Written by
Stacy Miller
Women have two primary sex hormones that regulate their menstrual cycle, estrogen and progesterone. While you’ve most likely heard of estrogen, progesterone is sometimes overlooked. The question is, “What is progesterone, and what role does it play in women’s health?” In this article, we’ll discuss how progesterone works and what can happen to your body when these hormone levels are imbalanced.
In the menstrual cycle, the two most important sex hormones are estrogen and progesterone. But what is progesterone hormone and what does it do? Progesterone is a steroid hormone. So, what is the function of the hormone progesterone? The answer is two-fold. In non-pregnant women, progesterone hormone function is to thicken the uterine lining and prepare it to sustain a growing baby. It also plays an important role in regulating your menstrual cycle.
In pregnancy progesterone helps prevent miscarriage or preterm labor by relaxing the uterine walls and preventing premature contractions. Additionally, it helps stop the mother’s immune system from rejecting or attacking the growing fetus. Below is a quick breakdown of progesterone’s functions.
Breast tissue development – Progesterone and estrogen work together and help breasts to develop. Estrogen stimulates ducts and progesterone lobules.
Regulating menstrual cycles – Understanding how progesterone works requires insight into how it’s made. Where is progesterone produced? While the adrenal glands make a small amount of progesterone, the ovaries are the primary production site. The ovaries produce a temporary gland called the corpus luteum after ovulation, which starts producing high levels of progesterone. The timing is important because it ensures the uterus lining thickens by the time the released egg is fertilized and implanted. However, if pregnancy doesn’t occur, the corpus luteum starts breaking down, and the progesterone levels drop, causing the uterus to shed its lining. This process is called menstruation or your period.
Maintaining pregnancy – If the corpus luteum breaks down, what produces progesterone during pregnancy? If a woman becomes pregnant, the placenta takes over progesterone production around the 7th-9th week after conception. This luteo-placenta shift ensures enough of the hormone is created to support the pregnancy and fetal growth. What is the function of progesterone during pregnancy?
While there’s no exact number, studies show a large number of miscarriages occur with lowered progesterone levels, showing how, for a successful pregnancy progesterone is key.
When answering the question, “How does progesterone work?”, it’s important to discuss the normal fluctuations that happen in each life stage. During the menstrual cycle, progesterone levels will fluctuate drastically. Before ovulation, they remain low and rise significantly once it takes place. Progesterone levels remain elevated throughout the luteal phase until menstruation. If there is no fertilization, progesterone levels drop rapidly, causing the uterine shed, called menstruation.
If fertilization occurs, progesterone levels continue to rise. They increase even further when the placenta takes over production. Throughout the pregnancy, progesterone levels keep rising with each trimester, peaking between weeks 28 and 40. Once you give birth and the placenta is removed, your progesterone levels drop dramatically.
In regularly cycling reproductive women, normal levels of progesterone metabolites in urine during the luteal phase can range from 1.6 to 59.0 μg/mL depending on the day of testing. Once you’re no longer in your peak productive years and enter menopause, your progesterone levels will decline again.
The majority of progesterone-related symptoms aren’t due to their level, but rather the brain’s reaction to significant, but normal fluctuations in a short period of time. During the luteal phase, the drop in progesterone can cause a range of symptoms, including:
Research suggests that some women with existing mental health conditions may experience a worsening of their symptoms right before their period, when progesterone levels are naturally low. Other studies have also linked lower progesterone levels to feelings of fatigue and increased aggression.
Along with the mental and emotional impact, low progesterone levels can also impact other areas of your health. Unfortunately, it can make conception and maintaining pregnancy challenging.
Fluctuations of progesterone levels impact your general health, mood, and reproductive health. As we discussed above, it’s a key hormone for pregnancy support, with low levels corresponding with increased miscarriage and preterm birth. It also plays a role in mood, with women being more prone to anxiety and mood disorders due to progesterone level fluctuations.
Additionally, some animal studies show the hormone can affect cognitive performance, but studies in humans are still ongoing. Low progesterone may put you at a higher risk for breast cancer, which is why some doctors prescribe hormone replacement therapy in perimenopausal and menopausal women.
Knowing what progesterone is and how it impacts your body is a crucial first step to taking control of your health, but it’s only one piece of the puzzle. There are steps you can take to support normal hormone levels and manage symptoms.
While there’s no foods that increase progesterone levels, eating a nutritionally balanced diet can provide ovulation support, which then increases progesterone. Choose foods that are high in protein, like eggs, chicken, fish, and tofu, and healthy fats like seeds, nuts, avocados, and olive oil. Fiber is also important, so reach for fruits like pears and apples, spinach, kidney beans, brown rice, and broccoli. You should also limit processed and refined foods, saturated fats, full-fat dairy, red meat, and avoid alcohol.
Exercise is important for hormonal balance and helping you feel your best. It also provides metabolic support, which is helpful during perimenopause.
Tracking your hormones at home with an award-winning tracker like Hormona makes it easy to monitor symptoms. With Hormona, you also have access to comprehensive, science-backed insights and personalized recommendations that empower you to take control of your hormone health.
Conclusion
When it comes to progesterone what is it that makes this hormone so important? Progesterone plays a key role in numerous functions, including menstrual cycle regulation and pregnancy support. Understanding the symptoms of low progesterone and making positive lifestyle adjustments like eating healthy, exercising, and tracking your hormones can help you make the best decisions for your health.
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Dr Singh is the Medical Director of the Indiana Sleep Center. His research and clinical practice focuses on the myriad of sleep.
Gleeson, P. C., Worsley, R., Gavrilidis, E., Nathoo, S., Ng, E., Lee, S., & Kulkarni, J. (2016). Menstrual cycle characteristics in women with persistent schizophrenia. The Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry, 50(5), 481–487. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004867415590459
Gleeson, P. C., Worsley, R., Gavrilidis, E., Nathoo, S., Ng, E., Lee, S., & Kulkarni, J. (2016). Menstrual cycle characteristics in women with persistent schizophrenia. The Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry, 50(5), 481–487. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004867415590459
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