Fertility Info

I’m sure you know by now that there are numerous factors that might trigger infertility, estrogen deficiency being one of them. Each one of the many hormones involved in reproduction also plays a really important role. Estrogen is the primary female reproductive hormone, kind of like what testosterone is to men. If you don’t have enough estrogen you may suffer from hot flashes, vaginal dryness, night sweats and headaches. Low estrogen levels can also cause infertility in a number of ways:

• If the ovum was able to get fertilized it won’t have any place to go if the estrogen doesn’t stimulate the uterus to produce the lining for the zygote.
• Furthermore, estrogen causes your mucus produced at the cervix to become more watery to enable the sperm to move through it to get to the ovum.
• If your estrogen amounts are very low you could not ovulate (release eggs at all) – never mind having issues with implantation!

A lack of estrogen can be caused by a number of things:

• Shortage of Luteinizing Hormone (LH), which controls the making of estrogen.
• The ovaries (which make estrogen) can get jumbled messages from the pituitary gland if your body is under pressure as a result of being too skinny or exercising excessively.
• A total lack of eggs will also bring about in low estrogen levels.

Treatment options:

• Estrogen levels in the body could be improved through medication. There are also some foods that are rich in chemicals that imitate estrogen and these might also be of benefit.

Estrogen and progesterone amounts must be balanced, high levels of estrogen can also be an issue. You are at a risk for estrogen dominance if you are stressed, overweight, not eating properly or exposed to alternative sources of estrogen, either as a result of HRT (hormone replacement therapy) or via environmental sources. High levels of estrogen will bring about the following warning signs:

• Palpitations
• Weight gain
• Feelings of melancholy
• Unpredicatable periods
• Water retention
• Headaches and migraines linked to your cycle
• Anxiety
• Problems with digestion

But these warning signs can also suggest low estrogen levels, so it’s best to get yourself checked if you’re worried. If you have endometriosis or PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) elevated levels of estrogen may make them worse. Too much estrogen will also reduce your libido.

Having the right estrogen concentrations is vital to your fertility. There are problems linked to both high and low levels of estrogen. Abnormal amounts of estrogen could be helped with medication so it shouldn’t be an insurmountable hurdle in your mission to have a baby.

Here is more information on What is Infertility. Here is a website with a free mini-course dedicated to Infertility.