Natural Progesterone Can Change Your Life

So many of the problems that beset women throughout their lives, from PMS to infertility, breast cancer to osteoporosis, can all be directly attributed to the imbalance in our bodies between the hormones estrogen and progesterone. These two hormones are intended to balance each other and work in harmony for maximum hormone health. Sadly, when they do not it is usually the result of interference from artificial hormones, drug regimes, lifestyle and environmental pollution.

The problem of excess estrogen has been labeled estrogen dominance, and its symptoms include:

• Allergies, including asthma, rashes, sinus congestion
• Breast tenderness
• Cold hands and feet, relating to thyroid dysfunction
• Decreased sex drive
• Depression with anxiety or agitation
• Early onset of menstruation
• Fat gain, especially around the abdomen, hips and thighs
• Fatigue
• Fibrocystic breasts
• Headaches
• Increased blood clotting
• Infertility
• Irregular menstruation
• Insomnia
• Miscarriage
• Mood swings
• Osteoporosis
• PMS
• Sluggish metabolism
• Uterine cancer
• Uterine fibroids
• Water retention

Does this sound familiar? Some of the main causes of estrogen dominance are pollution, the use of plastics, and even some paints. These all contain xeno-estrogens, chemicals which have the characteristic of behaving like estrogens and attaching themselves to estrogen receptors. There they produce stronger effect than estrogen itself. When we consume animal products, we also ingest estrogens fed to the animals to encourage faster growth.

Progesterone in women is made in the ovary by the corpus luteum (spent follicle) after ovulation has occurred, and also in the adrenals. It seems that nature intended women after puberty to spend a great deal of our time either pregnant of breastfeeding. Now things are rather different; many women will not have any pregnancies at all, and those who will have children will not often have more than two or three. As a result, we experience many more menstrual cycles than nature intended. This means that we spend more of our lives exposed to high estrogen levels and less of our lives exposed to the protective effects of progesterone. This may be why such problems as osteoporosis, PMS, endometriosis, PCOS and breast cancer are so common.

Normally when a woman ovulates, sufficient progesterone will be produced by the corpus luteum to ensure that the egg survives long enough to be fertilized. After fertilization has occurred an embryo is formed. The embryo then secretes a hormone known as HcG. This hormone reaches the corpus luteum and stimulates it to produce large quantities of progesterone. This ensures the survival of the embryo until it has safely implanted itself in the uterus and a placenta has formed. It is that placenta which takes over the job of making progesterone throughout pregnancy. Any failure in the production of progesterone at any point in this story can result in miscarriage.

Sadly it is not uncommon to find that women in their mid-thirties are producing insufficient progesterone in the second half of their cycle. This failure in progesterone levels can be enough to prevent the survival of the egg or embryo. The endometrium will be shed and the woman will have a bleed.

In cases like these, natural progesterone supplementation might be the answer. It will certainly help to balance the estrogen in our bodies. There is also some evidence to suggest that natural progesterone might help with PCOS and endometriosis.

An-ovulatory cycles, where the woman has a normal period, but is not ovulating, are quite common, particularly in women in their mid-thirties on. The use of natural progesterone may stimulate the feedback mechanism between the ovary and pituitary and re-establish the normal hormone cycle and ovulation.

Benefits of natural progesterone include:

• Protects against fibrocystic breasts
• Helps use fat for energy
• Natural diuretic
• Natural anti-depressant
• Facilitates thyroid hormone action
• Normalizes blood sugar levels
• Normalizes blood clotting
• Increases libido
• Normalizes zinc and copper levels
• Restores proper cell oxygen levels
• Prevents endometrial cancer
• Helps prevent breast cancer
• Stimulates bone building
• Improves vascular tone

Many people confuse natural progesterone products, wild yam products and synthetic progestins. In natural progesterone products diosgenin is derived from the wild yam, and converted in a three-step process to natural progesterone. This has the same molecular structure as the progesterone created by the body and can be used to supplement and balance the body's progesterone and estrogen levels.

A wild yam extract product also contains diosgenin from the wild yam plant. However, it is not converted to natural progesterone and thus does not have the same molecular structure as the progesterone produced by the body. This is therefore not a product you should buy.

Many people consider synthetic progesterone (known as progestins) identical to natural progesterone, but they contain an additional atom. There is a long list of contraindications and side-effects that accompany these synthetic progestins. These include fluid retention, nausea, insomnia and depression.

Women of child-bearing age benefit from using natural progesterone in the form of a cream, which is applied to the sensitive areas of the body, i.e. the inside of the wrists, the inside of the thigh, behind the ears, etc. This cream is applied for two weeks of the cycle, from ovulation until the onset of the period. It is safe to use throughout pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Mary-Ann Shearer says in her book 'Healthy Kids': "This cream has been shown to help women with fertility problems and I have personally met a few of these [progesterone cream] babies. Their mothers are convinced that without this product they would still be childless."

Natural progesterone is used extensively to treat menopausal and post-menopausal women. It is a much safer and healthier option than traditional HRT and protect against cancer and osteoporosis.

I have been using a natural progesterone cream for about 8 months now and can attest to the fact that my previous PMS symptoms have all but disappeared, my periods are less painful and lighter and I just don't get that bloated feeling anymore. I strongly recommend this treatment. It really will change your life!