PCOS is one of the most common endocrine disturbance that affects women during their reproductive years. It is so common that almost 25-30% of women have polycystic ovaries (PCO) and around 15% of women have polycystic ovary syndrome(PCOS).

Most women suffering from PCOS do not even know they have it, either because they ignore the symptoms or because they have very mild symptoms. Before going any deeper into what exactly is PCOS let me first clear out that PCOS, PCOD or PCO are three different things.

Many people confuse the three words to be same; however, there are slight differences between the three but all the three are related to ovaries.

In PCOD, the hormonal imbalance leads to the ‘collection’ of mature eggs in the ovaries. These eggs become cysts and some of the cysts lead to more cysts and this cycle goes on.

PCOS and PCO are more closely related and I have discussed them in detail. But before going into what science and research say I want to share my story with you.

Also Read: Why Is It Difficult For Women To Lose Weight?

PCOS: My Story

Although the internet is full of medications like birth control pills and metformin, I will not mention any of those in this article. Why? Because I don't believe in them. All of this is bullshit!!!

I suffered from PCOS from a young age but like most other girls I didn't have any clue about this condition. I missed my periods for months, I was putting on weight and losing hair. Being a skinny child with a head full of thick hairs, I was confused why this was happening blaming it on the new shampoo. The continuous weight gain was making me feel uncomfortable with my body, I started wearing loose clothes to hide my body. I was obsessed with my weight, standing on the scale and weighing myself three times a day.

Eventually, things got out of hand when I bled for 3 weeks straight. My mom then took me to the gynecologist. I was told to get an ultrasound done. My ultrasound clearly showed that I had polycystic ovaries. The gynecologist told me about PCOS and recommended some medications as well as losing some weight (as the weight will worsen my condition). So, I started working out every day and taking the prescribed medicine and yes my condition did improve, although I couldn’t lose weight. Happy ending? That is what I was expecting. Even after taking medicines for 6 months to my dismay just after a few months my symptoms came back!! This time even worse than earlier. I was bleeding for an entire month. I had to again take the help of medicines.

I realized that I was not getting cured, it was just a relief for a few months before I again relapsed. I never really liked taking medicines so I decided to do my research. I found out that there is no scientific or medical cure for PCOS to date and even after taking proper treatment PCOS can relapse!!!

It was then that I started reading about PCOS thoroughly. Today, I am no longer suffering from it and believe me the only thing that worked for me is a healthy lifestyle. I joined a gym, started working out 5-6 times a week, followed a healthy diet and took a homeopathic treatment which lasted 2 years but was worth it.

What Is PCOS?

If you go dizzy on reading huge technical terms androgens, progesterones blah blah blah, I am going to try and explain the whole polycystic ovary story as simply as I can.

We have two ovaries located in the pelvis alongside the uterus. Each ovary has thousand of immature eggs (2-9mm) inside a liquid-filled sac and we have these eggs by birth. Now the ovaries have two functions releasing the fully mature(20 mm) egg every month during your periods and producing hormones. The hormones circulate through your blood and influence different organs. If you have PCO you just have an ovary with a partially mature egg. PCO is not a disease, it is just a variant of an ovary. However, PCOS occurs when you start experiencing some symptoms.

Symptoms of PCOS

Some very common and easy to notice symptoms of PCOS are:

Irregular Periods (If you have periods after every 29 or 30 or 31 days no you don't have PCOS as long as they are regular and don't occur after months you are fine you just have a longer cycle)
Obesity (especially gaining weight around your lower abdomen)
Difficulty in conceiving
Loss of hair
Hair growth around the upper lip, chin, neck, sides of the face, abdomen, lower back, upper arms, and inner thighs.
Oily skin
High blood pressure
Adult acne
Anxiety, depression or eating disorders
Skin tags

What Causes PCOS?

When a woman with PCO starts experiencing certain symptoms she is suffering from PCOS. But why does she starts experiencing these symptoms or makes her prone to PCOS is still a mystery. Although various researches have pointed towards genetic causes behind PCOS there are many women without any genetic history who suffer from this condition ( I was one of them until a few years back).

Some people even say that increasing weight causes PCOS but it does not happen magically first you must have polycystic ovaries to have PCOS. So, weight itself cannot be a reason.

Also Read: Skinny Fat: Is Getting Skinny Same As Getting Healthy?

Associated Health Risks With PCOS

Type-2 Diabetes: Women with PCOS develop insulin resistance which poses four times higher risk of type 2 diabetes. Almost half the women suffering from PCOS develop pre-diabetes or diabetes before the age of 40.
Cardiovascular diseases: Women with PCOS are at a higher risk of heart attacks, clogged arteries, high blood pressure, heart failure, and strokes
Sleep apnea: According to researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in a widely-cited study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism state that repeated pauses in breathing during sleep, caused by relaxed muscles that let your airways close for a few seconds, is more common in women with PCOS.
Depression and Anxiety: According to Dr. John Barry, Honorary Lecturer in Psychology, University College London

“Women with PCOS are more likely to experience depression and anxiety than other women. This is likely due to the unwanted symptoms of PCOS, such as acne, body hair, menstrual problems, fertility problems, and weight gain.”

What Is Wrong With The Conventional PCOS Treatment?

PCOS is caused by hormonal imbalance in the body. Almost all of the medicines that are recommended for PCOS try to bring the hormonal balance of the body back. But frankly speaking, none of the medicines have been successful in doing so till now. Don't believe me? Lookup any past research on PCOS, the cause and the cure are both unknown.

So, we are hoping to cure something that we still don't understand. A better approach to this will be by focussing on something that we already know, our body. A change in lifestyle and weight loss can undoubtedly if not cure at least reverse PCOS by a significant amount.

What Can You Do About It?

Well, there are tons of things, to begin with, join a gym or start running or working out at home. Make some changes to your diet:-

Avoid overcooked food. Start eating fresh
Carbs are not your enemy. Don't run away from them instead go for the healthier unprocessed carbs.
Increase your protein intake. But go for the natural ones eggs, milk, cheese, etc.
Do not cut off good fats from your diet instead stop eating all the processed low fat and low carb food.
Whole grains are a must. They contain minerals like selenium, zinc, and chromium which improve insulin sensitivity.
Increase sources of B12 in your diet ( fermented food like curd, sprouts, meat, etc.)
You need more than normal calcium if you have PCOS, so it is advisable to take calcium tablets.

PCOS Treatment: The Natural Way

An Australian clinical trial using herbal treatment was done with overweight women suffering from polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and irregular periods. It was observed that the treatment resulted in more regular periods, more weight loss, more pregnancies, and improved mood; However, the mechanism behind this improvement is not known

The three-month clinical trial, conducted through the National Institute of Complementary Medicine at Western Sydney University, was undertaken by 122 women from Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, aged from 18-22, from a range of ethnic groups and with varying physical abilities.

The different tablets used in the trial were:

peony (thought to reduce male-type hormones)
licorice (also thought to reduce androgens)
cinnamon (thought to be useful in improving insulin sensitivity in women with PCOS)
Another study suggests that cinnamon improves insulin insensitivity.
St John's Wort (shown to be effective for alleviating depression)

Bottomline

The bottom line is there is no magical pill that will cure PCOS. An active lifestyle, regular workouts and a healthy diet is the only key to a PCOS free life.