Last checked September 2026 against 19 sources · Editorial policy
How to increase progesterone
Your body makes progesterone after ovulation, so the natural way to increase it is to restore ovulation when something has stopped it, such as stress, weight loss, excessive exercise or PCOS. No food is proven to raise progesterone, and wild yam cream didn't change levels in a trial. In perimenopause, falling progesterone is part of the transition; when you need progesterone, such as with estrogen HRT, prescription micronized progesterone is the proven option.
Progesterone comes from ovulation, so food can't raise it much. What supports ovulation, which supplements lack evidence, and prescription options.
How to increase progesterone: expectation vs reality
What people often expect
“Eating the right foods or using a natural cream will raise my progesterone”
What the evidence shows
Progesterone comes from the corpus luteum after ovulation, not from food. In a placebo-controlled trial, wild yam cream didn't change blood or saliva progesterone. OTC progesterone creams raised blood levels only slightly in another trial and had no effect on symptoms. If ovulation is irregular because of perimenopause, lifestyle changes can't restore it.
Ways to increase progesterone: what the evidence says
How the body makes progesterone
After ovulation, the empty follicle becomes the corpus luteum, a temporary gland that makes progesterone for the second half of the cycle. If you don't get pregnant, it breaks down and progesterone falls. The adrenal glands make small amounts, and in pregnancy the placenta takes over. So anything that stops ovulation also stops the monthly progesterone rise.
Learn more →Reduce stress to support progesterone
MedlinePlus notes that too much of the stress hormone cortisol can affect your body's ability to make progesterone. Stress is also one of the main triggers of functional hypothalamic amenorrhea, when ovulation stops. The Endocrine Society recommends medical, dietary and mental health support for this condition, so managing stress is a real, evidence-based step.
Weight, exercise and progesterone
Weight loss and excessive exercise, alone or together, can switch off ovulation and with it progesterone. Restoring energy balance through nutrition and easing training is part of treating functional hypothalamic amenorrhea. At the other end, PCOS causes missed periods and unpredictable ovulation, which also means low progesterone; treatment depends on the cause.
Foods that increase progesterone
No food has been shown to raise progesterone. Wild yam, often promoted as a natural source, didn't change progesterone in a trial. MedlinePlus lists low cholesterol among possible causes of low progesterone, but there's no evidence that eating more cholesterol raises it. A balanced diet supports regular cycles by preventing low weight.
Vitamins and supplements for progesterone
Supplements marketed to boost progesterone aren't FDA-approved and haven't been shown to work in good trials. Wild yam cream didn't raise levels, and a 32 mg progesterone cream raised blood levels only slightly without any effect on symptoms, lipids or bone markers. Saliva tests used to monitor creams were found to be completely unreliable.
Learn more →Progesterone in perimenopause
From the menopause transition onward, cycles without ovulation become more common and luteal progesterone falls with each stage, in one study. This is a natural change, not a deficiency you can fix with lifestyle. If it causes heavy periods, a progestogen such as the hormonal IUD treats them; if you take estrogen for symptoms, you'll take progesterone with it.
Learn more →Increasing progesterone for fertility
A short luteal phase, 10 days or less, is called luteal phase deficiency. Fertility specialists say it also occurs in fertile women and hasn't been proven to cause infertility on its own, and it's disputed whether treatment helps. In early pregnancy, vaginal progesterone increased live births for women with bleeding and a previous miscarriage in a Cochrane review.
Prescription progesterone
When progesterone is actually needed, micronized progesterone is identical to your own and cheap as a generic: 30 capsules of 100 mg cost $9.45 at Cost Plus Drugs. It's used with estrogen HRT, to bring on missed periods and in fertility treatment. It commonly causes drowsiness, so it's taken at bedtime.
Learn more →Increasing progesterone by the numbers
10 days
32 mg
1.8–23.9 ng/mL
$9.45
Lifestyle changes help progesterone only when stress, weight loss or overtraining have stopped ovulation.
How to raise progesterone: options ranked by evidence
Treat the cause of missed ovulation
If this is the causeFor stress, weight loss or excessive exercise, medical, dietary and mental health support can restore cycles; PCOS needs its own treatment.
Prescription micronized progesterone
First stepThe proven option when progesterone is needed, such as with estrogen HRT or to bring on a period. Body-identical and inexpensive as a generic.
Related guide →Hormonal IUD for heavy perimenopausal periods
First stepNICE suggests the levonorgestrel IUD as a first treatment for heavy menstrual bleeding in many women.
Related guide →Wild yam and OTC creams
No good evidenceDidn't raise progesterone meaningfully or ease symptoms in trials.
Related guide →
When to see a doctor about low progesterone
Missed 3 periods in a row
See a doctor to find out why you're not ovulating.
Trying to conceive for a year without success
See a doctor; a progesterone test can show whether you ovulate.
Bleeding in early pregnancy, especially after a previous miscarriage
Contact your doctor; vaginal progesterone may be offered.
Heavy or frequent periods in your 40s
See a doctor; these can be treated with progestogens.
More →
How to increase progesterone: questions women ask
How can I increase my progesterone naturally?
By supporting ovulation: manage stress, avoid excessive exercise, keep a healthy weight and get PCOS or thyroid problems treated. There's no proven food or supplement, and in perimenopause lifestyle can't restore regular ovulation.
What foods increase progesterone?
None has been shown to raise progesterone in trials. Wild yam, the most promoted, didn't change progesterone levels. A balanced diet that keeps your weight healthy supports ovulation, which is where progesterone comes from.
Are there progesterone-rich foods?
No food is a meaningful source of progesterone. Your ovaries make it after ovulation; prescription micronized progesterone is made from plants but processed into the identical hormone.
How can I raise progesterone quickly?
Only with prescription progesterone. Oral micronized progesterone peaks in the blood within about 3 hours of a dose. Natural methods work, if at all, over months by restoring ovulation.
Does vitamin C or B6 increase progesterone?
We didn't find good trials showing that vitamins raise progesterone meaningfully. Luteal phase deficiency itself hasn't been proven to cause infertility, and it's disputed whether any treatment improves outcomes.
Does stress lower progesterone?
Yes. Too much cortisol can affect your ability to make progesterone, and stress can stop ovulation entirely in functional hypothalamic amenorrhea.
Can you increase progesterone in perimenopause?
Not naturally in a lasting way, because ovulation becomes irregular. If low progesterone causes heavy periods or you take estrogen HRT, prescription progestogens are used.
Does wild yam cream increase progesterone?
No. In a double-blind trial, wild yam cream didn't change blood or saliva progesterone and didn't ease menopause symptoms more than placebo.
Does exercise increase progesterone?
Moderate exercise supports regular cycles, but excessive exercise, especially with weight loss, can stop ovulation and with it progesterone. If heavy training has stopped your periods, easing off with medical and dietary support is part of treatment.
How long does it take to raise progesterone naturally?
If ovulation stopped because of stress, weight loss or overtraining, recovery depends on treating the cause, with medical, dietary and mental health support. Prescription progesterone works immediately: oral capsules reach their peak within about 3 hours of a dose.
Can PCOS cause low progesterone?
Yes. PCOS causes missed periods and unpredictable ovulation, and without ovulation no progesterone is made that cycle. Treatment depends on your goals, such as regulating periods, and the NHS lists the combined pill as one option.
Sources
- Cleveland Clinic. Progesterone: natural function, levels and side effects.
- MedlinePlus, US National Library of Medicine. Progesterone test.
- Gordon CM, Ackerman KE, Berga SL, et al. Functional Hypothalamic Amenorrhea: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2017;102(5):1413-1439.
- Komesaroff PA, Black CV, Cable V, et al. Effects of wild yam extract on menopausal symptoms, lipids and sex hormones in healthy menopausal women. Climacteric. 2001;4(2):144-50.
- NHS. Utrogestan (micronised progesterone): about.
- Wren BG, Champion SM, Willetts K, et al. Transdermal progesterone and its effect on vasomotor symptoms, blood lipid levels, bone metabolic markers, moods, and quality of life for postmenopausal women. Menopause. 2003;10(1):13-8.
- Hale GE, Zhao X, Hughes CL, et al. Endocrine features of menstrual cycles in middle and late reproductive age and the menopausal transition classified according to the Staging of Reproductive Aging Workshop (STRAW) staging system. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2007;92(8):3060-7.
- Cleveland Clinic. Low estrogen: causes, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment.
- US Food and Drug Administration. Dietary supplements.
- Wren BG, McFarland K, Edwards L, et al. Effect of sequential transdermal progesterone cream on endometrium, bleeding pattern, and plasma progesterone and salivary progesterone levels in postmenopausal women. Climacteric. 2000;3(3):155-60.
- NICE. Heavy menstrual bleeding: assessment and management (NG88).
- Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine and Practice Committee of the Society for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. Diagnosis and treatment of luteal phase deficiency: a Committee Opinion. Fertil Steril. 2026;126(4):633-639.
- Devall AJ, Papadopoulou A, Podesek M, et al. Progestogens for preventing miscarriage: a network meta-analysis. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021;4(4):CD013792.
- Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company. Hormone therapy medication prices (checked September 2026).
- Prescribing information: Prometrium (progesterone capsules). Acertis Pharmaceuticals, 2026. DailyMed, US National Library of Medicine.
- Labcorp. Progesterone (test 004317): reference range.
- NHS. Missed or late periods.
- NHS. Heavy periods.
- NHS. Utrogestan (micronised progesterone): common questions.
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