Progesterone is a key hormone in Women’s health. In good balance with estrogen and testoserone it regulates menstrual cycles, helps with the transition to menopause, helps with sleep and relaxing, provides a sense of wellbeing, improves fertility and provides a general sense of wellbeing. Progesterone deficiency is common as estrogen tends to dominate in modern times. There are environmental factors at play (endocrine disrupting chemicals like plastics for example) and impaired detoxification from the liver as our livers are more burdened then ever. Also production of estrogen can be increased in the ovaries which happens most often during perimenopause which you can read more about here
Some signs of low progesterone includes:
- Water retention
- Bloating
- Insomnia
- PMS
- Irregular cycles
- Infertility
- Anxiety
- Fibroids or PCOS
We can also do a simple at home saliva test to determine progesterone levels and look at the levels of your other hormones at the same time. This is really helpful. The most common scenario is estrogen dominance, where there is an excess of estrogen but sometimes estrogen is normal but progesterone is still low.
The goal of Nutritional treatment of low progesterone is to treat the adrenal glands (progesterone is also produced in adrenal glands) and the liver (the liver metabolises hormones so we need to get that process happening effectively). We also address any gut issues as the gut really is the foundation of all health and important to treat early on. We do all of this while also ensuring the body has the building blocks for progesterone production – vitamins, minerals and the right environment. Essentially healthy ovulation is how you create progesterone so we work at individualising treatment to your individual needs..
You can read more about why we start with the gut here and the link between gut health and hormonal health here.
Top Foods and Supplements for correcting low progesterone:
Crucifer Vegetables – Cabbage, Broccoli, Kale. Cauliflower, Brussel sprouts. These need to be lightly cooked if you have a thyroid disorder (I can help identify if you do). Raw Kale smoothies etc are not a good idea in this case! These help to reduce the load of harmful estrogen in the body (by assisting phase II liver detox which is when the harmful estrogen is removed) which increases the ratio of Progesterone to Estrogen.
Magnesium (which is also a treatment for PMS read here) supports the adrenal glands and is useful in every enzyme reaction in the body. It definitely helps hormonal balance.
Probiotics – Healthy gut bacteria help escort estrogen out of your body
Things to reduce/Avoid:
Alcohol: Just 2 alcoholic drinks per day can double your exposure to estrogen!
Inflammatory foods: like wheat, sugar and cows dairy as they can increase histamine which increases estrogen.
I would not be a good Holisitic Nutritionist if I did not mention lifestyle factors that also need to be considered like getting adequate sleep, keeping stress levels in check and limiting hormone disrupting substances in your day to day life such as plastics
For a treatment plan individualised just for you and your specific needs book now or contact me below to discuss more. I can educate, coach and provide you with resources to get your hormones back in balance.
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