What is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome?
It’s probably taken a long time to diagnose and you still don’t know what it is, or what to do..
What is PCOS?
Polycystic ovarian syndrome is linked with hormonal imbalances and insulin resistance and is thought to affect between 5-20% of women worldwide. It can cause irregular menstrual cycles, fertility difficulties, excess male hormone levels, small cysts on the ovaries, weight gain (around the waist especially) and excess body hair. Blood sugar imbalances and insulin resistance are present in up to 90% of sufferers and are now thought to be causes rather than symptoms of PCOS.
What is going on in the body?
PCOS is a complex disorder. A number of factors may produce the cysts and exacerbate the symptoms, including changes in hormone and insulin production, diet, pollution, stress levels and exercise. The basic issue is believed to be an inability of the ovaries to produce hormones in the correct proportions. The pituitary gland senses that the ovary is not working properly, and in turn releases abnormal amounts of LH and FSH, which are both linked to the ovary’s ability to develop and release an egg. It is when this ability to ovulate becomes disabled that infertility can occur in women with PCOS.
However, it seems these hormonal symptoms are actually triggered off by a deeper, underlying cause which has long-term health consequences beyond the reproductive lifetime of a woman’s body.
It is now commonly believed that insulin resistance may play a role in causing PCOS, rather than the other way around. Elevated insulin levels may be a contributing factor to inflammation and other metabolic complications associated with PCOS. PCOS women have a high risk of inflammation and high C Reactive Protein. While the connection is known, the causes of the relationship between the two conditions are not completely clear. In young women with PCOS, high insulin levels can cause the ovaries to make more androgen hormones such as testosterone. This can cause increased body hair, acne, and irregular or few periods. Having insulin resistance can increase your risk of developing diabetes.
Most importantly, insulin resistance does not affect everyone in exactly the same way, so while some women with insulin resistance develop PCOS, others do not. Both insulin resistance and PCOS can contribute to infertility. Excessive production of androgenic hormones is an independent risk factor for female infertility and ovarian dysfunction, with or without PCOS. The hormonal changes of PCOS interfere with proper implantation of the embryo, while insulin resistance can lead to miscarriage due to inadequate nutrition and support of the growing embryo. When these two conditions are combined, infertility and early miscarriage can make it difficult to carry a baby to term. If you have insulin resistance or PCOS, you are also at risk of developing gestational diabetes during pregnancy.
While each condition is associated with depression, the risk of depression is much stronger when the two conditions occur together.
It is important to deal with PCOS, as women with PCOS have a 4 to 7 times higher risk of heart attack and 50 percent will develop prediabetes or diabetes before the age of forty. They are also more likely to develop endometrial cancer. Managing the symptoms is therefore imperative.