Fertility & Natural Progesterone

Interestingly, the word progesterone is given its name because of its vital supportive role in gestation (Latin: gestare), a fact that sheds some insight into its vital role in the reproductive process.  Does this mean that if you are not of child-bearing age, you don’t need progesterone?  Please see the article: “Why I Need Progesterone“.

Modern science confirms that insight, as, of all female hormones, progesterone is the one most essential for conception, survival of the fertilized egg and the fetus throughout pregnancy.

The Process

At ovulation, progesterone levels rapidly rise from 2-3 mg/day to an average of 22-25 mg. per day, peaking as high as 30 mg/day. If fertilization does not occur in ten or twelve days, progesterone levels fall dramatically, triggering the shedding of the secretory endometrium (the menstrual cycle).

If pregnancy does occur, however, progesterone production is taken over by the placenta which secretes an ever increasing supply, reaching 300-400 mg/day during the third trimester!

At birth, progesterone levels drop from about 400 mg/day to Zero, triggering a healthy childbirth.  After birth, zero mg of progesterone is the primary cause of “PostPartum Depression“.

The Benefits

Among the numerous other desirable effects of Natural Progesterone are the following:

• Makes Possible the Survival of the Fertilized Egg
• Maintains the Endometrium which Feeds the Ovum & Developing Embryo
• Progesterone Surge at Ovulation is the Source of Libido

Clearly, progesterone is essential to prevent the premature shedding of the supportive secretory endometrium (holding on to the developing fetus).

Conclusion

So, whether a woman conceives through traditional “natural pregnancy” or IVF Fertility Treatment, it is critically important that she maintain optimal levels of progesterone throughout pregnancy. A drop in progesterone levels or a blockade of progesterone receptors during the first 11 or 12 weeks of pregnancy may result in loss of the embryo (miscarriage)..

British Gynecologist, Dr. Catherine Dalton recommends pregnant women use a properly formulated natural progesterone cream until the start of the third tri-mester.  This is the time when the placenta takes over progesterone production. She has further observed that women who maintain high progesterone levels during pregnancy produce healthier and more intelligent children.

Of the varied methods of normalizing progesterone levels, a properly formulated cream, one free of petro-chemicals, free of Chinese progesterone and free of Genetically Modified ingredients (GMO-free) has proven to be the safest and most effect choice for informed women for more than 40 years.