PCOS: what is it and how to thrive with it

PCOS, short for Polycystic Ovary (or Ovarian) Syndrome, is one of the most common endocrine disorders, the global prevalence of which is estimated between 4% and 20%. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that approximately 116 million women in the world are affected by PCOS.

Despite these statistics, PCOS is often underlooked, because the causes of the syndrome are still unknown and the symptoms vary to a great extent.

What is PCOS?

PCOS is an endocrine disorder, that requires lifelong management, meaning there is no cure available yet.

It causes major hormonal imbalances, such as low progesterone and high estrogen, testosterone, and insulin levels. Hence, women with PCOS often do not have regular menstrual cycles, which is because their ovaries do not regularly release the egg (ovulation), which in turn causes imbalances in hormones.

Specifically, lack of ovulation triggers low progesterone in the 2nd phase of your menstrual cycle (day 14 onwards), which is responsible for getting your endometrium thick enough for you to safely carry the pregnancy. If your body sends the signal that it is not pregnant - that endometrium lining starts shedding - that's when your period occurs.

However, if your body does not go through ovulation, such a process does not occur and leads to quite a few unpleasant symptoms that will be described below.

PCOS symptoms

To identify whether you might have PCOS, check if you have such symptoms:

• Irregular menstrual cycles

• Difficulty getting pregnant/infertility

• Acne during adulthood

• Excessive facial and body hair

• Unexplained weight gain

• Difficulty losing weight

• Male pattern hair loss on your head

• Enlarged ovaries

• Cysts

If you believe that you have any or a mix of such symptoms, talk to your healthcare provider to evaluate whether PCOS is the cause or if you have another source of the symptoms.

Usually, you will be asked to do blood tests to check your hormone levels throughout the cycle, and an ultrasound, where your doctor will be able to evaluate if you have any cysts, check the size of your ovaries and identify any dysfunctions.

PCOS risks

Another unfortunate side of PCOS is that it puts a woman into the higher risk group for:

• Diabetes

• Obesity

• Dyslipidemia

• Endometrial cancer

• Cardiovascular disease

• Infertility

• Impaired glucose intolerance

My personal experience with PCOS

Hi, I am Yana, the nutrition specialist and a Co-Founder of Alyana Fit.

Just to start off, I was always a chubby kid, hence I was doing a lot of sports and into healthy nutrition throughout my childhood. Since I was 17 years old I have suffered from irregular menstrual cycles, some time would miss my periods for 6 months.

No one was looking into the possibility of me having PCOS at the time. At the age of 21, I was put on birth control pills, which worked fine at first but then my body did not respond to them well. So after a few years of trying, my gynecologist suggested I quit, and I followed her advice.

Fast forward to December 2021, my menstrual cycle became irregular again and after 2 months of absence, I felt sharp prolonged pain in my pelvis. I got so scared and went for an ultrasound, I was told I have a cyst. I was also told that my TSH levels are high, leading to a hypothyroidism diagnosis.

Thanks to the treatment and some dietary changes, I was able to mitigate the symptoms and get rid of my cysts. However, it came back every time I had an infection or my immune system was jeopardized somehow. So in August 2022, I was finally diagnosed with PCOS, and that's when my journey "officially" started, although I always had symptoms.

As I was exercising every day already, the biggest change for me was in my diet. Not only eliminated processed foods but also controlled the time between my meals, simple things like drinking lemon juice before the meal, especially if it included carbs, to reduce glucose spikes. Incorporating more protein and fat sources, as well as reducing carbohydrates worked well. I am still working on figuring out the best way possible to manage PCOS in a natural way, and hopefully, help others!

It definitely has a negative impact on my ability to manage my weight long-term, which is unfortunate due to my area of expertise and work. However, I believe that we can still thrive with PCOS, and I am excited to embark on this journey and figure it out.

Some tips on how to manage your PCOS symptoms

There are some known ways to minimize and manage PCOS symptoms:

1. Appropriate nutrition and exercise routines are more important than you think. Having a well-planned diet will help you to manage and reduce insulin resistance, prevalent in PCOS. So does exercise, especially if you increase muscle mass. If you do it regularly, you will become more insulin resistant, which will help you in balancing hormones and help you ovulate.

2. Birth control pills. Your doctor may offer you birth control pills, which may work for some to eliminate some symptoms of PCOS.

3. Diabetes medication.

4. Other medication, including increasing progesterone levels.

However, as per my personal experience, birth control pills just did not work. Since it is a lifelong situation, I have understood that I will have to take care of my nutrition and exercise regardless. That's one of the reasons why I have become a nutritionist, so I can learn more about nutrition, how it affects us, and how to achieve optimal health. Building muscle mass and looking after my nutrition have massively contributed to my well-being.

Train with us and learn more about nutrition, check out our programs, where we do not believe in fad diets and meal plans. We believe in education, getting in tune with our bodies, and achieving the best quality of life possible!

Yours,