---
title: Does progesterone help or harm women's mood? | Niyora
description: It depends on the condition. Progesterone's metabolite allopregnanolone helps postpartum depression but may trigger negative symptoms in women with PMS and PM
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/progesterone-friend-or-foe-2020/
---

- [Niyora](https://niyora.com/)
- [Research](https://niyora.com/research/)
- [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/)
- Does progesterone help or harm women's mood?

Review, 2020

# Does progesterone help or harm women's mood?

It depends on the condition. Progesterone's metabolite allopregnanolone helps postpartum depression but may trigger negative symptoms in women with PMS and PMDD. More research is needed.

 Moderate study design

Women with PMS, PMDD, and postpartum depression (review article)

## What they did

The authors reviewed research on progesterone and its metabolite allopregnanolone, focusing on their effects on mood in women with PMS, PMDD, and postpartum depression.

## What they found

Allopregnanolone has been proven useful for treating postpartum depression. However, it may trigger negative symptoms in women with PMS and PMDD. Current knowledge about progesterone's beneficial and harmful effects is limited, and treatments for PMS and PMDD are still needed.

## What it means for you

Progesterone may affect women differently depending on the condition. Women with PMS or PMDD may need different treatments than women with postpartum depression. The main limit is that this is a review, not new research findings.

## About the study

Original title Progesterone - Friend or foe? Authors Sundström-Poromaa I, Comasco E, Sumner R et al. Journal Frontiers in neuroendocrinology Year 2020 Study design Review What was tested Progesterone and allopregnanolone (hormonal treatments) Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/j.yfrne.2020.100856](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yfrne.2020.100856) Original abstract

Estradiol is the "prototypic" sex hormone of women. Yet, women have another sex hormone, which is often disregarded: Progesterone. The goal of this article is to provide a comprehensive review on progesterone, and its metabolite allopregnanolone, emphasizing three key areas: biological properties, main functions, and effects on mood in women. Recent years of intensive research on progesterone and allopregnanolone have paved the way for new treatment of postpartum depression. However, treatment for premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder as well as contraception that women can use without risking mental health problems are still needed. As far as progesterone is concerned, we might be dealing with a two-edged sword: while its metabolite allopregnanolone has been proven useful for treatment of PPD, it may trigger negative symptoms in women with PMS and PMDD. Overall, our current knowledge on the beneficial and harmful effects of progesterone is limited and further research is imperative.

Reproduced under CC-BY.

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[Oral contraceptives and drospirenone](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-hormonal-contraceptives/)[Neurosteroids (allopregnanolone)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-neurosteroids/)[Pregnancy and postpartum](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-postpartum/)

Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits.

Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor.

## Related studies

Randomised trial, 2017

Does Sepranolone reduce symptoms of severe premenstrual syndrome (PMDD)?

Study, 2022

Why do women get PMS and PMDD?

Review, 2020

Do hormonal contraceptives cause depression?

Survey study, 2018

How do women respond differently to psychiatric medications and why do we need sex-specific treatments?

Systematic review, 2026

Why do some women experience mood changes linked to their menstrual cycle?

Case-control study, 2024

Do steroid hormone levels change differently across the menstrual cycle in women with PMDD?

Ask AI about this page

Copy prompt

ChatGPT

↗

Claude

↗

Perplexity

↗

Google AI Mode

↗

Grok

↗