FAQs

Here are answers to some of the most commonly asked questions regarding progesterone, menopause and hormonal health. 

Q: What is progesterone?
Q: Why do women need progesterone?
Q: What is estrogen dominance?
Q: Why would a pre-menopausal woman need progesterone cream?
Q: What is progesterone made from?
Q: Will Wild Mexican Yam produce the same benefits as natural progesterone?
Q: Where should I put the progesterone cream?
Q: How safe is progesterone cream?
Q: Wouldn't it be easier to just take a progesterone pill?
Q: Can I test for my levels of progesterone and other hormones?
Q: Why does my body fail to produce enough progesterone?
Q: What are the differences between synthetic and natural progesterone?
Q: Why are doctors so uninformed about natural progesterone?
Q: What are the health benefits of natural progesterone cream?
Q: What are the side effects associated with natural progesterone?
Q: What are the effects of synthetic Progestin (Provera)?
Q: What effects of estrogen dominance does natural progesterone help to alleviate?
Q: What is meant by 'Progesterone U.S.P.'?
Q: Why is progesterone most effective when delivered as a skin cream?
Q: How do estrogen and progesterone effect bone health?
Q: What is PMS? Can progesterone relieve its symptoms?
Q: How can I improve my Libido (sex drive)?
Q: What about Thyroid function and hormonal imbalances?
Q: What is menopause?
Q: What does progesterone have to do with menopause?
Q: Why does menopause cause hair loss?
Q: Is there a relationship between weight gain and menopause?
Q: What are the health consequences of hysterectomy?
Q: Will endometriosis be remedied with progesterone?
Q: Will uterine fibroids be helped by progesterone?
Q: What effect does progesterone have on cardiovascular disease?
Q: Should I use Progesterone if I am trying to get pregnant?
Q: Where can I get more information on progesterone and natural hormone balance?

Q: What is progesterone?

A: Progesterone is a steroid hormone made by ovaries at ovulation, and in smaller amounts by the adrenal glands. Progesterone is manufactured in the body from the steroid hormone pregnenolone, and is a precursor to most of the other steroid hormones (including cortisol) the estrogens and testosterone. It is a steroid hormone. It is produced by the testes and adrenals in men (though in lower amounts). Progesterone is not a sex characteristic determining hormone (as is estrogen for female development and testosterone for male development). Progesterone is crucial to our biological balance, well being and overall good health.

In a normally cycling female, the corpus luteum of the ovary, at ovulation, produces 20 to 30 mg of progesterone daily during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle.

Q: Why do women need progesterone?

A: Progesterone is needed in hormone replacement therapy for menopausal women for many reasons, but one of its most important roles is to balance or oppose the effects of estrogen. Unopposed estrogen creates a strong risk for breast cancer and reproductive cancers.

Estrogen levels drop only 40-60% at menopause, which is just enough to stop the menstrual cycle. But progesterone levels may drop to near zero in some women. Because progesterone is the precursor to so many other steroid hormones, its use can greatly enhance overall hormone balance after menopause.

Progesterone also stimulates bone-building and thus helps protect against osteoporosis.

Q: What is estrogen dominance?

A: Dr. Lee has coined the term "estrogen dominance," to describe what happens when the normal ratio or balance of estrogen to progesterone is changed by excess estrogen or inadequate progesterone. Estrogen is a potent and potentially dangerous hormone when not balanced by adequate progesterone.

Both women who have suffered from PMS and women who have suffered from menopausal symptoms, will recognize the hallmark symptoms of estrogen dominance: weight gain, bloating, mood swings, irritability, tender breasts, headaches, fatigue, depression, hypoglycemia, uterine fibroids, endometriosis, and fibrocystic breasts. Estrogen dominance is known to cause and/or contribute to cancer of the breast, ovary, endometrium (uterus), and prostate.


Q: Why would a premenopausal woman need progesterone cream?

A: In the ten to fifteen years before menopause, many women regularly have anovulatory cycles in which they make enough estrogen to create menstruation, but they don't make any progesterone, thus setting the stage for estrogen dominance. Using progesterone cream during anovulatory months can help prevent the symptoms of PMS.

We now know that PMS can occur despite normal progesterone levels when stress is present. Stress increases cortisol production; cortisol blocks (or competes for) progesterone receptors. Additional progesterone is required to overcome this blockade, and stress management is important.

Q: What is progesterone made from?

A: The USP progesterone used for hormone replacement comes from plant fats and oils, usually a substance called diosgenin which is extracted from a very specific type of wild yam that grows in Mexico, or from soybeans. In the laboratory diosgenin is chemically synthesized into real human progesterone. The other human steroid hormones, including estrogen, testosterone, progesterone and the cortisones are also nearly always synthesized from diosgenin.

Some companies are trying to sell diosgenin, which they label "wild yam extract" as a medicine or supplement, claiming that the body will then convert it into hormones as needed. While we know this can be done in the laboratory, this cannot be done with transdermal creams. The Wild Yam molecules are far too big to enter the blood stream to become available for us by the human body.

Q: Will Wild Mexican Yam produce the same benefits as natural progesterone?

A: No, it cannot. Wild yam is a repository of many wonderful substances, but wild yam and its extract cannot be converted by the human body into progesterone. Deep in the root of the Wild yam is fatty substance called diosgenin. Locked within it lies the natural progesterone molecule that must be synthesized out by a competent pharmaceutical grade laboratory.

Q: How safe is progesterone cream?

A: During the third trimester of pregnancy, the placenta produces about 300 mg of progesterone daily, so we know that a one-time overdose of the cream is virtually impossible. If you used a whole jar at once it might make you sleepy. However, Dr. Lee recommends that women avoid using higher than the recommended dosage to avoid hormone imbalances. More is not better when it comes to hormone balance.

Q: Wouldn't it be easier to just take a progesterone pill?

A: Dr. Lee recommends the transdermal cream rather than oral progesterone because some 80% to 90% of the oral dose is lost through the liver. Thus, at least 200 to 400 mg daily is needed orally to achieve a physiologic dose of 15 to 24 mg daily. Such high doses create undesirable metabolites and unnecessarily overload the liver.

Q: Can I test for my levels of progesterone and other hormones?
A: Yes. The most reliable and accurate method for determining your levels of Progesterone, Estradiol, Testosterone, DHEA and other hormones is with a saliva test. This test method has been used extensively and nearly exclusively by The World Health Organizations (WHO) for nearly 15 years. Blood tests are inherently less accurate, often resulting in falsely low estrogen readings initiating doctors to prescribe high doses of prescription estrogenic drugs inappropriately. Dr. John Lee recommended and used the ZRT laboratories for this purpose in his own practice. You can google them online.

Q: Why does my body fail to produce enough progesterone?
A: Mother Nature has not abandoned us nor made a mistake with our generation. Our foods, drugs, environmental pollutants and profit driven medical industries have brought on many of our ills. Progesterone deficiency, more specifically estrogen dominance (as Dr. Lee* refers to it) is an unfortunate condition of industrialized countries. Since 1948 over 70,000 new made-made chemicals have been introduced into our environment, less than 3% have even been tested for toxicity. Menopausal problems, osteoporosis, breast cancer were issues nearly unknown to our grandparent's generation. While a large population of women in our country suffers from severe health problems, women in non-industrialized countries do not suffer from these same problems. Populations who consume wholesome and natural foods that are free of pesticides, growth hormones and petrochemical fertilizers are not by-in-large progesterone deficient. Dr. Lee firmly believes that western women are progesterone deficient and estrogen dominant directly due to their exposure and consumption of too many estrogenic substances commonly occurring in foods and industrial environments. Dr. Lee, Sherrill Sellman and a host of health authorities have observed that high stress levels compound these factors. Ovaries, overwhelmed by these conditions, cease to produce progesterone. Now the burden of progesterone production is shifted to an already exhausted adrenal cortex and brain. These organs are not able to sustain sufficient progesterone and critical corticosteroid levels either, furthering severe progesterone deficiencies. It is this chain-reaction which Dr. Lee suggests cause the condition known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Q: What are the differences between synthetic and natural progesterone?

A: Synthetic progesterones (called 'Progestins') are drugs created and manufactured by drug companies. They are patented molecules not found in nature or our bodies. Because there are known side-effects, they are only available by prescription and require physician oversight. Synthetic progesterone once inside your body seeks out and resides in the cells, which have progesterone receptor capabilities. Synthetic progestins like Provera, being unnatural to the body, initiate many undesirable side effects. Taking one of the strange, not-found-in-nature synthetic hormones (the 'Pill' and HRT) created by the drug companies is likely to confuse your body and throw it into a state of imbalance. These drugs are created not because they work better than natural hormones but rather because they can be patented, and patent drugs have much higher price tag than natural substances.

Natural progesterone is the identical molecule to that produced in the ovary, adrenals and testes of the human body. Natural progesterone supplements have no side effects.

Q: Why are doctors so uninformed about natural progesterone?
A: Natural supplementation is not taught in medical school. Therefore, when the topic of natural progesterone is discussed with conventionally trained doctors they do not fully comprehend progesterone's functions nor realize the dangerous consequences of prescribing synthetic progestins such as Progestins and branded drugs like Provera, Prempro and Premarin.

Dr. Lee laments those doctors to whom he speaks to about his Natural Progesterone. Researchers rarely dispute the ramifications of his work, but few are willing to consider safer alternatives to the hard-wired use of synthetic hormones. The obstacle is that what he reports has not yet been included in medical school curricula and textbooks. This hot topic is totally ignored by pharmaceutical publications upon which doctors rely upon for ongoing education.

Doctors are often over-worked and unable to read and absorb the whole story behind the research and side-effects of mainstream drugs. If natural supplements are not covered in the seminars and on-going 'education' provided by major pharmaceutical companies, the message is lost or worse yet discredited.

In the case of natural progesterone and its synthetic patented versions, most doctors are grossly misguided. Their reference files of 'Progesterone' are often filled with 'spin' advertisements and propaganda promoting synthetic Progestins (Provera etc.) blatantly ignoring its adverse effects and alternative natural progesterone choices. Even the prestigious Harvard Medical School recently published research work confirming the cancer causing effects of synthetic progestins but did not use the correct terminology differentiating natural from synthetic progesterone.

Q: What are the health benefits of natural progesterone cream?
A: In a healthy, balanced young woman, progesterone is produced in the corpus luteum at the time of ovulation. Non-ovulating women are often progesterone deficient yet unaware of it because they appear to have normal menstrual cycles. Studies of young female athletes suffering from osteoporosis, have confirmed that extreme exercise had 'turned off' their ovulation causing severely low levels of progesterone which is a critical hormone to normal bone growth and regeneration.
Normal progesterone levels in a healthy woman are about 20-30 mg (per deci-liter of blood) per day, peaking in the second half of the menstrual cycle. Pregnant women produce 300 - 400 mg per day. Natural progesterone is critically important to a healthy developing fetus.
Applied as a skin cream, progesterone enters the body whole and fully biologically active. Unlike pills which must survive stomach, intestinal and liver metabolism, topically applied progesterone enters the skin layers of fatty tissues and slowing and evenly dispenses into the blood stream to be used as required by the body to balance and negate the toxic effects of estrogen dominance.
Medical knowledge substantiates the benefits of natural progesterone supplementation.
Functions of NATURAL PROGESTERONE (real):
Protects against endometrial cancer
Protects against breast cancer
Protects against fibrocystic breasts
Stimulates osteoclast bone building (Osteoporosis Reversal)
Helps use fat for energy
Natural Diuretic
Natural antidepressant
Restores sex drive (Libido)
Normalizes zinc and copper levels
Facilitates thyroid hormone action
Normalizes blood sugar levels
Normalizes blood clotting
Restores proper oxygen cell levels
Precursor of corticosteroids (Arthritis)
Protects against ovarian cancer
Causes less hirsuitis, regrowth of scalp hair
Improves lipid profile
Improves vitro fertilization
Improves new bone formation
Decreases risk of coronary vasospasm
Facilitates thyroid hormone action
Usually effective in treating PMS
Is essential for successful pregnancy
Is essential for myelinization of nerves
Restores normal sleep patterns
Is precursor of other steroid hormones
Is essential for male prostate health as well

Q: What are the side effects associated with natural progesterone?

A: No known side effects or risks exist with the regular use of natural progesterone.

Q: What are the effects of synthetic Progestin (Provera)?

A: *source: "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You," John R. Lee, MD

Effects of synthetic PROGESTIN (Provera):
Increases sodium and water in body cells
Causes loss of mineral electrolytes from cells
Causes intracellular edema
Causes depression
Increases birth defects risks
Causes facial hirsutism, loss of scalp hair
Cause thrombophlebitis, embolism risk
Decreases glucose tolerance
Causes allergic reactions
Increases risk for cholestaic jaundice
Causes acne, skin rashes
Increases risk of coronary vasospasm
Prevents implantation of fertilized ovum

Q: What effects of estrogen dominance does natural progesterone help to alleviate?

A: source: "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You," John R. Lee, MD

Natural progesterone can help alleviate many effects of estrogen dominance.
Acceleration of aging process
Allergy symptoms such as; asthma, hives, rashes, sinus congestion
Autoimmune disorders such as; Lupus erythematosis, thyroiditis and possibly Sjogren's disease
Breast cancer
Breast tenderness
Cervical dysplasia
Cold hands and feet as a symptom of thyroid dysfunction
Copper excess
Decreased sex drive
Depression, anxiety or agitation
Dry eyes
Early onset of menstruation
Endometrial (uterine) cancer
Fat gain, especially around the abdomen, hips, and thighs
Fatigue
Fibrocystic breasts
Foggy thinking
Gallbladder disease
Hair loss
Headaches
Hypoglycemia
Increased blood clotting (increasing risk of strokes)
Infertility
Irregular menstrual periods
Irritability
Insomnia
Magnesium deficiency
Memory loss
Mood swings
Osteoporosis
PMS
Polycystic ovaries
Pre-menopausal bone loss
Prostate cancer
Sluggish metabolism
Thyroid dysfunction mimicking hypothyroidism
Uterine cancer
Uterine fibroids
Water retention, bloating
Zinc deficiency

Q: What is meant by 'Progesterone U.S.P.'?

A: U.S.P. is short for 'United States Pharmacopoeia'. This organization sets international standards of purity for products used in the manufacture of drugs and cosmetics. 'U.S.P.' next to the word 'Progesterone" assures you that the progesterone being used is identical what the human body produces. U.S.P. Progesterone is natural, unlike synthetic versions such as 'progestins' and 'progestogens'.

Q: Why is progesterone most effective when delivered as a skin cream?

A: Transdermal skin absorption has been found to be the most efficient means of introducing Natural Progesterone to the body. Research has proven that pills are not effectively and reliably absorbed through the stomach and intestines due to varying conditions such as gut health, food content, acids and alkalines, fat-to-bile contact and liver metabolism of a fat-soluble hormone. When comparing progesterone cream applied to the skin to that of a pill, it would require nearly ten times the quantity orally to equal that of the cream. Oral doses would also be subject to liver interaction, while a skin cream dose of progesterone will by-pass the liver on its first cycle through the body.

Q: How do estrogen and progesterone effect bone health?

A: Bones, like skin, blood and hair, are living growing organs. Though much slower growing, bones do have a cycle of repair, replacement and growth. There are two functioning cell groups that take care of bone maintenance and health; 'Osteoclasts' and the 'Osteoblasts'. Osteoclasts are little 'PacMen' like cells that remove old, worn-out, crystallized bone cells. Behind them come the osteoblasts, which repair and rejuvenate bones using Vitamin D and over 17 different minerals (not just calcium!). Osteoporosis is not considered a 'disease' as much as a nutritional and hormonal deficiency condition.
According to the research of Dr. John Lee* and Dr. Jerilynn C. Prior (re: Sherrill Sellman's Hormone Heresy book) Estrogen does not benefit osteoporosis conditions. Estrogen retards the rate of measurable bone loss by inhibiting the osteoclasts removal of old bone tissue but does not reverse or cure osteoporosis (leading to higher rates of fractures in women who seem to be reducing osteoporosis with synthetic hormones). Though some studies have shown that a lack of estrogen increases a substance called interleukin-6 (associated with bone growth and loss), Dr. Lee's research and patient follow-up studies demonstrate that the effectiveness of estrogen in reducing bone loss is only noticeable during the five years following menopause. After that five-year period, estrogen is not effective in moderating bone loss (which continues at the same rate as in those women not using any estrogen supplementation). All the unbiased evidence supports the obvious fact that the actual reduced rate of bone loss maybe relevant to the levels of progesterone, not estrogen.
Dr. Lee's research, and that of Dr. Jerilynn Prior, confirm that the missing factor in bone loss is low levels of progesterone. Supplementing with natural Progesterone stimulates osteoblast activity in building new bone tissue and mass in bone areas where healthy active osteoclasts had removed worn out bone cells.
The book, Hormone Heresy, reports the results of a three-year study of 63 post-menopausal women with osteoporosis. These women, using transdermal progesterone cream, experienced an average 7 to 8 per cent bone-mass density increase in the first year, 4 to 5 per cent in the second year, and 3 to 4 per cent in the third year. Untreated women in this age category typically lose 1.5 per cent bone-mass density per year. Such results have not been found with any other form of hormone replacement therapy or dietary supplementation. A remarkable finding of Dr. Lee's* research is that natural progesterone not only prevents osteoporosis, it will actually reverse it! Dr. Lee (and subsequent research findings) have confirmed that women using a 20 mg progesterone skin cream dose a day, saw a 15% increase of bone mineral density in the first year with and total of 30% bone mass increase over 3 years. Osteoblast cells (responsible for making new bone) do have progesterone receptors but do not have estrogen receptors. This means that progesterone (the natural form, not the synthetic progestins) is responsible, for building bone tissue, not estrogen.
To further support and enhance progesterone's ability to treat osteoporosis, Dr. Lee* recommends a low-protein diet with leafy greens, legumes and whole grains. One should avoid sodas and limit alcohol consumption. Supplement with Vitamin C, B-6, D, Beta-carotene, magnesium, Zinc, Calcium and routine exercise, 30 minutes/day three times a week.

Q: What is PMS? Can progesterone relieve its symptoms?

A: PMS was non-existent a century ago, and an unrecognized condition just one generation ago. It's no coincidence that PMS symptoms closely match those of estrogen dominance (excess) and predominantly associated with women residing in industrialized countries.
PMS is a collection of symptoms that occur one week to ten days before menses. Women often report its debilitating symptoms as all or some of the following:
bloating
weight gain
headache
backache
depression
irritability
breast swelling or tenderness
loss of libido and fatigue
PMS is a classic case of hormonal imbalance. Women suffering PMS have lower than normal levels of progesterone (for that point of time in their cycle) while estrogen levels jump abnormally high. Natural progesterone supplementation therapy has proven to be highly effective for PMS.
Niels Lauersen, M.D., and professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the New York Medical College have reported: "In my practice, hundreds of women who were severely handicapped by PMS have been completely symptom-free with natural progesterone."
Dr. Katarina Dalton, who administered high dosages of progesterone (as a rectal suppository) with excellent results, has further substantiated successful treatment of PMS with progesterone. She notes: "target cells containing progesterone receptors are widespread in the body, although most are found in the brain, particularly in the limbic area which controls emotion and rage. The other receptor sites where progesterone should be received are the eyes, nose, throat, lungs, breast, liver, adrenals, uterus and vagina. All these symptoms of PMS may occur such as headaches, asthma, laryngitis, pharyngitis, rhinitis, sinusitis, mastitis, alcohol intolerance and congestive dysmenorrhoea" Dr. Dalton asserts that progesterone deficiency is a major factor in the majority of PMS cases.
Dr. Lee, in his practice, noted that his women PMS patients who used progesterone cream achieved: "...impressive results. The majority (but not all) of these patients reported remarkable improvements including elimination of their water retention and weight gain."
Dr. Joel Hargrove of Vanderbilt University Medical Center has published results indicating a 90% success rate when treating PMS with natural progesterone. For the 10% of PMS sufferers who don't see relief from progesterone supplementation, help is possible with changes in diet, stress control, aromatic therapy and homeopathic and herbal treatments.

Q: How can I improve my Libido (sex drive)?

A: Low Libido has erroneously been associated with low estrogen levels. Doctors have been disregarding the fact women complaining of lost sex drive were having normal menses (signifying normal estrogen levels were present) yet these same women were not ovulating (indicating low or severely deficient progesterone levels). It is now widely recognized that the absence of progesterone (not estrogen) causes suppressed sexual drive (low libido).
Until recently doctors were prescribing Testosterone to improve libido. That treatment has been discredited because of the masculinizing effects of testosterone. Informed doctor now knows that the correct and safe treatment choice is natural progesterone.
At ovulation, progesterone levels elevate and sexual drives are enhanced. Women not ovulating are not producing progesterone. This fact, comments Dr. Lee, supports the observation that anovulating women (women with normal menstrual cycles but not ovulating) are more common than thought. It's prevalent among relatively young women in the United States complaining of low sexual drive.
Sex hormones and the brain control libido. Certain areas of the brain (identified in animals) are crucial to sexual receptivity. When one of these areas is destroyed in laboratory experiments, sexual active behavior is lost and estrogen hormone supplements has little effect. Other researchers, using female hamsters with their ovaries removed, confirmed that subsequent estrogen supplementation could not restore sexual receptivity until progesterone was re-introduced. The inference is that estrogen "primes" the brains cells and progesterone "turns on" the sex drive.
Dr. John R. Lee has observed, over many years of practice, many of his premenopausal patients were less interested in sex than those approaching menopause. The difference he says, had to do with estrogen dominance (resulting from monthly periods without progesterone) as it occurred with women not ovulating (anovulatory) These women also had estrogen dominance symptoms such as water retention, fibrocystic breasts, depression, wrinkling skin, vaginal dryness, irregular and/or heavy periods. Dr. Lee observed that these were classic symptoms of a progesterone deficiency caused by a failure to ovulate even though estrogen continued to be produced by the body. Loss of sex drive correlates directly with progesterone deficiencies, not estrogen deficiencies.
Clinical observations, over a number of years, has clearly demonstrated that low libido is restored to normal in patients using progesterone supplementation. Dr. Lee* comments, in his book, that his patients reported that their sex life, with progesterone therapy, was better than at any time in the 10 to15 years before menopause. Properly formulated natural progesterone cream rejuvenates normal sex drive.

Q: What about Thyroid function and hormonal imbalances?

A: Your Thyroid produces a hormone that regulates the body's metabolic rate. Low thyroid activity tends to cause low energy levels, cold intolerance and weight gain. Excess thyroid activity stimulates higher energy levels, feeling too warm and weight loss. (Iodine is a crucial nutrient to thyroid hormone synthesis and is a common additive to table salt).
Estrogen, progesterone and thyroid hormones are complementary. Estrogen tells the body to turn food into fat while thyroid and progesterone hormones tell the body to burn fat for energy. Thyroid hormone and estrogen balance each other's effects Dr. Lee has successfully treated patients, diagnosed with hyperthyroidism (excessive production of the thyroid gland) with natural progesterone therapy. Hyperthyroidism is sometimes caused by excessive L-thyroxin supplementation, which accelerates bone loss, leading to osteoporosis.
Another common thyroid dysfunction is Hashimoto's thyroiditis, which is an autoimmune inflammatory condition of the thyroid gland. Simply put, the body is creating antibodies against the cells that make up the thyroid gland. As this disease progresses, cells of the thyroid are destroyed and inflammation occurs leading to fibrous deterioration of the entire thyroid gland. It has been Dr. Lee's experience that when women with Hashimoto thyroiditis were given progesterone for osteoporosis therapy, a gradual diminution of the severity of the disease itself resulted, sometimes a complete resolution of the thyroiditis occurred. He suggests that a number of factors are at play that produced such unexpected and spontaneous healing: 1) Excess estrogen may have had a hand at triggering the antibodies in the first instance. 2) When estrogen dominance was corrected (with progesterone) there was a correction of the thyroid problem. 3) Progesterone is a precursor of corticosteroids. In progesterone deficient women the restoring of normal progesterone levels brought about a normalization corticosteroid production thus suppressing the autoimmune attacks.
Dr. Lee has hypothesized that estrogens inhibit thyroid action in our cells inducing a hypothyroid (under active thyroid) condition (despite normal serum levels of thyroid hormone readings). Symptoms of hypothyroidism, occurring in his patients with unopposed estrogen (progesterone deficiency), lessened when progesterone was added and hormone balance restored.
Q: What is menopause?

A: Menopause is medically defined as going a year or more without menstrual cycles. The uncomfortable symptoms of menopause that many women suffer (i.e. hot flashes, vaginal dryness, mood swings and the like) are epidemic to women living in industrialized places.
Menopause has been marketed and defined, by pharmaceutical companies, as the ending of a woman's sexuality; a slow painful miserable decline into old age, arthritis, osteoporosis and deterioration. But in fact, there is no reason why women should not expect a fulfilling, enjoyable maturing life span! Dr. Lee, Sherrill Sellman and enlightened health providers everywhere are working hard to dispel this cruel and untrue perceptions. They encourage good-sense life styles changes that include wholesome pure foods, exercise, appropriate supplements and the use of natural Progesterone cream. 12 consecutive months without a period is what clinically determines that a woman is in officially menopausal.

Q: What does progesterone have to do with menopause?

A: As a woman's ovulatary cycles become more infrequent and then cease, progesterone and estrogen levels decline. Progesterone output tends to fall to almost zero while estrogen declines to about 40% to 50% of pre-menopausal levels.
If we lived in an ideal world where foods were wholesome and varied; water, air, environments clean, pure and natural; women would not suffer from menopausal symptoms. But the cruel fact is that most women are exposed daily to petro-chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, solvents, growth hormones, dairy/beef/poultry steroid additives, 'The Pill, HRT and xeno-estrogenic compounds. Estrogen excesses are a regrettable 'way of life'.
It is under these circumstances that the imbalance between estrogen and progesterone has evolved. Estrogen dominance is a real and present danger. Fortunately there are effective, safe, natural alternatives to protect, remedy and reverse the damages of Estrogen Dominance. Natural progesterone is one of these choices.
Millions of women have found that by supplementing their hormone production with natural progesterone, they've been able to reduce most of their menopausal maladies. And there's an added benefit. When normal progesterone levels are maintained in the body, estrogen supplementation is rarely needed. Progesterone prepares estrogen receptors sites to work more efficiently thereby making better use of your own, naturally occurring estrogen.

Q: Why does menopause cause hair loss?

A: The most common cause of hair loss is low thyroid function. When progesterone levels fall (due to cessation of ovulation) the body increases production of the adrenal cordical steroids and and rostenedione. Androstenedione imparts some male characteristics, one of which includes hair loss in women. But when progesterone levels are raised with supplemental application of natural progesterone cream, androstenedione levels fall and normal hair growth resumes. Renewed hair growth usually occurs within four to six months from the time that natural progesterone supplementation begins.

Q: Is there a relationship between weight gain and menopause?

A: Yes, a strong interaction exists with fat and estrogen. Apart from your ovaries, fat is the second most potent manufacturer of estrogen in your body. Over-weight women get caught in a vicious cycle whereby increased body fat raises estrogen levels and then the increased estrogen instructs the body to store more food as body fat. One of progesterone's functions is to turn fat into energy, countering the estrogenic message of 'food-to-fat'. With the onset of menopause, many women gain 10, 15, or more pounds. Decreased progesterone with proportionately more estrogen is the reason. Estrogen promotes water retention too, while progesterone acts as a diuretic. Estrogen dominance causes lowered thyroid function conversely slowing down metabolism and therefore weight gain. Natural progesterone also normalizes weight by countering estrogen dominance. Progesterone re-sensitizes thyroid hormone receptors thereby boosting thyroid activity in the body.

Q: What are the health consequences of hysterectomy?

A: Author of the book Hormone Heresy, Sherrill laments... "It is staggering to think how many thousands or millions of women have been doomed to a crippled old age or early death because their ovaries and/or uterus were unnecessarily removed before menopause and natural progesterone replacement was ignored." Dr. Stanley West, chief of endocrinology and infertility at St. Vincent's hospital in New York and author of The Hysterectomy Hoax, believes that a hysterectomy is never necessary unless the woman has cancer. Dr. West points out that the majority of hysterectomies have more to do with out dated views of medical practitioners than any physical problem that women are having.
The most common reason women are convinced that they need a hysterectomy is the fearful bleeding caused by uterine fibroids. Uterine fibroids, Dr. Lee documents, can be reduced in size by the use of natural progesterone to a degree where they are harmless. After menopause, fibroids usually disappear altogether.
Signs of menopause can occur in women as early as the mid-thirties in the form of anovalatory cycles (menstrual cycles in which a woman does not ovulate) leading to estrogen dominance and a myriad of symptoms related to estrogen dominance including weight gain, fatigue, depression, mood swings, fluid retention and uterine fibroids. When these symptoms are experienced, they can usually be resolved by balancing hormones naturally by regularly applying a high quality natural progesterone cream.
A total hysterectomy is the surgical removal of a woman's entire uterus and ovaries. Removal of the ovaries has recently gone out of medical fashion. Doctors are now telling their patients that by not removing the ovaries, hormones will continue to be produced. "That is not accurate", Dr. Lee* contends, "[because ] the main blood supply to the ovaries is a branch of the uterine artery which is cut or tied off in a hysterectomy and [Dr. Lee continue] if this does not lead to an immediate loss of the functionality of the ovaries [the] tied off arteries will stop functioning within two to three years of a hysterectomy."
If you are one of nearly a million women each year who have had a hysterectomy, you are probably struggling with the side effects of HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy). You can take a positive step. Tell your doctor you prefer to use natural hormones instead of harmful synthetics. Dr. Lee's* patients, with hysterectomies, have slowly weaned off HRT successfully and feel immensely better. All you really need, Dr. Lee* says is a daily dab of progesterone cream. For those very few women who continue to have hot flashes or vaginal dryness, he gives them some estrogen cream to use intra vaginally for a few months, tapering them off that in as short a time as possible.

Q: Can endometriosis be remedied with progesterone?

Yes, progesterone will help a lot. Endometriosis is a widespread affliction in this country. The cellular-level causes of endometriosis is unclear and its diagnosis difficult. But the effects are, none-the-less, very painful most notably during menstruation.
Dr. Lee writes in his book that it may be speculative but not untenable that our petro-chemical age has spawned diseases we have never known before. Endometriosis is one of them. Dr. Lee* goes on to say that mainstream treatment of endometriosis is difficult, risky and usually unsuccessful. Because of that, he has tried alternative treatments. He has treated a number of endometriosis patients, some after failed surgery, with natural progesterone and observed remarkable success. Dr. Lee observed that estrogen initiated endometrial cell proliferation in the form of blood vessel accumulation within the endometrium. Natural progesterone blocks the monthly estrogen stimulus to uterine cells thereby stopping further proliferation of endometrial cells.
Dr. Lee advises women suffering from endometriosis to use natural progesterone cream from day six of the cycle using for three continuous weeks, stopping just before their expected period. The treatment requires patience but, Dr. Lee reports, that within four to six months pain does gradually subside and healing of the inflammatory sites occurs. Discomfort might not always disappear entirely but it will become tolerable. He notes that eventually endometriosis is cured by the onset of menopause.
The only known cause of endometrial cancer is unopposed estrogen (Mayo Clinic, 1976). Here again, the culprits are Estradiol and estrone. Estrogen supplements when given to post-menopausal women over a five year period, increased the risk of endometrial cancer six-fold Longer-term use increased it fifteen-fold. In pre-menopausal women, endometrial cancer is extremely rare, except during the five to 10 years before menopause when estrogen dominance is common.

Q: Will uterine fibroids be helped by progesterone?

A: Yes. Fibroids are the most common growth of the female genital tract. They are round, firm and benign and can grow to the size of a grapefruit or larger. They are often associated with heavy periods and irregular bleeding. After menopause fibroids usually wither away. Fibroids are one of the most common reasons women choose to have a hysterectomy. Though skilled surgeons can and do cut fibroids out cleanly, fibroids will grow back again and again. That's because the cause of fibroids is being ignored. Fibroid growth/stimulation has been closely linked to elevated levels of estrogen.
Estrogen dominance does indeed stimulate fibroid growth, making estrogen dominance a much greater problem than is recognized by contemporary medicine. Because fibroid tumors, like breast fibrocysts, are a product of estrogen dominance, natural progesterone balances and slows down out-of-control uterus cellular reproduction. When estrogen dominance is counterbalanced with natural progesterone, fibroids stop growing in size and generally decrease in mass until menopause, when they normally atrophy.

Q: What effect does progesterone have on cardiovascular disease?

A: Natural progesterone may have a protective effect on the heart because it is notably effective in raising good cholesterol (HDL). In a study called the PEPI trial, natural progesterone was more effective in raising HDL's than were the synthetic versions.
Dr. Lee encourages the use of progesterone because it promotes the burning of fat for energy. It has anti-inflammatory effects. These effects help protect against and prevent heart disease. Progesterone is a natural diuretic, it promotes better sleep patterns and helps deal with stress. All of the actions of progesterone benefit heart health. Dr. Lee is of the firm conviction that upon close review of the highly regarded Framingham study no coronary benefit from estrogen use will emerge. Comparing the heart history of women using natural progesterone during their postmenopausal years with women on estrogen and non-hormone users, clearly defines the issues.
Estrogen is touted to be preventive hormone of cardiovascular disease in women by pharmaceutical companies interpreting the Framingham study. But Dr. Jerilynn Prior, in her letter to the New England Journal of Medicine following the publication of the Nurses Study, listed 16 references disputing the claim that estrogen provided cardiovascular benefit. Hormones get out of balance when we subject our bodies to a lifestyle that includes refined and processed foods, inadequate exercise and exposure to xeno-estrogens. Natural Progesterone supplementation has had remarkably positive effects improving heart health in both men and women.
Adhering to a healthier lifestyle may very well be enough, over time, to bring the hormones back into balance. Our bodies are capable of healing. Given the right nutrients, wholesome pure foods, exercise and hormonal balance heart wellness can be actualized. For specific, detailed nutritional and exercise recommendations we do recommend the comments made by Dr John Lee* on pages 280- 315 of his book "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause" and Sherrill Sellman's book, Hormone Heresy, pages 6, 8, 130.

Q: Should I use Progesterone if I am trying to get pregnant?

Yes. Use natural progesterone cream as recommended for menstruating women (apply cream after ovulation). Dr. Lee reports that the major cause of early pregnancy loss is the failure of the body to adequately increase progesterone. Low production during the weeks following fertilization can lead to miscarriage. Therefore, women having difficulty conceiving or at risk of miscarriage, should consider using natural progesterone supplementation and discuss its use with their physicians.

Q: Where should I put the progesterone cream?

A: Because progesterone is very fat-soluble, it is easily absorbed through the skin. From subcutaneous fat, progesterone is absorbed into capillary blood. Thus absorption is best at all the skin sites where people blush: face, neck, chest, breasts, inner arms and palms of the hands.

Q: Where can I get more information on progesterone and natural hormone balance?

A: For a detailed explanation of women's hormone balance issues, a hormone balance program, as well as detailed descriptions of how to use natural progesterone, the following books by John R. Lee, M.D. are recommended:
What your Dr. May Not Tell You about Premenopause
What your Dr. May Not Tell You about Menopause
What your Dr. May Not Tell You about Breast Cancer
Hormone Balance Made Simple
You may also get back with the person who provided you with this CD and they will help you get started on your own, personal hormone balancing program.