Natural progesterone, the wild yam supplements

First farmed in 2600 BC by the Mayans in what is now Southern Mexico, Wild Yam is still considered a powerful natural progesterone.

Native to North America, the wild yam, which is not the same as a sweet potato yam is a herbaceous perennial vine thrives in warm, sunny climates. Today it can be found twining its way through parts of New England across to Ontario and Minnesota, south to Texas and Florida. It is also found in Latin America and has been naturalized in India, China, Peru and Africa.

The wild yam belongs to the family of plants known as Dioscoreaceae. There are over 850 species of this herbaceous vine found in the warmer and tropical climates throughout the world. Commonly, all species that are edible are known as yams, although they differ in a variety of ways. Some are used specifically for culinary purposes, while others contain active ingredients making them excellent medicinal candidates. Mexican wild yam falls into the latter category.

Mexican Yam or Dioscorea Villosa twists and winds itself through hedges, fences and bushes, reaching up to 30 feet in length. Its wooly stem is tubular and reddish-brown, hosting heart shaped leaves that have a downy underside, spanning up to 4 inches in diameter. The flowers of Diosocrea are yellowish-green or white and bloom in early summer to late July. The male flowers hang in clusters of about 3-6 inches long while the female flowers have drooping spike-like heads.

The fruit of the plant, the yam itself, looks like a three-winged capsule of sorts and is a greenish-yellow color. It ripens in the fall, sometimes remaining on the vine partway through the winter. The roots are small and slender in comparison to its long stretching vines, and run horizontally just beneath the earth, measuring about half an inch in diameter.

Herbalists used this yam as an effective remedy for menstrual cramps, colic (hence the name colic root) and child birth problems in the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1936 Japanese scientists discovered diosgenin, a very specific saponin (steroid like substances) similar in make up to cholesterol, progesterone and DHEA, all precursors to the steroid testosterone.

In the early 1940s, a US doctor by the name of Russell Marker, decided to create an oral hormone derived from plant saponins. At that time, the only hormones available were those derived from animal sources, and Marker felt the saponins could easily replicate their actions. After failing to gain US pharmaceutical backing, Marker approached the Mexican Ministry of Health, which granted him rights to produce his ‘new hormone’.

Marker soon began production using Mexican wild yams. It was found that these particular yams contained the diosgenin the Japanese has identified earlier, and further research found that when they altered the steroid nucleus of diosgenin in laboratories, it could replicate several other steroid hormones.

Mexican Wild Yam soon became the sole source of all diosgenin used in birth control pills. Today, wild yam still provides close to 50 percent of the diosgenin used to manufacture such steroid hormones as progesterone and cortisone. It is estimated that over 200 million prescriptions sold every year in the US contain derivatives of wild yam.

In the 1990s, wild yam was dubbed the cure of the decade for menopausal symptoms and other female age-related problems. Many companies jumped on the Wild Yam wagon, but research today shows that the active component in wild yam is not even accessible by the human body. While the diosgenin in wild yam is a steroid-like chemical, without laboratory conversion, it has no hormonal actions what so ever according to many studies.

Hundreds of wild yam creams and supplements took over health food store shelves, many claiming to contain “natural progesterone” from diosgenin or they simply contained a synthetic hormone such as medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA). There are still women today that will swear by these products and many of the “natural” products were most likely excellent for a variety of problems such as menstrual cramps, ovarian pain, and colic, but this relief is not as a result of the diosgenin.¹

Wild yam is an excellent antispasmodic. It has been used for years as a fast and very effective cure for bilious colic and gallstones. Studies today show that wild yam can promote the flow of bile and therefore improves symptoms associated with such ailments.² As well, this herb is often used in cases of spasmodic asthma, diverticulitis and nausea, especially in pregnant women.

Wild yam also has wonderful anti-inflammatory properties and as such, is used as a treatment in rheumatoid arthritis relieving inflammation and easing stiff muscles.³Studies indicate that wild yam is also useful in digestive problems, especially those like irritable bowel syndrome and gastritis, where the anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmodic tendencies are useful.

Wild Yam is sold as a liquid extract, capsules or tablets. Many people make a tea from the liquid. Normal doses of wild yam are 2 capsules three times a day or as a tincture, 40 – 120 drops, three times daily. Diosgenin is also considered a toxin in large does and can cause extreme nausea and vomiting, so it always good to speak with a professional before self-prescribing this herb. Further studies on the effects of diosgenin indicate that it may interact with estradol, a naturally occurring hormone also used in some hormone replacement remedies and contraceptives, therefore those using this hormone should do so with care.

Reference:

1. Hoffman, David, “The New Holistic Herbal”, Element Books Inc, 1992.
2. Accatino L, Pizarro M, Solis N, Koenig C, “Effects of diosgenin, a plant derived steroid, on bile secretion and hepatocellular cholestasis induced by estrogens in the rat”, Hepatology, 1998;28(1):129-140.
3. Robbers JE, Tyler VE, “Tyler's Herbs of Choice: The Therapeutic Use of Phytomedicinals, New York, NY”, The Haworth Herbal Press;1999:187-188.