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Nutrimartus
From the desk of Tasnim Adatya, N.D., a TFH-Women's Institute Physician
The words "natural progesterone" or "USP progesterone" simply mean that the progesterone exactly duplicates the progesterone that is naturally produced by the body. This is also referred to as "bio-identical." The natural progesterone found in progesterone cream is derived either from wild yam or soy, and converted into progesterone in a laboratory. You may be interested to know that your body does not have the ability to convert wild yam extract or soy into progesterone.
Synthetic progesterone, also known as "progestin" or "progestogen" is different from natural progesterone in that it is not biologically identical to the progesterone in your body — its molecular structure has been altered slightly.
By nature's design, progesterone provides a balance to estrogen in the female system. However, many women experience an imbalance of progesterone and estrogen during significant life changes or even as a result of stress. These imbalances can intensify both premenstrual and menopausal symptoms. You may find supplementing with natural progesterone to be helpful.
| Phytoestrogens
Defined From the desk of Deb Moskowitz, N.D., a TFH-Women's Institute Physician The word, phytoestrogen, comes from "phyto", meaning plant, and "estrogen" due to their ability to affect estrogenic activity in the body. It is important to know that although phytoestrogens may have some similar actions to estrogens, they are not true estrogens like our bodies produce. Phytoestrogens are a group of compounds found in plants that influence our own estrogen activity. They can bind to receptor sites in your body and have either "pro-estrogenic" or "anti-estrogenic" effects, depending on how much estrogen you are already producing. If your estrogen level is low, as it is in menopause, empty receptor sites can be filled with phytoestrogens, which can produce a weak pro-estrogenic effect. If your estrogen levels are high, as in some women who suffer from PMS and endometriosis, then phytoestrogens can compete with our own estrogens for binding to receptors. In this case, when the phytoestrogens are successful, they decrease overall estrogenic activity because their effect on target tissues is less than if our stronger estrogens had been allowed to bind. This is how phytoestrogens work to help balance the female system. There are hundreds of plants that contain phytoestrogens. Some of the more well known include red clover, licorice, soybeans, flaxseeds, black cohosh, and alfalfa. Historically, many of these plants have been used to regulate hormones and control fertility. Even animals have been known to graze selectively on plants to enhance or diminish fertility. Recently, there has been a resurgence of phytoestrogen research as more women have demanded options to conventional hormone replacement therapy. Some studies report positive findings on the reduction of bone loss in women supplementing with soy phytoestrogens, while other research points to a reduction of cardiovascular disease risk similar to that seen with estrogen replacement therapy (ERT). |