Progesterone and Cardio

I have shared with you many of the health benefits of natural progesterone that I have experienced using the Balanced Woman formula for over 10 years. Plus you may have read the many testimonials on my blog of other women who have had the same great experiences I have had. It is rewarding for me to see how many women the Balanced Woman has benefited.

I was rather surprised, as I was doing some additional research just yesterday, that natural progesterone is also good for your cardio vascular system. After seeing the research I have no doubt, my faithful use of progesterone cream is the reason I do not have high blood pressure. I am in my mid 50’s. I have weight issues and I am a diabetic. I can’t count the times my doctor has remarked that it’s a miracle I don’t have high pressure or high cholesterol considering my age and other health issues.

Ok let me share with you what I learned just yesterday.

New research shows how natural progesterone protects the heart.

One of the first doctors to study progesterone’s effect on the heart among women using natural progesterone was Kenna Stephenson, M.D. of the University of Texas at Tyler. An abstract of her study was published in the journal Blood a few years back. In short it found “…no markers for inflammation or clotting indicators for most of the serious diseases related to the use of traditional hormone replacement therapy.” In layman’s terms, progesterone didn’t increase biomarkers for stroke or heart attack like Hormone Replacement Therapy does. Stephenson’s research along these lines is ongoing, and her group continues to find that progesterone’s effects on cardiovascular function are beneficial or neutral.

Progesterone’s effect on cardiovascular health has become an important topic of interest among researchers, who are beginning to realize that the effects of the synthetic progestins on heart function are dramatically different from those of natural progesterone. The research indicates, while progestins can cause heart spasms and cardiac disease, progesterone can help protect the heart.

In "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Menopause", Dr. John Lee described the research done with monkeys and humans showing that certain progestins caused spasms in the heart. However, at that time, research showing the beneficial effects of natural progesterone on the heart was sparse. As I have said in earlier articles I had the privilege of traveling all over California hosting women health seminars. Dr Lee was our guest speaker at each of the seminars. No matter how many times I heard him speak it was never boring and there was always something new to learn. I credit his passion for natural progesterone for the continued research that is happening now all over the world.

A more recent study of endogenous (made in the body) progesterone levels was published in the Oct 2007 Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. According to the lead author Emily Szmuilowicz, M.D. of Brigham and Women Hospital, “Our study shows that in post menopausal women, higher blood levels of progesterone are associated with less of an increase in blood pressure and less blood vessel constriction in response to angiotensin II, one of the naturally occurring substances in the body which causes the blood vessels to constrict. Constriction of the blood vessels can lead to increased blood pressure, which can contribute to problems such as heart attack and stroke.”

In Japan a study done by Nakamura et al, and published in the Dec 18, 2007 issue of the journal Circulation, researchers found that progesterone protected the heart from rhythm disturbances, or arrhythmias.

In yet another rodent study done in India and published in Life Sciences journal in June 2007, researchers gave different groups of rats a heart attack and studied the extent of the damage done. The groups included males, females, females without ovaries, and then each of those groups treated with progesterone. They found that the females with ovaries that were also treated with progesterone had significantly less heart damage. They also came out better on most of the biomarkers used to measure heart damage. The fact that the female rats without ovaries didn’t do as well on the progesterone is most likely an indicator that progesterone and estrogen benefit the heart the most when they work together.

I am on a mission in 2008 to share with women all across the world the importance of using natural progesterone cream. All creams on the market are not created equally. I highly recommend using a cream made to the specifications of Dr. John Lee.