29-02-2016, 23:39
Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 16 2008 at 8:20 PM Louise (Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
So I took the PM.uk powder for days 2-14 of my 28 day pill-regualted cycle. I was too lazy to measure the dose properly so I just looked at the size of the capsules, grabbed a teaspoon and took a guess (next month will try harder!). I have been getting a little spotty lately so not sure if the PM is having some sort of hormonal action or just preventing the pill from fixing my face (or that I've eaten too much chocolate). Possibly had a few aches but using a lot of suction so could be something to do with that.
I understand that it's a good idea to increase estrogen in the estrogen-dominated follicular phase and then stop for the progesterone-dominated luteal phase. Then question is should we be mimicking more closely the cycle diagram, e.g. taking 500mg 1x daily for days 1-3, 2x daily days 4-12, 3x daily day 13 and 4x daily day 14 then stop for days 15-28. Should I try to get hold of something like cyproterone or other progesterone supplement to take the rest of the time? Is the idea to exaggerate the normal hormonal cycle? What about prolactin, LH, FSH? If I'm using a lot of suction my prolactin may be quite high anyway.
Always interested to hear your opinions
Linn
(Login linn7880)
progesterone
October 17 2008, 1:46 PM
Hi Louise!
It is an interesting question you have. I do not know but is maybe a good idea to mimic the cycle that way. Is it not what the japanese girls do? But when it comes to progesteron I would not have taken cyproterone. It is a medice is'nt it? I would rather use natural progesterone , I think that is much safer. The progesterone used in school medice is syntetic and not natural to the body. I think you will sucseed more with natural progesterone and that it is safer..
Moon
(Login -Moon-)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 2:06 PM
Hey Louise, sorry I can't be of much help, I think that such detailed theory of NBE is really hard to discuss. It's possible that breast growth is achieved throguh a still physiological exaggeration of the cycle, or that our cycle is so messed up we just achieve sth close to a normal cycle with herbs, or that some completely different unknown mechanisms of herbs are cruicial.
One thing that should be noted tho is that herbs may have effects on the body throguh other mechanisms that (the most known) hormonal. For example, vitex and SP both decrease testosterone, but there have been cases when they caused acne. Estrogenic herbs also sometimes cause acne which seems to depend more on the person than on the herb. It seems the most likely ''hormonal'' explanation would be simple competition - thus decreasing estrgen actions which in turn increases androgens. But then every person who stalled would have to develop acne. A survey of practical experience would have to be made to get even a likely hypothesis.
Other more complex dynamic and kinetic interactions between PM and androgen blockers in BCPs are basically unknown, as I don't think any study was ever made. You can avoid interaction on the level of absorption by not taking both at the same time. To assess interactions on the level of distribution in the body, elimination from the body or their final effects on tissue we would have to know their chemical formula - if it's similar they could have some common receptors. It would still be a wild guess tho.
Moon
(Login -Moon-)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 2:14 PM
About progesterone, there is no actual natural progesterone other than the one your body produces. There is nothing progesteronic about WY btw. There is also nothing directly harmful about synthetic progesterone, it all depends on the conditions, circumatnces and suitability of application. For example, a sythetic coumpound may be chemically identical to the endogenous one, but the difference would be in the administration - the body has subtle mechanisms that percieve when and how much of it your body needs, in artifical administration you just deliver a certain ammount in certain intervals.
And about whether or not it would be sensible to use some sort of progesteronic effector in the second part of the cycle... I'd be careful. Waxingmoon says that PC should only be used if you really have a significent progesterone deficiency and too much prog. can be dangerous. I was wondering if vitex could be used in second part of the cycle, but as it's a slow acting herb I wonder if it would work in that time at all.
Linn
(Login linn7880)
progesterone
October 17 2008, 3:26 PM
Hi Moon,
I thought the progesterone that is taken from wild yam and converted in the laboratory is identical to the progesterone produced by the body?
That is what Dr lee says in his book..But the progesterone in bcp is progestins that is taken from the urine of pregnant horses..just what I read.
The pharmacy industry will not use natural progesterone in bcp because they can not pattern it as they can with the one they make..Just what he wrote.
Moon
(Login -Moon-)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 4:36 PM
Oh, then I guess that's right. What I ment is that no extrenal progesterone is really natural as it's not produced by the body so the pattern of its administration is still very different to the parretn of endogenous progesterone release. And also that just because sth is synthetic doesn't necessarily mean it's less healthy. But I guess there is a reason progesterone is used in creams, not progestins. I thoguht that the reason progestins are used in the pill and not progesterone is because they have a longer half life and are more potent, thus they're appropriate for daily administration and can fit into a small pill, which I think wouldn't work with progesterone.
Louise
(Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 7:27 PM
Thanks Moon, I'll try to behave myself and stick to the instructions on the pack but if I don't see anything other than acne in a couple of months I'll probably start messing around. I'm not really interested in what's natural and what's not just what works and I have friends who are doctors so I can probably get stuff like that. Cyproterone's in Dianette (it's an antiandrogenic progesterone which makes it perfect) so I've taken it before at a very low dose. If I can get hold of the one marketed at men the dose is huge so I can cut the tablets up and make the pack go further. I had some weird cramps and my legs and back were really stiff today like the mid-cycle syptoms I used to get when off the pill. I think this may either be the PM causing a follicle to release and messing with my PCO or the fact that I walked quite a long way in the rain yesterday afternoon - why is it never clear cut?!
Louise
(Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 7:33 PM
P.S. I'd thought of vitex but isn't that balancing rather than just progesteronic? You might take the vitex for 2 weeks and it just deletes the effect of what you took in the other 2 weeks!
Linn
(Login linn7880)
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 18 2008, 11:51 AM
In easy words is'nt it to mimic puberty and pragnancy at the same time..?
But I guess you wanted it more scientific ..
Louise
(Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 18 2008, 7:41 PM
The hormonal effects during puberty and pregnancy are very different, I think mimicking pregnancy will enlarge the lobes but probably cannot be maintained longterm (either massage is too time consuming or elevated prolactin is dangerous) but I think instinctively that mimicking puberty is a better bet - hope so anyway as I'm getting acne!
October 16 2008 at 8:20 PM Louise (Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
So I took the PM.uk powder for days 2-14 of my 28 day pill-regualted cycle. I was too lazy to measure the dose properly so I just looked at the size of the capsules, grabbed a teaspoon and took a guess (next month will try harder!). I have been getting a little spotty lately so not sure if the PM is having some sort of hormonal action or just preventing the pill from fixing my face (or that I've eaten too much chocolate). Possibly had a few aches but using a lot of suction so could be something to do with that.
I understand that it's a good idea to increase estrogen in the estrogen-dominated follicular phase and then stop for the progesterone-dominated luteal phase. Then question is should we be mimicking more closely the cycle diagram, e.g. taking 500mg 1x daily for days 1-3, 2x daily days 4-12, 3x daily day 13 and 4x daily day 14 then stop for days 15-28. Should I try to get hold of something like cyproterone or other progesterone supplement to take the rest of the time? Is the idea to exaggerate the normal hormonal cycle? What about prolactin, LH, FSH? If I'm using a lot of suction my prolactin may be quite high anyway.
Always interested to hear your opinions
Linn
(Login linn7880)
progesterone
October 17 2008, 1:46 PM
Hi Louise!
It is an interesting question you have. I do not know but is maybe a good idea to mimic the cycle that way. Is it not what the japanese girls do? But when it comes to progesteron I would not have taken cyproterone. It is a medice is'nt it? I would rather use natural progesterone , I think that is much safer. The progesterone used in school medice is syntetic and not natural to the body. I think you will sucseed more with natural progesterone and that it is safer..
Moon
(Login -Moon-)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 2:06 PM
Hey Louise, sorry I can't be of much help, I think that such detailed theory of NBE is really hard to discuss. It's possible that breast growth is achieved throguh a still physiological exaggeration of the cycle, or that our cycle is so messed up we just achieve sth close to a normal cycle with herbs, or that some completely different unknown mechanisms of herbs are cruicial.
One thing that should be noted tho is that herbs may have effects on the body throguh other mechanisms that (the most known) hormonal. For example, vitex and SP both decrease testosterone, but there have been cases when they caused acne. Estrogenic herbs also sometimes cause acne which seems to depend more on the person than on the herb. It seems the most likely ''hormonal'' explanation would be simple competition - thus decreasing estrgen actions which in turn increases androgens. But then every person who stalled would have to develop acne. A survey of practical experience would have to be made to get even a likely hypothesis.
Other more complex dynamic and kinetic interactions between PM and androgen blockers in BCPs are basically unknown, as I don't think any study was ever made. You can avoid interaction on the level of absorption by not taking both at the same time. To assess interactions on the level of distribution in the body, elimination from the body or their final effects on tissue we would have to know their chemical formula - if it's similar they could have some common receptors. It would still be a wild guess tho.
Moon
(Login -Moon-)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 2:14 PM
About progesterone, there is no actual natural progesterone other than the one your body produces. There is nothing progesteronic about WY btw. There is also nothing directly harmful about synthetic progesterone, it all depends on the conditions, circumatnces and suitability of application. For example, a sythetic coumpound may be chemically identical to the endogenous one, but the difference would be in the administration - the body has subtle mechanisms that percieve when and how much of it your body needs, in artifical administration you just deliver a certain ammount in certain intervals.
And about whether or not it would be sensible to use some sort of progesteronic effector in the second part of the cycle... I'd be careful. Waxingmoon says that PC should only be used if you really have a significent progesterone deficiency and too much prog. can be dangerous. I was wondering if vitex could be used in second part of the cycle, but as it's a slow acting herb I wonder if it would work in that time at all.
Linn
(Login linn7880)
progesterone
October 17 2008, 3:26 PM
Hi Moon,
I thought the progesterone that is taken from wild yam and converted in the laboratory is identical to the progesterone produced by the body?
That is what Dr lee says in his book..But the progesterone in bcp is progestins that is taken from the urine of pregnant horses..just what I read.
The pharmacy industry will not use natural progesterone in bcp because they can not pattern it as they can with the one they make..Just what he wrote.
Moon
(Login -Moon-)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 4:36 PM
Oh, then I guess that's right. What I ment is that no extrenal progesterone is really natural as it's not produced by the body so the pattern of its administration is still very different to the parretn of endogenous progesterone release. And also that just because sth is synthetic doesn't necessarily mean it's less healthy. But I guess there is a reason progesterone is used in creams, not progestins. I thoguht that the reason progestins are used in the pill and not progesterone is because they have a longer half life and are more potent, thus they're appropriate for daily administration and can fit into a small pill, which I think wouldn't work with progesterone.
Louise
(Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 7:27 PM
Thanks Moon, I'll try to behave myself and stick to the instructions on the pack but if I don't see anything other than acne in a couple of months I'll probably start messing around. I'm not really interested in what's natural and what's not just what works and I have friends who are doctors so I can probably get stuff like that. Cyproterone's in Dianette (it's an antiandrogenic progesterone which makes it perfect) so I've taken it before at a very low dose. If I can get hold of the one marketed at men the dose is huge so I can cut the tablets up and make the pack go further. I had some weird cramps and my legs and back were really stiff today like the mid-cycle syptoms I used to get when off the pill. I think this may either be the PM causing a follicle to release and messing with my PCO or the fact that I walked quite a long way in the rain yesterday afternoon - why is it never clear cut?!
Louise
(Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 17 2008, 7:33 PM
P.S. I'd thought of vitex but isn't that balancing rather than just progesteronic? You might take the vitex for 2 weeks and it just deletes the effect of what you took in the other 2 weeks!
Linn
(Login linn7880)
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 18 2008, 11:51 AM
In easy words is'nt it to mimic puberty and pragnancy at the same time..?
But I guess you wanted it more scientific ..
Louise
(Login Louise1982)
SENIOR MEMBER
Re: Moon (or others) - NBE, what are we actually hoping to achieve hormonally?
October 18 2008, 7:41 PM
The hormonal effects during puberty and pregnancy are very different, I think mimicking pregnancy will enlarge the lobes but probably cannot be maintained longterm (either massage is too time consuming or elevated prolactin is dangerous) but I think instinctively that mimicking puberty is a better bet - hope so anyway as I'm getting acne!