If you follow this channel, then you know that we view one of our most
important responsibilities is protecting infertility patients from scams,
misinformation and snake oil salesmen. Hi I'm Dr. Randy Morris. I'm a
board-certified physician fertility expert. Today, I'm reviewing a
topic about which there is much misinformation - increasing progesterone
levels naturally. Stay tuned to the end for my advice on
how to avoid being scammed.
First, a little background. In order to achieve pregnancy, a woman must mature
and release an egg into a fallopian tube, the egg must be fertilized to form an
embryo and the embryo must then implant in the uterine lining.
The uterine lining must be prepared in order to develop the ability for an
embryo to implant. This preparation of the uterus
occurs through two hormones: estrogen and progesterone.
Estrogen is needed to first thicken the uterine lining
progesterone is needed next to transform the lining
so that an embryo can implant. There has been some concern
that inadequate progesterone production after ovulation
may be a cause for infertility or increase the risk for miscarriage.
But does progesterone deficiency really exist?
This is not an easy question to answer. Women who
don't ovulate have low levels of progesterone
but that is not generally what we are talking about when we discuss
progesterone deficiency. Instead, we're concerned about women who
do ovulate but don't produce enough progesterone after ovulation
to conceive or maintain a pregnancy. Can you do a blood test
to see if you have a progesterone deficiency?
Not really! Measuring progesterone levels is inaccurate because
progesterone is produced in pulses. That means that the levels go up and down
rapidly. A single blood level may seem low but a few minutes later could be
much higher. I discussed this problem in last week's video about progesterone levels.
If you haven't watched that video yet
you should. What about the length of time from
ovulation until the next period starts? This is called the luteal phase. You
might hear people talk about something called a luteal phase defect or
luteal phase deficiency. The normal luteal phase length
is from 11 to 17 days with most luteal phases lasting 12 to 14 days.
A luteal phase defect is defined as having nine days or less
from ovulation until the next period begins.
However a short luteal phase can occur in up to 5% of healthy fertile women
I want to emphasize that last point. Just
because your luteal phase doesn't last exactly 14 days, does not always mean
that you have a fertility problem. Okay, so determining if someone has a
progesterone deficiency is very difficult.
Let's say you and your doctor have a very strong suspicion that you have
a progesterone deficiency. How can you fix it?
First, look for other underlying problems. Do a blood test to check your TSH level
to see if you might have hypothyroidism. If you do, then treating the thyroid
problem might also improve your progesterone production.
Next, do a blood test to look at your prolactin levels.
Abnormally elevated prolactin levels can interfere with ovulation
but in milder cases may reduce progesterone production.
Treatment is easy. Can you change your diet to increase progesterone?
Let's look at some examples. Many videos on YouTube
recommend eating yams to increase progesterone.
However, yams don't contain progesterone. They contain a chemical called diosgenin.
Unfortunately, diosgenin in yams cannot be converted into progesterone by the
human body. So eating yams or rubbing creams that
contain yams on your skin will not improve your progesterone levels
Vitamin D is a supplement that is
commonly recommended to increase progesterone levels
There is some evidence that vitamin D deficiency is associated with
infertility and vitamin D supplementation can
improve fertility. But, does it improve progesterone?
There is some evidence that vitamin D increases progesterone production in
cells studied in a laboratory, but what about in real life?
This study measured progesterone in young women before
and after giving them vitamin D supplements
and found that increasing their vitamin D actually
decreased their progesterone levels. Magnesium - There are no studies that show
that magnesium supplementation improves progesterone levels. However,
this study measured magnesium levels in women who ovulate
and found that the levels of magnesium actually
dropped at the time of ovulation and when progesterone levels peaked after ovulation.
Diets that are high in healthy fats were
cited by a number of videos and websites as improving progesterone levels. While
there is some evidence that fats may help women who don't ovulate,
this study looked at women who did ovulate
and divided them into groups based on the percentage of fat in their diet:
Low, Medium or High. There was no difference in the levels of progesterone
produced in any of these groups
Next up: exercise. Doctors know that some women who exercise vigorously
will stop ovulating. I see this commonly in my patients who are
gymnasts, dancers and long distance runners.
This study looked at women who were ovulating when those women
started vigorous exercise they found that not only did some of them stop
ovulating, but of those who kept ovulating
progesterone levels dropped lower and their luteal phases
were shorter. Our InfertilityTV Bottom Line is this
Be suspicious of anyone who claims they have some easy,
foolproof way to determine if you have a progesterone deficiency
Do not buy any tests that claim to have this ability.
You are likely being scammed!!! Based on the medical,
scientific evidence that is available today, there does not appear to be
any diet or supplement that increases progesterone in women who
already ovulate. Women attempting to become pregnant
should take prenatal vitamins but there is no benefit to taking extra
supplements like magnesium. Finally, if you are exercising at a high
level, it could be affecting your progesterone levels,
there may be some benefit in backing off. In addition to hosting InfertilityTV
every week, I am a practicing physician. If you would
like to have a one-on-one consultation with me by video,
check out my website at ivf1.com Otherwise hit that subscribe button
right now! It's like having a fertility specialist in your phone!