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NATURAL PROGESTERONE
By Dr John Pridgeon
Progesterone’s name is derived from Latin words that mean “to promote childbearing”. It
is arguably the most important hormone in early pregnancy, and will successfully treat
infertility in many instances. Pregnancy, however, only occupies a small part of womens’
lives from puberty to old age, and progesterone has much to offer throughout this entire
time. Certainly from the age of thirty supplementation with this wonderful hormone
becomes more and more important, as women approach the menopause.
No woman interested in enhancing her health, natural beauty and longevity can ignore its
vital actions. Supplementing with progesterone helps to restore the normal hormonal
balance that is necessary for good health. This supplementation is also necessary in men
as well, but perhaps to a lesser extent.
Oestrus is the Greek word for frenzy or heat, and has been used for ages to describe the
fertile part of the female sexual cycle. In the 1920’s female hormones were identified in
the urine of menstruating women, and this was named oestrogen, “the oestrus hormone”.
A few years later another hormone was isolated from the ovarian corpus luteum, and later
from the placenta. This hormone is very fat soluble, and relatively ineffective given
orally, due to extensive metabolism by the liver. The gastrointestinal blood circulation
delivers everything absorbed from the gut to the liver, before it is passed on to the rest of
the body, and as it passes through this circulation the liver quickly breaks the
progesterone down into inactive hormonal metabolites (excretable end products).
Because of this phenomenon, the liver’s “first pass metabolism” of hormones and drugs,
if these are given orally only 15% of the original dose makes it through to the systemic
circulation to do their work.
This unwanted breakdown can be avoided by delivering this valuable hormone through
the skin, directly into the systemic circulation, as a cream. It is remarkably well absorbed
through the skin or the mucosa (the “skin” that lines our insides) directly into the body’s
main (or systemic) circulation, where it can exert its beneficial effects. Incredibly, and
very much against our expectation, hormones given through the skin (transdermally) are
85% absorbed, and are then delivered to where they can work their magic. It does not
make sense to supplement with hormones any other way except through the skin.
Hormones given orally must be given in at least 5-10 times the dosage given through skin
to have the same effect. As the side effects of hormones are dose dependant, the
incidence of these are often also increased ten fold if given orally.
In the 1950’s active oestrogen and progesterone-like substances (analogues) were
discovered in many plant varieties (e.g. diosgenin in wild yams, from which natural
progesterone may be pharmaceutically derived by a relatively inexpensive process) and a
source for sex hormone synthesis was identified. Patentable and profitable synthetic
compounds, with some of the actions that mimic those of natural progesterone, were
developed by drug companies. These compounds are called gestagens, progestins and/or
progestagens (all synonyms for SYNTHETIC progesterone-like substances). They are
NOT the same as progesterone, and have differing actions and unnatural side effects, as
may be expected when the chemical composition of a chemical compound or hormone is
altered. Somehow the long lists of known side effects of these drugs does not seem to
deter the medical profession from their free use, in preference to the real thing. The
massive power of advertising has hoodwinked the medical and pharmaceutical
professions from recognizing that using the real natural thing is very beneficial, and that
to use synthetic analogues have many obvious dangerous disadvantages.
Progesterone is only made in significant amounts by the ovaries of menstruating women.
The highest concentrations will be found between ovulation and the start of the menses,
the so-called “luteal phase”, so named as this phase is controlled by the ovary’s corpus
luteum, and it is during this phase that progesterone is made. Progesterone is also made,
but in much smaller amounts by the adrenal glands in both sexes, and the testicles in the
male. Its fundamental position in the biosynthesis pathway of sex and steroid hormones
would indicate that it is a very important hormone, and is a precursor of the
corticosteroids and all of the other sex hormones.
Progesterone has 4 main functions:
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It balances the actions of the oestrogen group of hormones; the most dramatic
example of its protective action are demonstrated very graphically by the fact that
the medical profession have known since the mid ‘70s that if they give oestrogen
only hormone replacement therapy ERT to women who still have their uteri, they
WILL cause those women to develop a precancerous endometrial condition, and
they WILL eventually cause endometrial cancer ; sadly the medical professional
have also, incredibly, failed to recognize that the breasts, and ovaries too contain
very active hormone receptors. Knowing this, they continue prescribe oestrogen
only therapy to hysterectomised women in the form of oral medication, patches,
implants and creams. Some of these will also contain a synthetic progestagen,
whose ability to protect the person taking the HRT against the cancer producing
effects of oestrogen is very doubtful (some recent studies would suggest they
ADD to the problem of helping synthetic oestrogens to cause cancer), while
contributing to the disaster by causing a few additional unwanted side effects of
their own. The continued use of hormonally active medicines that have very
questionable benefits and proven disadvantages should be condemned.
The survival, development and maintenance of the foeto-placental unit (the
newish abortifacient RU486 works by inhibiting progesterone’s action, causing
spontaneous abortion); progesterone maintains the secretory endometrium, into
which the fertilized egg will implant once it enters the uterine cavity, and from
which the developing embryo will take sustenance during its early development;
unlike testosterone and oestogen, progesterone plays no part in the development
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of secondary sexual characteristics or the embryo’s gender (which is determined
solely by the embryo’s genetic make up).
It is an important hormone precursor, vital for the development of the sex
hormones and adrenal corticosteroids; its position in the natural chain of hormone
synthesis means it is different from other hormones which are at or nearer to their
metabolic endpoints; the reason progesterone cannot be harmful is because if it is
present in excess, it can simply be changed into another hormone as per the
body’s requirements; adversely synthetic hormone analogues can not be turned
off or modified to prevent excessive or unnaturally prolonged activity; they will
continue to exert their action and wreak their havoc, until they are eventually
metabolized by the liver.
It has a wide range of additional hormonal properties, which give it other
important functions.
Some actions specifically worth bearing in mind are that progesterone
*maintains a secretory endometrium, thus enhancing the chances of becoming and
staying pregnant
*protects the breast against the development of fibrocystic breast disease and cancer
*protects the endometrium against endometrial cancer
*acts as a natural diuretic, preventing troublesome water retention
*increases libido and sexual enjoyment
*stimulates osteoblasts which lay down bone, thus preventing and treating osteoporosis
*normalizes blood clotting (every doctor knows not to give oestrogen to women over 40
years of age who smoke because of the huge risk of deep vein thrombosis – progesterone
counteracts this)
*enhances the actions of other hormones e.g. thyroxine, and the oestrogens
*enhances sleep, acts as a natural antidepressant and anxiolytic (lessens anxiety)
Progesterone output by the ovary varies widely, from 3mg daily during the follicular
(first part of thee menstrual cycle) phase, to a peak of about 30mg daily at the middle of
the luteal (second part of the menstrual cycle) phase, about a week after ovulation. If the
ovum is not fertilized, progesterone production by the corpus luteum falls dramatically on
about the 12th day after ovulation, and progesterone withdrawal results in endometrial
shedding, and the menses. If the ovum is fertilized however, the corpus luteum’s
progesterone production maintains the foetoplacental unit initially (the placenta also
produces progesterone to later ensure its own survival), and progesterone levels rise until
they exceed 300mg per day towards the end of pregnancy. It is well known that
pregnancies are protective against cancer of the breast. The breast seems to remember
these sustained exposures to high doses of progesterone, and women who have babies
and breastfeed enjoy the reward of less breast cancer in later life.
In the blood stream, progesterone is 90% bound to red blood cells, the rest being bound to
the carrier protein CBG or cortisol binding globulin, which releases it later when it is
close to a cell. Once freed by CBG it easily accesses the cell by diffusing through the cell
membrane and into the cell where, if it finds its specific receptor, it binds forming an
activated complex. This complex migrates into the cell nucleus, to bind with an
accessible DNA segment, which in turn results in the formation of specific RNA, which
then effects the cellular actions of progesterone. If the hormone does not find a specific
receptor it simply floats back out of the cell and away, without having any action at all on
that cell. Progesterone moves around the blood stream until it eventually reaches the liver,
where it is efficiently inactivated and excreted in the bile and urine. The only reasonable
method of testing for progesterone therefore, is to test for the active fraction. A “serum
progesterone” level, a blood test, gives no clear indication of the concentration of the
biologically available hormone, the amount of hormone that is exerting a physiological
action at any point in time. Over 98% of the hormone is bound to the red cell or to the
carrier protein, and it seems to obtain the true level of active progesterone, we should
measure its concentration in saliva. The normal range is 0.3-0.5 ng/ml, and studies show
that 15mg of progesterone daily will easily achieve this level.
Progesterone is the only natural hormone in the class of compounds called progestins or
gestagens. These compounds can all sustain secretory endometrium. The synthetic
compounds, however, have unnatural and unwanted side effects, some being
DANGEROUS in early pregnancy. The natural progestin sustains early pregnancy, and
the synthetic progestin harms early pregnancy trying to achieve the same effect. It is
important to remember that synthetic compounds tend to hang around and exert their
(often more powerful than the natural “equivalent” hormone) action for longer than is
healthy. The next time you pick up the package insert to a packet of progestins, do
yourself a favour, and read about the potential side effects, and toxic drug reactions these
might have with other medications and in certain diseases. Then remember how many
contraindications natural progesterone has ……NONE. So why use synthetic progestins
at all?
The word menstrual derives from the Greek word for month or moon. From puberty
when ova are first produced, until menopause, when the supply of eggs finally comes to
an end, the lining of the womb is prepared repeatedly for the implantation of the fertilized
egg. When no fertilized egg implants, hormonal changes allow this lining to be shed in
preparation for the next cycle, and this we know is the menses.
So, oestrogen builds up the endometrium into a supportive secretory state after each
menses, progesterone maintains this for a time and then, un-needed, the womb’s lining is
shed. In the second half of the cycle, always lasting exactly 14 days, the increased
progesterone production (about 20mg a day on average) causes the body temperature to
rise by one degree Celsius. The failure of a fertilized egg to implant into the specially
prepared secretory endometrium, causes the corpus luteum to disappear, and the
endometrium is lost, and the body temperature returns to normal.
Oestrogen is responsible for the physical changes that occur at puberty, the so-called
secondary sexual characteristics: the development of vagina, ovaries, Fallopian tubes, and
uterus. It causes fatty deposition, development of nipples and breasts, and the growth of
pubic and axillary hair. Testosterone performs a similar function in the male. Their
message to the hormonally receptive cell is to grow in size and number.
The ovary in turn is controlled by the anterior pituitary gland, situated at the base of the
brain. FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) drives the ovary to make oestrogen, which
promotes the maturation of the egg containing follicle, and sensitizes the follicle cells to
LH (also produced by the anterior pituitary gland) or luteinising hormone. LH levels rise
just prior to the breaking open of the follicle, and the release of the egg, or ovulation.
The anterior pituitary gland is in turn controlled by the hypothalamus, a part of the brain
that is situated in an area called the limbic system, which is largely responsible for our
emotions. The exact mechanism of this higher control by the hypothalamus in the brain
remains a mystery. The confusion wrought by the widespread use of synthetic
pseudohormones within these different governing centers must be huge.
What is also becoming obvious is that women at the age of thirty and earlier, experience
significantly frequent anovulatory cycles. THIRTY PERCENT of normal healthy 30
year old women fail to ovulate regularly. Without ovulation the corpus luteum fails to
form and no progesterone is made during that cycle. This prolonged unopposed oestrogen
stimulation leads amongst other things, to the syndrome known as PMS, the premenstrual
syndrome, which as we know is a very common problem amongst young women. Stress
too is a factor, as it affects the limbic system (the centre in the brain that governs our
emotions) and the hypothalamus, which predisposes to these anovulatory cycles as well.
The incidence of progesterone deficiency is thought to be in excess of 50% in women
over the age of 35 years. Progesterone replacement therapy is NOT only for women who
want to fall pregnant or who are perimenopausal.
The ever-increasing incidence of infertility in couples trying to fall pregnant may be
adequately explained as well. Failure to ovulate means there can be no egg for sperm to
fertilise. Less progesterone will mean that the uterine lining is less well prepared to
receive the fertilized egg, and that sperm counts are dwindling because of the effects of
exogenous xeno-oestrogens on the testicle. All of these factors are simply overcome by
giving progesterone therapy. While developing in pregnancy the foetus forms millions of
eggs, and about 300,000 of these are still present at puberty. At this time the developing
embryo is exquisitely sensitive to pesticides, plastics and petrochemical xenobiotics
(foreign compounds that affect living tissue). Exposure to these at this time will damage
ovarian follicles, and this in turn causes follicles that do not function properly (ovulate)
later in life, and follicles that form unnatural cysts, explaining the marked increase in
cystic ovarian disease. Follicle dysfunction also leads to early miscarriages due to luteal
phase failure. There is not enough progesterone circulating to maintain the growing
foetus. Again progesterone supplementation using a cream that will deliver 30-40mg per
day offers a remarkably simple solution to this problem. This amount is increased to
60mg in the second, and to 80mg in the third month of pregnancy. Being naturally
produced during a normal pregnancy anyway, there can be no risk of harm to the foetus.
Anovulatory cycles may be diagnosed when day 21 progesterone levels are found to be
low. On the 21st day of the menstrual cycle, if ovulation has occurred, the progesterone
levels in the blood will normally be at their peak. It has been shown that bone mass loss
starts in women in their early 30’s, and some women will reach menopause with
established osteoporosis. Anovulatory cycles are responsible for this, and progesterone
therapy will reverse this trend.
During menopause women do not stop making sex hormones. They run out of eggs - only
about 1,000 remain at the onset of menopause – insufficient to sustain the cyclic
hormonal process. As a result, women make less oestrogen than is necessary to prepare
the endometrium for egg implantation, and PROGESTERONE PRODUCTION
VIRTUALLY STOPS ALTOGETHER. This also means progesterone is no longer
available for the production of other hormones and the body uses a different pathway for
producing androstenedione, the oestrogens and corticosteroids. As a result the
masculinising effects of androstenedione cause the unwanted growth of facial and body
hair, and male pattern baldness quite often seen, in postmenopausal women. Older
women come to resemble their male counterparts. The solution – use progesterone
cream. It should also be noted that at this time of a woman’s life she is most susceptible
to cancer of the breast, ovary, endometrium and cervix, cancers that are undoubtedly the
result of hormonal imbalances starting as early as the late 20’s. The unopposed oestrogen
drives hormone sensitive tissues to grow, and without the settling balance of progesterone,
cancer results. It has been well documented too, that in the 5-10 years following the
cessation of the menses, bone mineral density is lost at a rate of 3 times the
premenopausal rate, and the rate of incidence of heart attacks and strokes climbs steeply
too. Why is this, if the body does not stop producing oestrogen, the hormone that is
currently held responsible for the well being of bone, and the hormone the medical
profession chooses to supplement to reverse or halt this loss of bone mineral density? The
answer is that progesterone is no longer able to exert its beneficial effect. The solution, is
progesterone replacement.
Oestrogen and progesterone, while mutually antagonistic in many ways, sensitise the
body to the effects of the other. Progesterone also makes the action of thyroid hormone
more effective. During the menopause the lack of progesterone causes the higher centres
controlling sex hormone production to become over active to try to rectify this lack. As a
result more FSH and LH and other hormones are produced (together with an oestrogen,
lack this may cause hot flushes, vaginal dryness, abnormal hair growth in the 40% of
women that experience menopausal symptoms), and the limbic brain becomes over active
(causing sleep disturbances, mood swings and emotional problems).
Progesterone should be used from day 12 to day 26 of the menstrual cycle, in a dosage of
about 30mg per day. Postmenopausal women should refrain from using the cream for a
week per calendar month. These periods when treatment is stopped are necessary to allow
the progesterone receptors to be washed free of the hormone, so that the receptor can
maintain its sensitivity. Hormone receptors tend to work less efficiently if they are
continually bombarded with hormone. Women taking oestrogen supplementation are
advised to halve their dosages, as progesterone will enhance the effect of oestrogen and
cause symptoms of oestrogen dominance. Better still the oestrogen may be stopped for 3
months, and later restarted if oestrogen lack symptoms (hot flushes, vaginal dryness)
persist.
A postmenopausal woman often des not require oestrogen supplementation at all
because
 She is still producing some oestrogen especially if over weight
 She remains exposed to environmental xeno-oestrogens
 She may be taking phyto-oestroegens, hormonally active substances found in
plants (menopausal symptoms are much less common in societies that do not have
a “Western Diet” as their diet is rich in progestogenic and oestrogenic subastances
found in plants)
 Progesterone supplements will enhance the action of the abovementioned sources
of oestrogen
Oestrogen was found to be, not one hormone, but a group of differing hormones each
with differing degrees of activity, and having varying but in most cases similar actions.
All have oestrus activity. Phyto-oestrogens are substances found in plants that have an
oestrogen like action, and xeno-oestrogen is the term given to pollutants (insecticides,
plastics and petrochemical waste) that also exert an oestrogen like action. The ever
increasing effects of these on the human population would directly account for the rise in
incidence of PMS (a rare syndrome 50 years ago), breast cancer (increase of 500% since
World War II in the USA), prostate cancer, inferitility (now “mysteriously” affects 1 in 4
couples), oligospermia (in South Africa sperm counts are decreasing by 2% per year),
and prostate cancer to name but a few statistically demonstrable, and disastrous
consequences of our continuous exposure to these compounds.
There is ONLY ONE progesterone, which has no unwanted side effects. Any compound
with a different chemical make up is synthetic, not found in nature and ALL OF THEM
have damaging properties and side effects. The makers tell you this on their package
inserts.
Not all oestrogens are potentially dangerous if unopposed by natural progesterone.
Oestriol or E3 is one of the two main sex steroids produced by the placenta in pregnancy,
progesterone being the other. Both of these hormones do not affect the development of
secondary sexual characteristics in either sex. If they did then all boys born would be,
must be born exhibiting features of feminisation, and we know this not to be true.
Oestriol is the oestrogen most active upon the vulva and vagina, and would theoretically
be the best oestrogen to use for treating vaginal atrophy and dryness. The recommended
dosage is 1-2mg vaginally per day. Users should take it with progesterone, and as usual,
rest the hormone receptors (stop therapy) for a week a month.
Oestrodiol is a very powerful oestrogen and its ability to stimulate breast tissue is 100
times that of oestriol, and 10 times that of oestrone. This, translated, means oestrodiol is
100 times more likely to cause ovarian and breast tissue changes than oestriol. Further
more oestriol exerts a protective action on these tissues, like progesterone.
Ethinyloestrodiol, a very commonly used synthetic oestrogen in pharmaceutical
preparations, is even more of a risk than oestrodiol because of its excellent oral
absorption, and slow metabolism and excretion by the liver. Why is it then, that natural
oestrogens are not used in these preparations you ask: because they, as natural
substances, are not patentable. You can see the pharmaceutical companies’ point here
(you do not like it, but you can see it) …… would YOU spend millions of dollars
researching and developing a product that you could not patent and make exclusively
your own property, just for the ever watchful and opportunistic opposition to steal and
use once you had perfected its use?
Much of the information in this monologue comes from the work and experience of the
greatest ever protagonist of progesterone, an American Doctor, Dr John R. Lee.
Dr John R. Lee’s theory of oestrogen dominance can be used to explain the drastic and
unprecedented change in the incidence of disease over the last half century. Women, in
addition to being exposed to these pollutants with oestrogen like actions, are further given
synthetic oestrogens in high doses as hormone replacement therapy or contraception.
How many hysterectomised women do you know have had breast cancer. Enquire if the
were taking oestroegen only HRT and draw your own conclusions. Those cancers would
not have occurred if HRT had not been given. They were caused by substances that
should not be, for any reason, taken by women.
Oestrogen can be used to enhance a woman’s health and quality of life, but should be
used sparingly, in a natural form, and only after a trial of therapy of progesterone for 3
months has been shown to be insufficient to treat the problem. Progesterone will enhance
the action of their own endogenous (formed within the body) and exogenous (compounds
with an oestrogen like action that are ingested or that we come into contact with in the
course of our daily exposure) oestrogen during this time, and the oestrogen available may
be sufficient to reverse the problem condition.
Progesterone production ceases altogether when the ovary runs out of eggs. Oestrogen
production is reduced, but the amount produced is probably sufficient for the body’s
needs, without the need to produce children that is. The reason why cancers of the breast
and genital tract are so common during this perimenopausal time is that progesterone is
deficient or absent, and oestrogens cancer promoting action is unopposed. At no time
should oestrogen be supplemented without natural progesterone.
The minimum amount of oestrogen that achieves the desired relief of symptoms, should
be the dosage to be used. Oestrogens are produced in body fat, and overweight ladies are
less likely to require oestrogen supplementation, and more likely to get these cancers than
thin ladies.
Be aware that by now you probably know more than your doctor about this specific
topic. Decide for yourself if this is important to you. I hope that you will become a
“convert” in the use of natural progesterone, and make it your business to find out more,
and spread the word about this life saving and health promoting information. There are
many additional problems affecting women and men that can be easily and naturally
treated.
How to apply your cream:
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This cream may be applied to the areas of your body where the skin is thin, and
the blood vessels lie close to the surface – the areas where you blush is best.
Try to remember to change the site of application every day, as this means one
area of subcutaneous fat does not become overlaoded with hormone.
These areas include face, neck, chest, breasts, the soft skin on the inside of your
arms and upper thighs, the external genitalia (which have an excellent blood
supply) and the soles of feet and palms of hands are also recommended. DO NOT
APPLY OESTROGEN OR TESTOSTERONE CREAM TO YOUR BREASTS.
Progesterone is easily absorbed (studies show at least 85%) through the skin and
into the fatty tissue just below the skin’s surface, from where it is slowly released
into the systemic circulation – this is where it has its action on all of the cells that
have progesterone receptors on their cell membranes.
Initially larger dosages of cream may be used, to ‘load and saturate’ the fat so that
even release can be effected sooner, your doctor may decide to start you o n 45 60mg per day for the first few months, and bring that dosage down to 30 or even
15mg later, depending upon your response; the dosage is not crucial, so never
worry about applying too much or too little, or even missing a day as the
progesterone is released steadily from the fatty tissue it is stored in.
Menstruating women should start on day 8 of their cycle and stop applying on the
first day of their period. Postmenopausal or hysterectomised women should cease
applying the cream for 5 days per calendar month
This response will be gauged both by your symptoms (or lack of symptoms) and
biochemically using blood tests; the best method of measuring your response is to
measure salivary progesterone levels, but this technology is not yet available in
RSA; the second best method is probably to study the trophic hormone (follicle
stimulating hormone and luteinising hormone) levels in your blood – once these
become lower, approaching pre-menopausal levels, they will indicate that your
pituitary gland is satisfied with the hormone dosage you are receiving.
Hormones are never secreted continuously as a general rule; it is therefore
recommended that, in an attempt to allow the progesterone concentration in the
blood stream to decline, that you refrain from applying the cream for
approximately 7 days per calendar month – I mentioned earlier that hormone
receptors need to be rested periodically to maintain their optimum function, and
this break allows this to occur.
Remember each individual is different, and each of you therefore will need to
work closely with your doctor during the first few months of therapy to get the
dosage and mixture right – this might occur straight away but also might take a
few months, a few visits and a few blood tests before optimal control is achieved
(SO BE PATIENT).
Should your response to progesterone NOT be sufficient to do away with your
symptoms or bring your trophic hormones down to acceptable levels, then other
bio-identical creams will have to be added, but DO NOT STOP YOUR CREAM
WITHOUT TELLING YOUR DOCTOR. There is always a strategy that he can
use to achieve your end goals. Recently I had to concede to let one patient stay on
her HRT, knowing that the progesterone would at least afford her protection
against the dangers of using hormone analogues.
There is a fast growing branch of medicine called ‘anti-aging’ medicine, which I believe
will become standard therapy for optimising everyone’s health in the years to come, and
you might want to hear more about this from your doctor. I believe that progesterone and
multivitamin/micronutrient supplementation are just the first phase of therapy.