208 Achieving pH Balance to Treat Specific Ailments
It may be possible to reduce fatalities from ovarian cancer if women
are made aware of one of its early symptoms—digestive problems, such
as nausea or acid refl ux, unexplained weight gain, abdominal pain, or
bloating. If you’ve had digestive problems for years, it is unlikely that
they are a symptom of ovarian cancer. But if you’ve had no problem
with indigestion, and then it hits you out of the blue, see your doctor
immediately to have an MRI of your ovaries. Digestive disorders may
occur at such an early stage of ovarian cancer that the removal of the
ovaries can stop the cancer from spreading.Fertility and Enhanced Sex Drive
Besides all the health problems caused by excessive estrogen—it sup-
presses immune reaction, destroys oxygen and blood sugar, causes heart
attacks, increases the risk of cancer—it also depresses the sex drive.^12 At
one time it was assumed that the libido was triggered by estrogen. It is
now known that progesterone is the hormone that in women is most
responsible for sexual feelings. (To a smaller extent, testosterone and
DHEA are also involved in stimulating interest in sex.)
It is said that all feelings of sexuality originate in the brain. This
makes sense in the case of women in view of the fact that progesterone
levels in the brain are twenty times higher than in the blood.^13
Progesterone not only enhances the sex drive but also boosts intel-
ligence by increasing brain activity, regulates blood sugar, has a calm-
ing effect, prevents cancer (probably by building up the immune
system), builds bone and thus protects against arthritis and osteoporo-
sis, and neutralizes environmental toxins.
Because progesterone contributes to the overall wellness of the body
as well as to its sexuality, whereas estrogen, because there is almost
always too much of it, endangers health, it is important to get the blood
levels of your hormones tested. (Mainstream medicine never tests pro-
gesterone levels!) Use the saliva test rather than the blood test to mea-
sure your progesterone levels because progesterone levels fl uctuate.
Progesterone is defi cient in the vast majority of women. They should
use a natural progesterone transdermal cream, preferably extracted
from yams (see “Suggestions to Enhance the Sex Drive”). Another way