Detecting hormone imbalances: How confirming ovulation with Proov can help

Did you know that successful ovulation can be a sign of a healthy hormone balance?

When ovulation is triggered by sufficient estrogen levels and followed by enough progesterone, it is considered healthy and means your hormones are likely balanced. In fact, confirming ovulation can give you insight into your cycle and hormonal health.

Today we’ll be tackling the following questions in this guest post from Proov:

• What hormones are needed for ovulation?
• What can ovulation tell you about your hormones?
• How do you tell if you’re ovulating? What are different ways to confirm ovulation?
• Why is progesterone important when it comes to ovulation? Can you test your progesterone at home?
• How is PdG testing different than other ovulation testing methods, like BBT testing and progesterone blood kits?

Why is ovulation a good indicator of hormonal health?

The American College of Gynecology and Obstetrics considers your period and menstrual cycle to be critical indicators of over female health. A woman’s cycle is even considered her fifth vital sign. Irregularities in a woman’s cycle can be indicative of hormone imbalances or other health issues.

Healthy ovulation is a critical part of a healthy cycle and hormone balance. The development and release of an egg is only triggered by sufficient levels of estrogen and LH. Additionally, ovulation is only considered “healthy” if an empty follicle produces enough progesterone after an egg has been released. Progesterone is the hormone responsible for preparing the uterine lining for implantation, should conception occur.

Why should I confirm healthy ovulation?

There are many reasons you should confirm healthy ovulation.

First, if you’re trying to conceive, confirming healthy ovulation lets you know if you have a chance at conception that cycle. After all, without an egg conception is not possible. An embryo has a better chance of survival if post-ovulation hormones are at sufficient levels. Suboptimal or “weak” ovulation - often meaning that progesterone levels aren’t where they need to be - can make it difficult to conceive.

In fact, ovulatory issues are the cause of infertility in about 25% of all infertile couples. This can mean a woman doesn’t ovulate at all, ovulates irregularly, or her ovulation is “weak.”

But what if I’m not trying to conceive?

Even if you’re not trying to conceive, confirming ovulation can still help you! As we mentioned, healthy ovulation is indicative of a healthy balance between estrogen and progesterone. Ovulatory issues can be a sign of a hormone imbalance, potentially caused by conditions such as PCOS or endometriosis.

For example, women with PCOS have an abnormally high amount of androgens (male hormones) which can cause an imbalance in luteinizing hormone (LH) levels. Since LH helps prepare an egg for ovulation, an imbalance can prevent ovulation from occurring. Lack of ovulation also often means lack of progesterone, which can lead to a further imbalance between estrogen and progesterone. Confirming ovulation can help women with PCOS identify anovulatory cycles.

In women with endometriosis, endometrial tissue develops outside of the uterine cavity and can be found on the ovaries or fallopian tubes. Endometrial tissue found in these locations can prevent ovulation from occurring. Women with endometriosis may still menstruate due to rises in estrogen, but confirming ovulation is the only way to tell if the condition is preventing ovulation and potentially causing a hormone imbalance.

What should I do if I suspect a hormone imbalance?

The sooner you can identify a hormone imbalance, the sooner you can return to your best self!

First, we recommend Pollie, an online platform that makes it easy to find a hormone health specialist perfect for you. Simply take a quick 2-minute quiz and get matched with a specialist so that you can get treatment faster!

You can also confirm healthy ovulation through various methods we’ll explain below. Confirming healthy ovulation can empower you with important information about your hormones and potential imbalances.

How can I confirm ovulation?

Ovulation confirmation methods include basal body temperature tracking, blood progesterone testing, and urine PdG testing.

While basal body temperature (BBT) tracking can be helpful at providing a sign that ovulation has happened monitoring the slight temperature increase that occurs when progesterone is present after ovulation, this method is tracking a secondary symptom and can be impacted by sickness, alcohol consumption, or a toasty toddler sharing a bed. Plus, the temperature change will indicate that progesterone is present, but falls short of showing if adequate levels are present. For this reason, basal body temperature tracking can fall short and you may want to try other methods if you are paying attention to BBT but still having trouble conceiving.

Progesterone blood tests — available both at the doctor and through mail-in kits — provide a precise progesterone level. This can be helpful in determining if ovulation has occurred, but it is only a one-point-in-time measurement. Because progesterone is released in waves throughout the day, progesterone blood tests can fall short of showing the full ovulation picture.  

PdG, on the other hand, is the urine metabolite of progesterone. Published studies have shown that tracking PdG over multiple days — seven to ten days after suspected ovulation — can confirm successful ovulation, meaning that ovulation was healthy and sufficient hormone levels were present post-ovulation.  

Sounds great! How do I test for PdG?

Enter Proov! Proov is the first and only FDA-cleared test that measures PdG over multiple days to confirm successful ovulation. The best part? It allows you to test your PdG at home.

If healthy ovulation has occurred, PdG levels rise in the second half of the cycle, or luteal phase, after suspected ovulation. To use Proov, you test your urine upon waking on days seven, eight, nine, and ten after suspected ovulation. The test works by measuring PdG, the urine metabolite of progesterone, during these days.

If a woman gets positives during this window, then great — she can feel confident that she successfully ovulated that cycle and that her post-ovulation hormone levels are sufficient. And if tests never go positive or don’t stay positive throughout the window? That could indicate lack of ovulation or weak ovulation, both of which can often be fixed through simple medications or supplements. In some cases, natural solutions can do the trick as well!  

Regardless of results, Proov provides powerful information that can help women move forward on their hormone health journeys by either ruling out or detecting common hormone imbalances that are associated with ovulatory issues.  

With Proov and Pollie, you can learn more about your hormones and be empowered with more valuable information sooner.

Want to give Proov a try yourself? Get $5 your Proov test by using this link.

This article was written as a guest post by Proov’s team.

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