Women’s Reproductive Hormones Matter More Than We Think
Have you ever heard of the menstrual cycle as the fifth vital sign? If you have, you might’ve read the book The Fifth Vital Sign by Lisa Hendrickson-Jack or read articles from Natural Womanhood . If you haven’t, you’re in the pool with millions of women around the world. According to the British Medical Journal, approximately 248 million women world-wide use hormonal contraceptives. Data from the Guttmacher Institute indicates that 1 in 3 women are prescribed hormonal contraceptives for non-contraceptive purposes (i.e. painful periods, heavy periods, no periods, acne, hair loss, abnormal hair growth, etc.). This means that only 42% of women use hormonal contraception solely for pregnancy prevention. Because of this, potential health concerns go undiagnosed and untreated.
“1 in 3 women are prescribed hormonal contraceptives for non-contraceptive purposes. […] Because of this, potential health concerns go undiagnosed and untreated”
These statistics show that the mainstream ‘treatment’ for unwanted menstrual irregularities and hormonal imbalances is to prescribe hormonal birth control. It is important to briefly touch the surface on how hormonal birth control works. There are many different forms of contraception (we will detail in a separate blog post). I will describe the most common form in this post. According to a 2024 study on oral contraceptive pills, the most commonly prescribed birth control pill is the combined oral contraceptive pill (combined estrogen-progesterone). In simple terms, the method of action of combined estrogen-progesterone pills is to decrease FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) secretion, thus inhibiting follicular development. FSH is released from the pituitary gland in the brain to cause a follicle (the house of an egg) to grow. As the follicle grows, estrogen levels rise, triggering the release of LH (luteinizing hormone) from the pituitary gland and thus rupture of the follicle (aka ovulation). The goal of oral contraceptive pills is to use constant levels of synthetic progesterone and estrogen (commonly ethinyl estradiol and progestin) to reduce FSH secretion and therefore LH, preventing ovulation. In the initial study trials for hormonal contraceptives, women in the studies thought they were pregnant because they were not having periods. This caused fear in women, therefore, scientists included the sugar pills to give women the assurance that they weren’t pregnant (super interesting, right?). When a woman bleeds while she is taking the pill, it is simply because she recently took ‘sugar pills’ in her set of birth control pills. These pills are just that—sugar. Your body responds to the lack of synthetic hormones by shedding the lining of your uterus (endometrium) through what appears to be menstrual blood. This, however, is not true menstruation.
You might be thinking: okay, I understand how these pills prevent pregnancy…but why are they prescribed so often for non-contraceptive purposes? Because hormonal contraceptives ‘shut off’ your body’s normal reproductive system, the hormones that were imbalanced are now synthetically “balanced”. How could this be a problem? When a woman has imbalanced hormones (manifesting in severe menstrual pain, menstrual irregularity, cystic acne, heavy periods, etc.), it is the body’s way of telling her something is wrong. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists indicates that menstrual irregularities identified in adolescence can be a sign for health problems in adulthood. This points us back to the importance of the menstrual cycle as a sign of overall health. The beautiful, intricate interplay of reproductive hormones in the female body isn’t something that should be ‘shut off’ simply because something has gone awry.
“Menstrual irregularities identified in adolescence can be a sign for health problems in adulthood.”
Our body communicates with us through biological markers or physical signs. For example, the biomarker of menstrual blood communicates to us that something is wrong when there is too much (over 80 mls of loss per cycle—I’ll go over this more in depth in a separate blog post). Another example would be the biomarker of cervical mucus. Our body is communicating to us that something is wrong if there is no mucus present at all, too much mucus, too little mucus, etc. I could keep going on and on about cervical mucus, but I will spare you in this post (take my hormone tracking class to learn so much more about all of these things!). I have a strong belief that, in order for women to function at their highest potential, they should understand their hormones and the important role they play in their overall health. According to FEMM, normal levels of estrogen stimulate our brain cells and promote well being whereas high levels of estrogen increase anxiety. Normal levels of estrogen also assist with bone formation and the proliferation of breast tissue. High levels of estrogen cause fluid retention, and elevate blood sugar. Normal levels of progesterone maintains bones, relaxes blood vessels, normalizes blood clotting, normalizes blood sugar, and maintains and heals brain cells. Normal levels of progesterone also promote sleep and relaxation and decrease anxiety.
“Normal levels of estrogen stimulate brain cells and promote well being […]. Normal levels of progesterone promote sleep and relaxation and decrease anxiety.”
This post could end up being multiple pages long, but I will spare you. The information you just read only merely touches the surface of the importance of normal fluctuation of female reproductive hormones. I hope that, through reading this information, you become empowered to learn more about the beauty of your female body and the importance of hormone regulation. If you’re thinking, ‘how on earth I am supposed to do that?’ or ‘birth control seems to be my only option’, book my hormone tracking class to learn more. I don’t want you to feel hopeless or alone in your desire for optimal health and wellbeing. Your concerns don’t deserve to be ‘pushed under the rug’. You are worthy of healing and you are beautiful, just because you are a woman.
“I don’t want you to feel hopeless or alone in your desire for optimal health and wellbeing. Your concerns don’t deserve to be ‘pushed under the rug’. You are worthy of healing and you are beautiful, just because you’re a woman.”
References:
Hendrickson-Jack, L., & Briden, L. (2019). The fifth vital sign: Master your cycles and optimize your fertility. Fertility Friday Publishing Inc.
Swingle, byMarianne, Swingle, M., Alicea, byMelayna, Alicea, M., Sharp, byClare, Sharp, C., Williams, byAnne M., Williams, A. M., Jarvis, byLeanne, Jarvis, L., Curran, byKristen, Curran, K., Valderrama, byRebekah, Valderrama, R., Wescott, byElizabeth, Wescott, E., Stark, byGrace E., Stark, G. E., Womanhood, byNatural, … Kulda, K. (2025, February 4). Natural Womanhood Home. Natural Womanhood. https://naturalwomanhood.org/
Yonis, H., Løkkegaard, E., Kragholm, K., Granger, C. B., Møller, A. L., Mørch, L. S., Torp-Pedersen, C., & Meaidi, A. (2025a, February 12). Stroke and myocardial infarction with contemporary hormonal contraception: Real-world, nationwide, prospective Cohort Study. The BMJ. https://www.bmj.com/content/388/bmj-2024-082801#:~:text=Introduction,of%20hormonal%20contraceptive%20to%20use.
Many American women use birth control pills for noncontraceptive reasons. Guttmacher Institute. (2022, August 24). https://www.guttmacher.org/news-release/2011/many-american-women-use-birth-control-pills-noncontraceptive-reasons#:~:text=The%20most%20common%20reason%20U.S.,are%20particularly%20common%20during%20adolescence.
Cooper, D. B. (2024, February 29). Oral contraceptive pills. StatPearls [Internet]. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430882/#:~:text=Oral%20contraceptive%20pills%20(OCPs)%20are,estrogen%20component%20controls%20menstrual%20bleeding.
Contemporary OB/GYN. (2020, November 13). ACOG: The menstrual cycle is a vital sign. Contemporary OB/GYN. https://www.contemporaryobgyn.net/view/acog-menstrual-cycle-vital-sign
The science. FEMM Health. (2020, October 13). https://femmhealth.org/the-science/
