosterone levels, and results for progesterone are mixed, so several predicted effects have not actually appeared when tested.

Check your medications against Pregnenolone

Based on HelloPharmacist’s Pregnenolone interaction data and reviewed under our editorial standards.

Interaction report

Drugs that interact with Pregnenolone

82 medications have a known interaction with Pregnenolone, graded by severity. Select any drug for the full evidence-based detail.

Don’t want to scroll the list? Just ask.

Tell us the medications you take and we’ll check each one against Pregnenolone using our pharmacist-reviewed interaction data.

AI summaries are generated from our Pregnenolone interaction data for education only — always confirm with your pharmacist. How we use AI

2,830 drugs

Read The List Like a Pharmacist

What Severity, Likelihood & Evidence Mean

Severity — How Serious It Can Be

Major. Clinically significant; generally best avoided, or used only under direct professional supervision.
Moderate. May need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one.
Minor. Generally not clinically significant, but still worth noting and mentioning to your pharmacist.
No known interaction. Checked against our sources with nothing documented — not the same as proven safety.

Likelihood — How Well It’s Documented

Likely. Well-controlled human studies have demonstrated the likely existence of this interaction
Probable. Interaction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports.
Possible. Interaction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists
Unlikely. Interaction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans.

Where This Data Comes From

Interaction records are evidence-graded and sourced from the Natural Medicines database (TRC Healthcare), the same reference used by pharmacists and hospitals.
Each drug listed above links to the full report for that exact Pregnenolone combination — clinical detail, likelihood, evidence level, and citations.
Content is reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.

The big picture

The kinds of drugs Pregnenolone affects

Every type of medication (drug category) Pregnenolone is known to interact with. Open any category for the detail — or search your exact drug in the checker above.

All 5 drug categories Pregnenolone interacts with

BenzodiazepinesEstrogensProgesteroneProgestinTestosterone

Benzodiazepines

Concomitant use of pregnenolone may reduce the effects of benzodiazepines.
Very preliminary clinical research shows that chronic use of pregnenolone reduces sedative effects of diazepam when compared with chronic use of placebo. This effect may be related to the activity of pregnenolone at GABAA receptors.

Likelihood Probable Evidence B

Estrogens

Theoretically, taking pregnenolone might enhance the effects of estrogens.
Pregnenolone is a precursor for several steroid hormones, including estrogens.

Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Progesterone

Theoretically, taking pregnenolone might enhance the effects of progesterone.
In humans, some research shows that oral administration of pregnenolone can increase levels of progesterone. However, other research shows no effect on progesterone levels. It is possible the impact of pregnenolone on progesterone levels may be dose dependent.

Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Progestin

Theoretically, taking pregnenolone might enhance the effects of progestin.
Pregnenolone is a precursor for several steroid hormones, including progestin.

Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Testosterone

Theoretically, taking pregnenolone might enhance the effects of testosterone.
Pregnenolone is a precursor for several steroid hormones, including testosterone. However, preliminary clinical research shows that taking pregnenolone 30-500 mg orally daily for up to 8 weeks does not affect testosterone levels.

Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Monograph

Pregnenolone: Uses, Safety & Side Effects

Medically reviewed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS · Reviewed July 2026 ·

The bottom line

Pregnenolone is a hormone your body makes naturally and a building block for other hormones like cortisol, DHEA, estrogen, and testosterone. It is sold as a supplement for memory, mood, and anti-aging, but solid human evidence for these uses is very limited. Because it is a hormone, talk with your pharmacist or doctor before using it.

Part used: Naturally produced in the body; supplements are made synthetically (often from plant sterols like those in soy or wild yam)
Common forms: Capsules, tablets, sublingual tablets, creams

People commonly use it for

Memory and cognitive support
Anxiety and stress
Anti-aging
Fatigue and low energy
Mood support

Popular and traditional uses — not proof it works. See “Uses & effectiveness” below for the evidence.

Safety at a glance

OverallUse caution

It is a hormone with limited human safety data, so use only under guidance from a healthcare professional.

PregnancyInsufficient reliable information

Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using.

Read the full pregnancy detail

BreastfeedingInsufficient reliable information

Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using.

Read the full breastfeeding detail

Pregnancy & breastfeeding ratings are from Natural Medicines (Therapeutic Research Center). Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

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Overview

Pregnenolone is a hormone that your body makes naturally, mostly in the adrenal glands but also in the brain and other tissues. It is often called a "mother hormone" or precursor because your body can use it to make other hormones, including cortisol, progesterone, DHEA, testosterone, and estrogens.

As a supplement, pregnenolone is made in a lab, usually starting from plant sterols found in soy or wild yam. Important: your body does not automatically turn yam or soy into pregnenolone, so these foods alone do not raise your hormone levels.

People take pregnenolone hoping to improve memory, ease stress, boost mood and energy, and slow signs of aging. It comes as capsules, tablets, sublingual (under-the-tongue) products, and creams.

How it works

Pregnenolone sits near the top of the chain of hormone production. Your body can convert it into many other steroid hormones, which is why supplement makers suggest it might affect mood, memory, stress, and aging.

In the brain, pregnenolone and related compounds are studied as neurosteroids—substances that may influence nerve cell signaling and brain receptors involved in memory and stress. Much of this work comes from laboratory and animal studies, and it is not clear how well it applies to people taking a supplement by mouth.

Because it is a hormone precursor, taking pregnenolone could shift the balance of other hormones in ways that are hard to predict from person to person.

Effectiveness

Does Pregnenolone work?

Here’s what the research actually shows for each use — graded by Natural Medicines and reviewed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD.

Evidence overview · 23 uses evaluated

23 Insufficient evidence

How to read these evidence grades

Natural Medicines’ 7-point scale. We show each rating’s label word-for-word.

1EffectiveStrong, consistent evidence it works.

2Likely EffectiveGood evidence, though not yet conclusive.

3Possibly EffectiveSome evidence suggests a benefit.

4Possibly IneffectiveSome evidence it may not help.

5Likely IneffectiveFairly strong evidence it doesn’t help.

6IneffectiveStrong evidence it doesn’t work.

7Insufficient Reliable Evidence to RateToo little research to say either way.

For Pregnenolone, current evidence isn’t strong enough to rate any specific use. The conditions it has been studied for are listed below.

Also studied for 23 conditions — evidence insufficient to rate

Insufficient Reliable Evidence To Rate Aging