Progesterone protects the brain from damage after traumatic brain injuryĪround 20 years ago, researchers who were studying rats after brain injury made a significant observation. It actually does this by promoting the growth and repair of the myelin sheath that protects the nerve fibers. An important role of progesterone is to protect the brain from damage and promote repair after injury. Normal brain function is not the only thing progesterone is required for in the nervous system. Secondly, progesterone that is circulating in the bloodstream also has direct access to the brain and nerves. It is so essential that it comes from two different places to reach the brain: first, cells in the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system all synthesize progesterone from cholesterol. The rest of this article will take a closer look at just how essential progesterone is for your brain.Īs a result of its critical functions in the nervous system, progesterone has been classified as a “neurosteroid”. Research is now surfacing which shoes that the benefits of progesterone reach to breast health, cardiovascular health, and nervous system health, most importantly brain function. However, progesterone is far more than a gestational agent. By the time she reaches menopause, circulating progesterone levels are so low, they are similar to those normally seen in men. In fact, the name itself means “promoting gestation.” Once a woman’s reproductive life begins to wane and she enters perimenopause, progesterone production in the ovaries starts to decline. Many women are familiar with progesterone as a hormone that is essential for fertility and for sustaining a pregnancy. Groves Scientific Writer, ZRT Laboratory, Beaverton, Oregon In this emerging area of progesterone research, several research studies attest to the neuroprotective effects of progesterone, an absence of neurological side effects, and a benefit for cognitive function.īy Margaret N.
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