Why you should be concerned about estrogen dominance
October is breast cancer awareness month!
Last week, in a post about three ways to help prevent breast cancer, I talked a little bit about estrogen dominance. You’re probably wondering what it is and why it matters. I’ll do my best to explain this as thoroughly as I can without getting too technical.
What is it?
Estrogen dominance occurs when you stop ovulating. During the first half of a woman’s cycle, estrogen stimulates growth of her uterine lining. Half way through the cycle, ovulation occurs. At this point progesterone production dominates-which limits further estrogen growth. Without ovulation, progesterone does not balance the estrogen produced in the first half of the cycle. Instead, a woman’s body continues to produce estrogen resulting in estrogen dominance.
When does this occur?
Estrogen dominance can occurs for several reasons. First is when young teenagers start their periods. They often have irregular periods for the first two to three years because of lack of ovulation. Second is during perimenopause (the transition to menopause). During perimenopause, a woman again stops ovulating and stops producing progesterone to balance estrogen. Finally, estrogen dominance occurs in women who have polycystic ovarian syndrome. This syndrome is a collection of hormonal symptoms that have at their root cause, lack of ovulation and thus estrogen dominance.
Why is this important?
Estrogen dominance during the perimenopause puts women at a greater risk for weight gain and breast cancer. High levels of estrogen can lead to constant stimulation for growth. This means all estrogen is encouraging all cells to grow-normal cells and abnormal cancerous cells in the breast.
What can we do about estrogen dominance?
During perimenopause, the simple addition of bio-identical progesterone can balance the estrogen. This corrects estrogen dominance, helps women lose weight, and reduces the incidence of breast cancer.
(Special thanks to MesserWoland for providing copyright permission of the pink ribbon through Wikipedia.)
