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What is Progesterone?
- Oldest known sex hormone.
- Present in every human
regardless of age.
- Produced by the ovaries
and adrenal gland.
- Secreted by corpus luteum.
- Has receptors in nearly
every cell in the body.
- Acts on uterus, kidneys,
brain, smooth muscle, breasts, bones, and cellular membranes.
- Metabolized to other
active hormones.
What are some of the
functions and roles of progesterone in the body?
- Counteracts estrogen's
tendency to induce excess growth in the endometrial lining of the
uterus.
- Builds new bone tissue,
leading to increased bone mass and density.
- Necessary for maintenance
of pregnancy.
- Decreases uterine
contractions.
- Prepares and
maintains uterine lining for implantation of fertilized egg
- Prepares breasts for
lactation.
- Assists in raising HDL-cholesterol
levels (if combined with
estrogen therapy) and ultimately
reduces risk of heart disease.
- Synthetic
progesterone (progestin) has an overall negative effect on HDL-cholesterol
levels because it vasocontricts.
What is the
difference between "progestin" and "progesterone?"
The main difference is
in the derivative. Progestin’s are synthetic (i.e. man-made) molecules
developed to act like natural progesterone. Natural progesterone
is a molecule that is plant derived and is bio-equivalent to the hormone
produced in our bodies. Progestin’s do not have as broad a
spectrum of activity as natural progesterone, and have a wide range of
side effects. Whereas progesterone may cause some mild to moderate
drowsiness, progestin’s can cause:
- breast tenderness
- acne
- depression
- vision changes
- bloating
- migraine headaches
- thrombosis
- decreased glucose
tolerance
- gastric regurgitation
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