Since the total truth came out about HRT, the medical community
has been in turmoil and somewhat divided as to what should be
recommended to women who are experiencing symptoms of hormonal
imbalance. In the meantime millions of women are confused about
what to do to relieve their symptoms and at the same time not
cause health problems down the road.
Natural progesterone cream, when used correctly, seems to help
many women through the symptoms of hormonal imbalance with many
added benefits. Natural progesterone, has the same molecular
structure as the progesterone produced by the body. It is
absorbed through the skin and into the bloodstream. It can help
your body keep estrogen and progesterone levels in balance,
resulting in maintained sense of equilibrium.
As beneficial as natural progesterone cream is, we must be aware
that we are dealing with a very delicate system – the endocrine
system. According to Dr. Joseph Mercola: “The problem relates to
the fact that progesterone is highly fat soluble and once
applied to the skin will store itself in a woman’s fat tissue.
When one first uses the cream, there is no problem here as the
fat stores are very low. But as time goes on, the cream
accumulates and contributes to disruptions in the adrenal
hormones such as DHEA, cortisol, and testosterone. I have
learned that although progesterone cream is an enormously useful
tool, it needs to be used very cautiously.”
It is advised that women test their progesterone levels yearly.
Although progesterone over-dose is not something that causes
great harm, initially-sleepiness is a clue-the solution that we
are after is balance of all hormones. Anytime there is an
over-balance of a hormone, even progesterone, the system will
suffer and symptoms will appear.
Along with progesterone, balancing the adrenals is very
important, but something that is often over-looked in hormonal
balancing. There are many useful herbs that can help accomplish
this along with the following: Diet, Stress and Sleep.
A totally balanced diet like the one offered in my E-Book,
Balancing Your Hormones Without Drugs…You Can Feel Good Again,
is imperative. I am convinced that about 85% of all hormonal
symptoms can be relieved with a healthy, balanced diet. Along
with diet, drinking half your body weight in clean, pure water
is also essential.
Hidden stress can be the underlying cause of why some women do
not experience symptom relief of hormonal imbalance. Stress is
often a “silent symptom” in that we have usually learned to
consider it as being a normal part of life. Some suggestions in
dealing with stress include: meditation, prayer, yoga, EFT,
exercise (especially walking), deep breathing and learning how
to remove yourself from difficult situations. In order to
alleviate stress these must be practiced very daily.
It is said that over ¾ of the population is sleep deprived. The
importance of being in bed before 10:00 p.m. so that the body’s
biorhythms are not disturbed has been taught by natural medicine
doctors for many years. The body does most of its repair and
healing between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. If you are
awake during these hours your body definitely looses. There is
no such thing as “catching up on your sleep”. Once it is lost,
it cannot be regained. Weekend “sleep warriors” are actually
doing more harm to their Circadian rhythms than they may
realize.
Like most things in life, we must always proceed with caution.
There is no magic bullet when it comes to getting the body
balanced and healthy. Natural progesterone is the most natural
and safest way to assist women with the symptoms of hormonal
imbalance, but we must remember that our goal is “balance” in
every area.
The following table shows the benefits of natural progesterone
compared to estrogen. As you can see, the effects of
progesterone are many-we would do well to use it wisely.
We’ll end this article with a comparison table that lists the
respective effects of both estrogen and progesterone. Estrogen
Effects Progesterone Effects Stimulates breasts cysts Protects
against breast cysts Increases body fat storage Helps use fat
for energy and keep it off hips Salt and fluid retention Natural
diuretic (water pill) Depression and headaches Natural
anti-depressant Interferes with thyroid hormone Facilitates
thyroid hormone action Increases blood clotting and risk of
stroke Normalizes blood clotting Decreases libido (sex drive)
Increases libido Impairs blood sugar control Normalizes blood
sugar levels Loss of zinc and retention of copper Normalizes
zinc and copper levels Reduced oxygen level in all cells
Restores proper cell oxygen levels Increased risk of endometrial
cancer Prevents endometrial cancer Increased risk of breast
cancer Helps prevent breast cancer Helps decrease bone loss
slightly Increases bone building