Progesterone is such a huge topic and so very important for your reproductive system and therefore for fertility. If you haven’t read Part 1 and Part 2 of the series of blogs about progesterone, please click on these links. As previously discussed stress has an enormous effect on your progesterone levels. In this article,
I would like to address another big cause for low progesterone levels, which is insulin.
Every time you eat food that contains sugar, your glucose levels rise. In response to high glucose levels, the pancreas releases insulin. Insulin will take the glucose into the cells, store it in the liver or deposit it as fat. We all know about the fat stores…..When insulin goes up, cortisol also goes up. If you remember reading in part 2, cortisol is also released in response to stress and it stops your body from releasing progesterone. Insulin has a very similar effect on progesterone levels. Insulin increases your cortisol levels and stops your body from releasing progesterone.
So a diet high in sugar and high in processed carbohydrates is detrimental for your progesterone production due to the increase in cortisol. Not only does insulin affect your cortisol levels it also affects your thyroid. But more about your thyroid in an upcoming blog.
