In the past, women aged gracefully. Our grandmothers aged into menopause without the struggles women have today. Their hormones were balanced. Symptoms such as insomnia, depression, weight gain and cognitive issues were not the standard as they are today. Now, women struggle to maintain the important hormone progesterone, which helps with the aging process.
Aging and Hormone Dysfunction
Women aged gracefully right up to the 1970s or 1980s – then we ditched healthy fats and moved to low fat diets high in refined sugars, high fructose corn syrups and other GMO foods. A century ago, our environment did not cause hormonal dysfunction. But now, women are bombarded at all ages with plastics, contaminated food, and hormones in meat and milk products which has led to a major crisis called Estrogen Dominance. Adding fuel to the fire are work, family stressors, caregiving for parents and children, and multitasking, which are all common traits of modern women.
Progesterone Benefits for the Female Cycle of Life
Hormone balance is vital for minimizing health issues as we age, and progesterone is a key player. The stress of modern society, poor diets, and being surrounded by endocrine disruptors (i.e., plastic) have led to a myriad of health issues. Moreover, optimal levels of progesterone in a woman’s body is an asset that few can protect and sustain during her journey from menarche (her first menstrual cycle) to childbirth and later to menopause.
Imagine that progesterone is like a seasonal fruit with benefits that include sound sleep, improved mental health, cancer prevention, bone health, hair growth, no premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms, sustained and viable pregnancies, heart disease prevention and more. It is a necessary hormone for the female cycle of life.
Progesterone Lifecycle
Progesterone’s natural life is only from menarche to age 35; women older than 35 do not make progesterone yet keep making estrogen until around 50. Primary symptoms of low progesterone are irregular periods and a shorter menstrual cycle. Usually, the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, which occurs after ovulation, will be shorter than average. Rather than the typical 12 to 15 days of this phase, the luteal phase may only last 8 or 9 days.
Other common symptoms of low progesterone levels include mood swings, depression, sleep disturbances, anxiety, weight gain, breast tenderness, spotting between periods, low sex drive and headaches. It is vital to be aware of this important hormone balance of progesterone and estrogen. Every fertile woman needs to understand this delicate hormone balance and discuss it with her doctor before embarking on a quick solution for bothersome symptoms.
Progesterone Deficiency
How do you know if you have low progesterone? You can get your levels tested through your doctor, but these are some common symptoms:
• Hot flashes and night sweats
• Insomnia and mid-night waking
• Fertility or menstrual problems
• PMS or PMDD
• Anxiety and restlessness
• Irritability and nervousness
• Low mood and depression, especially around ovulation and pre-period
• Mood swings
• Weight gain and cellulite, especially around the thighs and buttocks
• Fluid retention – your fingers and toes swell up
• Brain fog
• Sagging skin
• Low thyroid
• Pain and inflammation
• Osteoporosis
• Excessive menstruation
• Hypersensitivity
• Migraine headaches before cycles
• Decreased libido
• Decreased HDL (“good” cholesterol)
Prescription Drugs
Before the advent of prescription drugs 100 years ago, girls and their parents did not have the issues that we face today. However, sugar, plastics, processed foods. pesticides, cell phones, wifi and other multiple environmental disruptors have led to conditions that include PCOD (Polycystic Ovarian Disease), obesity, infertility, estrogen dominance, thyroid problems and a myriad of other issues. Each issue is itemized as a diagnosis for the sake of insurance coverage and these conditions are primarily being managed by prescription drugs, The medical community continues to treat each problem separately, even though they may be related, and medication/prescription drugs may not address the root cause of the problem.
There are a multitude of issues with this approach and the use of medications without addressing the underlying cause. For example, PCOS may be caused from synthetic hormones like oral contraceptives, heavy menstrual bleeding with a NuvaRing, infertility with IVF and synthetic procedures, anxiety with anti-anxiety drugs, depression with antidepressants, and headaches with NSAIDS, pain killers, and beta blockers are just the tip of the iceberg. This is classical gunshot medicine which essentially is that the problem equals the solution without investigating why these symptoms are happening in the first place. And guess what the biggest side effect of all these drugs is? It’s weight gain!
An Integrative and Functional Medicine Approach
Most importantly, with functional medicine we can get to the root cause of hormone imbalance in order to treat it properly. Essentially, all of these conditions can be treated with weight loss, eating clean, removing candida/mold, addressing plastics in foods and pesticides in food/water, replacing nutrients, ensuring detox processes are working, and avoiding conventional dairy and processed meat as well as toxic cosmetic products. Once the burden of toxins is removed, we may use herbal supplements like vitex berry for those very young and low dose bio-identical progesterone (NOT synthetic progestins). Supplements like Inositol, Vitamin B6, and Vitamin D as well as balancing thyroid issues are just a few ways to allow the body to heal itself naturally.
There are exceptions to all the above causes, treatments and remedies. You need a functional or integrative medicine practitioner to take a deep dive into the causes of a hormone imbalance with advanced lab testing, diet and nutritional assessment, sleep habits, eating habits and environment.
Back to the Basics
Low progesterone is very common and can cause a myriad of health problems for women. But it is highly treatable! First, let’s start by going back to the basics of good health- what we used to do before the advent of drugs. Our young girls and women need to avoid processed foods, GMO foods and sugar. They need daily exercise and outdoor fun, and supportive families to help them grow into healthy young adults or supported as mature women. They should not be using dangerous prescription drugs as a blanket treatment, as there can be long-term consequences for the use of all of them.
Please contact NIHA to schedule your appointment at 202-237-7000 ext 0 or use the online form. Let us check to see what is causing your hormone imbalance. We treat women between 20-70 who are having hormonal issues which led to weight gain or other issues.
