disturb the whole intricate system of your body.
As well as having a role in the struggle against diseases such as cancer, arthritis and heart disease, diet can also help combat infertility, stress, insomnia and conditions like PMS.
The aim of nutritional therapy tailored for PCOS, and the role of a nutritional therapist – someone trained to see food and nutritional supplements as medicine, and help you to use them to correct imbalances in the body – would be to reduce insulin levels by lowering blood-sugar and other triggers of insulin production, such as stimulants like coffee and stress. Eating the right kinds of food can provide the body with the proper nutrients so it can correct the underlying hormonal imbalances which lie at the root of PCOS, and tackle specific symptoms such as sugar cravings, acne, hair loss, irregular periods and depression.
For instance, avoiding saturated fat and high-sugar foods, and increasing fibre intake, can help to reduce androgen levels and ease the symptoms which are triggered when male hormones are out of balance.
Many women with PCOS also have to deal with ‘unopposed’ oestrogen, which occurs when no ovulation takes place in a menstrual cycle, so that there is no surge of progesterone in the second half of the cycle to balance out the normal levels of oestrogen. Unopposed oestrogen can cause symptoms such as hot sweats and dizziness. Dietary changes such as avoiding junk foods and unhealthy carbohydrates and ensuring an adequate intake of essential fatty acids and healthy carbohydrates would aim to restore the correct balance of oestrogen, progesterone and androgen. (See Chapter 2 for descriptions of healthy and unhealthy carbohydrates.)
According to clinical nutritionist Conner Middleman Whitney, who has studied and documented the effects of nutritional therapy on PCOS via a three-month internet study involving dietary changes and nutritional supplements, ‘More work needs to be done into the link between nutrition and PCOS. However, for women seeking to overcome the many symptoms associated with PCOS, I strongly believe that nutritional therapy can offer powerful support.’10
PROTECT YOUR FUTURE HEALTH
Making simple and beneficial changes to your diet and lifestyle are the first important steps towards balanced hormones and a state of good, natural health. But what about protecting your health in the years to come?
If you have PCOS, you are potentially at a higher risk of developing the following long-term health problems:
| Obesity | Many women with PCOS find that their symptoms get worse when they put on weight. Being overweight has many long-term associated health problems. It reduces mobility, prolongs healing time and increases the risks of all the other long-term health conditions listed below. | |
| Infertility | This is defined as an inability to conceive after one year of regular unprotected sex. PCOS causes problems with ovulation due to imbalances in the hormones LH (luteinizing hormone) and FSH (follicle stimulating hormone). If a woman isn’t ovulating she can’t conceive, so PCOS is linked to infertility. But some women with PCOS ovulate, some ovulate occasionally, and others are only ever infertile for the odd month or two. | |
| Miscarriage | This is the loss of a pregnancy, normally before 14 weeks. Women with PCOS, who have high levels of Luteinizing Hormone, may be at greater risk of early pregnancy loss. Of women with recurrent miscarriage, more than 80 per cent have been identified as having polycystic ovaries. | |
| Eating disorders | A recent study suggested that PCO/S does not cause eating disorders,11 but since many women with PCOS have problems controlling their weight it is hardly surprising that as many as 60 per cent of women with PCOS have ‘disordered eating’ patterns such as bulimia. | |
| Cholesterol problems | A low level of the ‘good’ cholesterol – high density lipoprotein (HDL) – and an increased level of the ‘bad’ cholesterol – low density lipoprotein (LDL) – together with high triglyceride levels are seen in women with PCOS, particularly those who have insulin resistance.12 This situation is associated with the risk of developing both heart disease and non-insulin-dependent (Type II) diabetes. Healthy eating and exercise can and are proven ways to help. | |
| High blood pressure | Women with PCOS are four times more likely to suffer from high blood pressure than other people of the same age and weight. High blood pressure is an independent risk factor for heart disease.13 | |
| Non-insulin dependent diabetes | Research has shown that insulin resistance plays a significant role as both a cause and symptom of PCOS. A woman with PCOS is seven times more likely to develop diabetes during her lifetime than the rest of the population.14 | |
| Gestational diabetes | The increased incidence of hyperinsulinism and insulin resistance means that if you have PCOS you are likely to develop diabetes during pregnancy. This gestational diabetes can be associated with complications during pregnancy. After the pregnancy this type of diabetes commonly resolves, but there is an increased risk of it reappearing in later life. | |
| Cardiovascular disease | Using the risk factors for cardiovascular disease which have been identified in women with PCOS, it is thought that they have a sevenfold increased risk of having a heart attack when compared to the general population.15 | |
| Endometrial cancer | We don’t know if there is direct evidence of a link between PCOS and endometrial cancer, but we do know that this cancer is oestrogen-driven. If you have no periods, your womb lining doesn’t shed, and this unshed, thicker lining can promote the cell changes linked to endometrial cancer. | |
| Endometriosis | It is not uncommon to see both PCO/S and endometriosis in the same woman. Are the two conditions linked? No one really knows the answer at present. Endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the lining to the womb grows at other sites in the body outside the womb – commonly in the pelvis, on the ovaries and in the bowel, but also in rare cases on the lungs, eye, thighs and arms. We do know that this aberrant growth is oestrogen-dependent. Since many women with PCOS and irregular periods have raised oestrogen levels with little or no opposing progesterone, this may make the situation worse for women who also have endometriosis. | |
| Ovarian cysts |
A 1996 study reported an increased risk of ovarian cancer among women with PCOS in a population-based, case-controlled study involving 426 cancer patients and 4,081 controls.16 The association was found to be stronger in those who had never used oral contraceptives. Many studies need to be done to verify these findings, and the link between PCOS and ovarian cancer is by no means established, but the relative protection offered by oral contraceptives needs to be taken into account when determining your choice of contraception.
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