A Natural Treatment For Luteal Phase Defect (fixing the root causes)

Hormonal issues are a pain in the ass. When things aren’t running smoothly it can turn your life upside-down, but it’s especially frustrating when you’re actively focusing on your fertility and worrying about the future.

Many women are actually brought up without a basic knowledge of the menstrual cycle and will gladly throw pills at it to suppress uncomfortable symptoms and natural processes. You might not even know there’s anything wrong until you decide you want to get pregnant and can’t.

The good thing about these types of issues is that hormonal imbalances usually respond well to diet and lifestyle changes.

Cycle syncing and other hormone balancing life routines have done absolute wonders for so many people. Not only do they help you to optimize health and wellbeing, but also to understand your body, yourself and your moods in ways you never could before.

This post focuses on the most effective natural treatment for luteal phase defect.

I’ll go over the basics of luteal phase deficiency and the most probable causes behind it. I’ll then lay out the most productive diet and lifestyle steps you can focus on to try and bring things into balance. At the end you also have a list of supplements that might help boost your results.

Table of Contents

Luteal phase defect basics

Also called luteal phase dysfunction, luteal phase deficiency, or luteal insufficiency. It’s basically a condition where there’s not enough exposure to progesterone (in amounts produced or duration) in the second half of the cycle, to allow for the proper growth of the uterine lining and the successful implantation of the fertilized egg (in case of pregnancy).

During the luteal phase, your cervical lining thickens to prepare for a possible pregnancy. If there’s not enough progesterone secreted, or if your uterus is not responding correctly to it for some reason, then the uterine lining won’t grow properly. This usually causes a shorter than expected luteal phase.

It’s not straightforward to diagnose, because it has many possible root causes and they’re not mutually exclusive, meaning you could be dealing with several things at the same time.

Also, progesterone is secreted in pulses during the luteal phase and the levels can fluctuate wildly within a 90-minute period, making lab tests less than straightforward. The best indicator is a shorter than average luteal phase.

What is a healthy luteal phase

The ideal length for the luteal phase is 14 days.

It seems to be the optimal length needed for the estrogen and the progesterone to create a uterine lining “cushy” enough for the egg to anchor itself and for the pregnancy to begin.

Obviously, every woman is different. Most women have a luteal phase between 12 and 14 days, but you may range from 11–17 days and still be perfectly within healthy ranges.

Anything less than 10 days, though, is usually considered too short and termed luteal phase defect.

Possible symptoms of luteal phase dysfunction

A menstrual cycle that lasts less than 25 days. This is a sign that your luteal phase might be short. Also if you feel like you’re having more frequent periods.

Spotting and/or bleeding between periods. It usually happens in the luteal phase or before your period. This can be an indication of poor egg quality and that the corpus luteum degenerated prematurely, meaning there wasn’t enough progesterone produced and that the progesterone drop happened sooner than it should have.

Irregular and/or missing periods.

Signs of testosterone (androgen) dominance. Like facial hair, weight gain, or acne. This can be a sign that your body is either producing too much testosterone, or that you’re not producing enough estrogen and progesterone, and so the testosterone is dominant in the body.

A premature drop in your basal body temperature during the luteal phase. If you’re tracking your basal body temperature. Progesterone is what causes an increase in temperature after ovulation that should remain steady until the onset of menstruation. If you’re tracking your basal body temperature and you don’t see this rise in temperature maintained for at least 12 days, it may be a sign of luteal phase defect.

Difficulty becoming pregnant.

Miscarriage. Progesterone is mainly responsible for the thickening of the uterine lining during the luteal phase. If the uterine lining is not thick enough, it won’t be able to sustain a fertilized egg. So a miscarriage could be a sign of luteal phase deficiency.

…And some possible causes

Luteal phase insufficiency is most typically caused by low progesterone, but it can be due to other factors as well. Like everything else related to the human body, it’s highly complex and issues become interconnected, making it difficult to disentangle a “number 1” cause. Let’s go over the usual suspects.

A low or premature drop in progesterone can be due to:

Poor egg quality. If a less well developed follicle releases a poorly developed egg, it will affect the amount of progesterone that the corpus luteum of that egg will be able to produce. So, less progesterone to “ripen” the uterine lining and a shorter lifespan for the corpus luteum, triggering menstruation earlier and causing shorter cycles. Inflammation in the body has been proven to lower egg quality.

Estrogen dominance. The body may produce good amounts of progesterone, but it either produces too much estrogen or has difficulty metabolizing the “normal” amounts of estrogen released. This can cause issues like PCOS, endometriosis, or fibroids, which can cause further hormone imbalances and dysregulated cycles.

Low body fat and micronutrient deficiencies. Basically, undereating and/or overexercising, extreme weight loss, or eating disorders. This will cause low cholesterol levels, which in turn will cut off or lower progesterone production in the body. And it’s not just progesterone – hormones in general need healthy amounts of fat in order to be produced. If you’re underweight or lacking in essential nutrients, the body will interpret that as “famine”. It will deduce that there are not enough resources to sustain new life and it will shut down fertility.

Stress. Chronically unhealthy stress levels (whether physical or emotional) will result in chronically high cortisol levels. Among the several massive problems this causes in the body is also the downregulation of ovulation, meaning it can be blocked completely. In fact, chronic stress is very much tied to amenorrhea (lack of a period). Progesterone is also produced in small amounts by the adrenal glands and used to synthesize cortisol – in times of greater stress, more progesterone is also needed.

BPA and phthalates (plasticizers). They’re raw materials widely used in plastic production – they’re absolutely everywhere! They’re nasty endocrine (hormone) disruptors, screwing up your normal hormonal flow and causing developmental, neurological, reproductive and immune disorders. They’ve been connected to DNA damage in eggs, infertility and even disorders like endometriosis and fibroids.

Unresponsive endometrium (uterine lining) or thin endometrium. Every cycle the uterine lining is constructed to prepare for the possibility of a fertilized egg. This happens through the influence of estrogen in the first half of the cycle and, later, progesterone in the second half of the cycle. If the endometrium doesn’t respond well to both hormones it will cause menstrual and fertility issues, among them luteal phase defect.

A thin endometrium can also be caused by other things, like physical damage or scarring (from surgeries or abortions), poor blood flow, medical conditions (like Asherman’s Syndrome or endometritis), or lifestyle factors (stress, smoking, alcohol, diet).

Low melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone that regulates the sleep-wake cycle and it’s produced by the pineal gland. Irregular sleep patterns and hours, or insufficient sleep (less than 6 hours) has been linked to shorter menstrual cycles. Melatonin also regulates the production of luteinizing hormone, which follows a circadian rhythm. It’s used as an antioxidant to protect the follicles just before the actual egg is released every cycle. Besides affecting egg quality, it also affects the production of progesterone indirectly.

Hyperprolactinemia. When there’s too much of the hormone prolactin circulating in your system. This is the hormone famous for producing breast milk – high levels of it seem to interfere with the corpus luteum and to reduce the progesterone levels in the luteal phase. High stress and sleep issues are well known to increase the level of prolactin in the body.

Thyroid disorders. Thyroid disorders are one of the most common hormone issues in the world. Of the various types, hypothyroidism (low thyroid function) is the most prevalent and it’s much more common in women than in men. But both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism have been firmly linked to menstrual irregularities and anovulation (lack of ovulation in menstrual cycles). Normal thyroid levels are absolutely essential for fertility. Prolactin levels are also usually significantly higher in women with hypothyroidism, which is bad for progesterone levels, as mentioned above. On the other hand, a healthy thyroid function is also vital for the development and growth of the follicles, alongside the follicle-stimulating hormone.

Pituitary gland issues. The pituitary gland is responsible for producing many of the hormones important for fertility, like follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, prolactin, as well as the thyroid-stimulating hormone that allows for thyroid hormone production. For instance, if there’s not enough follicle-stimulating hormone in the first half of the menstrual cycle, the production of the follicles in that cycle will be weakened. If the luteinizing hormone levels are low, it can prevent ovulation from occurring and lower progesterone as well. There are less common conditions that can cause issues with the pituitary (like tumors, Cushing’s, acromegaly, etc.), but high stress levels can also cause it to be overstimulated, since it is the mediator of the stress response.

Aging. For obvious reasons. As a woman approaches menopause, hormonal levels will change, leading to a transition period of estrogen dominance and progesterone decrease, causing shorter luteal phases. There’s also an increase in follicle-stimulating hormone levels, which is the body trying harder to “prep” the follicles to release the eggs. This is actually a measuring tool for your ovarian reserve, or how close you might be to menopause (running out of eggs).

Obesity. Obesity is a major disruptor of female fertility. It disrupts the “hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis” that’s so important in regulating the hormone balance, leading to menstrual dysfunction, anovulation (lack of ovulation), PCOS, and more. On top of that, the excessive fat deposits end up acting like an endocrine (hormonal) organ themselves, facilitating inflammation, blood coagulation, insulin resistance, cardiovascular risk, egg development, among other things. This is especially the case if the severe fat accumulation is in the upper part of the body.

Does luteal phase deficiency always cause infertility?

Too short a luteal phase is an indication that for some reason your body did not produce enough progesterone in that cycle. It can happen on-and-off due to high stress periods, or big changes in diet, or long fasts, or exposure to many toxins in the environment. That’s “normal” and not necessarily a reason for concern in terms of your long-term fertility.

However, if the luteal phases are chronically short, it means your body is likely not producing enough progesterone to sustain a pregnancy.

On the other hand, there are women with low progesterone and short luteal phases who do achieve natural pregnancies, so it might be more the case that luteal phase defect is associated with poorer pregnancy outcomes and more difficulty getting pregnant.

The science isn’t clear. The one thing that everyone agrees with is that the endometrium (uterine lining) needs to be thick enough in order for the fertilized egg to implant itself and develop. In order for that to happen, the endometrium requires a minimum number of days for proper development (thickening) and this can vary from woman to woman.

A natural treatment for luteal phase defect

The best natural treatment for luteal phase defect is a holistic approach, that takes into account diet and lifestyle first. Once you have the proper foundation, you can also look to boost it with specific supplements or practices.

Eat a whole foods, nutrient dense, anti-inflammatory diet

You need to make sure you’re getting all macros and micronutrients in sufficient amounts. So, high quality proteins, healthy fats, healthy complex carbs and a variety of color to make sure you’re getting plenty of antioxidants.

Eat as much variety as possible and as close as possible to their natural state, meaning more whole foods and fewer processed junk. It’s also important to try and avoid toxins in your food, because they will disrupt your hormones. So, go for organically grown, free-range, grass-fed as much as possible.

As far as fertility is concerned focus especially on:

(1) Foods rich in B vitamins. Absolutely necessary for proper hormone balance. They also support the adrenals and a healthy stress response.

Deficiencies in B6 and B9 (folic acid) have especially been linked to low levels of progesterone and poor endometrium response to hormones.

The best thing for B vitamins is to consume them through food. They’re very bioavailable and widespread throughout food categories. Meat and poultry, organ meats, fish, whole grains, leafy greens, avocados, nutritional yeast and brewer’s yeast, legumes, shellfish and mussels – it’s all over the place.

Great sources of vitamin B6 are salmon, chicken liver, milk, eggs, sweet potato, tuna, chickpeas, avocados, carrots, bananas.

You can find a lot of vitamin B9 in legumes, like chickpeas and beans, but especially lentils; liver, especially beef liver; broccoli; beets; leafy greens, especially chard and spinach; avocados; oranges; eggs; peanuts, almonds and sunflower seeds.

(2) Foods high in omega-3 fatty acids. They’re absolutely essential for hormone production, as well as follicle function and structure. They increase progesterone levels and promote blood flow in the female reproductive system. Omega-3 is also a type of unsaturated fat that’s good for improving cholesterol levels, which are also essential for hormone production.

Omega-3 rich foods are fish, especially cold-water fatty fish, like mackerel, salmon and sardines; seeds, like flax, chia and hemp; walnuts; soybeans; egg yolks.

(3) Vitamin C rich foods. Vitamin C boosts progesterone levels and has been shown to improve fertility in cases of luteal phase defect.

(4) Vitamin E rich foods. Vitamin E was actually first identified as a “fertility vitamin”, necessary for reproduction. Low levels have been linked to spontaneous abortions and luteal phase defect. Foods high in vitamin E are sunflower seeds, almonds, hazelnuts, spinach, avocados, squash, turnip greens, peanuts, olive oil, mango, sweet potatoes, tomato.

(5) Zinc rich foods. A zinc deficiency might interfere with the formation of the corpus luteum. No corpus luteum, not enough progesterone production and surefire luteal phase defect. Foods highest in zinc are oysters; beef, beef liver, lamb; hemp, pumpkin and sunflower seeds; cashews, lentils, turkey, eggs, sardine.

Make sure you’re eating enough calories

As mentioned earlier, one of the causes of poor hormone production is a low body fat percentage. You need to eat enough calories in order to make sure you have a healthy layer of fat and cholesterol levels. Without this the body cannot produce the hormones necessary to maintain fertility.

Take into account as well that the rise in progesterone during the luteal also causes an increase in the daily energy requirements – meaning, you should be eating more calories during this phase. In fact, it’s a typical characteristic of the “premenstrual” phase that you just feel hungrier. I definitely experience this – I’m absolutely ravenous throughout!

Reconsider your fasting habits or any dietary restrictions

The luteal phase is actually a good time to not fast at all, especially in the week leading up to your period.

Progesterone needs healthy carbs and a balanced sugar level. There’s a lot of sound advice backed by data on women and fasting. If you don’t know her yet, check out Dr. Mindy Pelz – she breaks down fasting recommendations and restrictions according to the different phases of the menstrual cycle.

It’s very useful information, especially when you’re already struggling with hormone imbalance and you’re scared of doing more damage.

Get enough sunshine or supplement with Vitamin D3

Vitamin D is one of those essential nutrients that affect almost every action in the human body (like magnesium). Depending on how you get it, it’s considered a vitamin (when consumed through diet) or a steroid hormone (when synthesized through sunlight exposure).

It plays an important role in fertility and deficiencies in it are associated with endometriosis and PCOS. It decreases both estrogen and progesterone levels, causing among other things a short luteal phase. Vitamin D also supports progesterone during the uterine lining thickening, embryo implantation and pregnancy.

When getting your vitamin D from sunshine it’s important to know that it’s the UVB rays that are able to be synthesized into vitamin D – these are the rays responsible for tanning. So, any sunlight coming through windows will be missing UVB rays. You’re also diminishing the amount absorbed if you’re wearing very high SPF.

If you’re getting your vitamin D through supplements, make sure it’s D3 and that it comes with K2, which is important to help prevent calcium buildup in the body, which might happen when taking too much vitamin D orally. Vitamin K makes sure the calcium is distributed correctly and does not accumulate where it shouldn’t.

Exercise regularly

Any form of exercise is valid, as long as you’re practicing it regularly and not excessively. This is not only to keep a healthy body composition (fat to lean body mass ratio), but also to maintain healthy hormone production and good mental hygiene.

Exercise is a MASSIVE impact tool to leverage in improving all aspects of life. It’s also worth noting that during the luteal phase, the action of the corpus luteum requires 2 to 6 times more oxygen per unit of weight than other vital organs of the body (like the heart and the liver). This means that promoting circulation is very important for healthy hormone production during the luteal phase.

Get enough sleep and fix your circadian rhythm

As mentioned earlier irregular sleep patterns or not enough sleep are linked to shorter menstrual cycles. A dysregulated melatonin level will also interfere with your progesterone secretion, so it’s important to optimize your sleep as much as possible.

Try to keep regular hours and if you’re getting up feeling tired or groggy, take steps to address the issue. I’ve written a whole blog post on how to fix your circadian rhythm quickly and improve your sleep quality naturally, so go check it out for specific tips.

Red light therapy

Red light therapy has been shown to stimulate healing and regeneration, to reduce pain and inflammation. It’s used a lot for skin conditions and rejuvenation, but it also has been shown to improve both male and female fertility.

It seems to boost mitochondrial activity, to increase blood flow and to help reduce oxidative stress. Studies in Japan and Denmark have shown it can boost pregnancy rates in infertile women.

The Denmark study mentions that red light therapy seems to be most effective in boosting fertility for older women and not so much for women under 30, the reason being that the cells of younger women are at their peak energy and phototherapy seems to work by boosting cell energy levels. So that’s something to consider.

Should you take supplements for luteal phase deficiency?

The decision to take supplements is a personal one – you need to do your research, hopefully check your levels (so that you’re not running blind) and take into account your personal reactions to foods and supplement doses.

In general, it’s always best to rely on proper nutrition first and only supplement if you are indeed deficient in something or you just can’t seem to maintain proper levels through diet alone.

It’s also important to consider that supplements are taken as isolated nutrients (i.e. not part of a complex of nutrients working synergistically, which is what comes naturally “packaged” in all the different foods) – and so they lack the “natural” intelligence of the evolution of complex systems.

They play off each other, so too much of one thing might lower another and when we start to try and compensate manually we can end up doing damage in ways we’re not aware of.

All this to say – you can choose to take the supplement form of any of the micronutrients mentioned in the diet section, because they’ve all been firmly linked to luteal phase defect and used to treat it.

Supplements to focus on

Complex B vitamin, vitamin B6 or B9

As I mentioned before, it’s always recommended to take the whole B-complex. Not just because they work synergistically (they need each other), but also because B6 supplementation in particular has been shown to cause toxicity.

Vitamin C

750 mg a day has been shown to improve progesterone levels.

It’s pretty safe to take in relatively high doses (like 1000 mg to 2000 mg), but there is some data suggesting that chronically high doses over 1000 mg a day can actually have a pro-oxidant effect, instead of an antioxidant one.

Also, there is a maximum threshold of vitamin C that we’re able to absorb at once (around 200 mg) and the rest will be secreted in your urine. So if you’re taking supplements, it’s best to split the 750 or 1000 mg throughout the day.

Vitamin E

It is possible to overdose with vitamin E. Too much can reduce blood clotting and cause nausea, headache, and diarrhea. The safe upper limit is 1000 mg. Also, vitamin K2 also has blood thinning properties, so you might want to reduce your vitamin E dosage if you’re already taking K2.

Vitamin D3

As mentioned earlier, make sure to take it with vitamin K2 (look for D3 supplements that come with vitamin K2, to make it easier). Also, it’s fat-soluble so take it with something fatty.

Zinc

Too much zinc can suppress copper and iron absorption, but 30 mg a day should be pretty safe for most people. If you feel almost instantly nauseated after taking zinc, it means it’s too much for you and you need to reduce the dose.

Omega-3 fatty acids

It’s a pretty safe supplement to consume and if you’re not eating fish (or enough fish), it might be a good idea. Safety levels are as high as 5000 mg.

Magnesium

This one is very safe to take regularly and most people are deficient.

It’s also needed for a billion different processes in the body, including fertility. Even if you don’t take it regularly, it’s a good idea to take it during the luteal phase specifically, especially in the case of luteal insufficiency. Because of the increase in progesterone during this phase the body needs more magnesium to synthesize it. Shoot for about 400 mg a day.

Other than micronutrients, there are other supplements that have been shown to have a positive effect in luteal phase defect.

Melatonin

Melatonin (1.5-3 mg at bedtime) increases progesterone production and supports growth hormone secretion.

Chaste tree or Vitex agnus-castus

Taken during the luteal phase only, it’s been shown to boost progesterone production.

How long until you see results?

It might take 2-3 months to lengthen the luteal phase to 12-14 days and normalize the basal body temperature.

Take into account that the complete process of folliculogenesis (the full development of ovarian follicles leading to ovulation) takes about a year. The follicles have a whole process of prepping, before they’re even viable to be primed for release any given month. So, your nutrition levels a year ago will influence the egg quality and luteal phase today.

The best natural treatment for luteal phase defect is to align yourself with the natural rhythms of the body and to try and limit the exposure to toxins.

It is impossible to eliminate them completely, because unfortunately we’re surrounded by poison, but bioaccumulation is a thing and you can absolutely lower your load.