Painful secret for so many women (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome)

Member Name: NikkiH

Product:	Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
Date:	09/01/08 (127 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: None

Disadvantages: Painful, weight gain

I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovaries in 1999, and since then I am been surprised at the amount of women who live with this condition or Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. Latest research states that approximately 10% of women in this country of a child bearing age have the condition. Worryingly though, a lot of women go undiagnosed, and the condition has been said to have a linked increased risk of heart disease.

==WHAT IS PCOS?==
First of all, it is one of the major causes of infertility, and in my case that is how it was diagnosed. I had been trying to get pregnant for 4 years, and on seeing a specialist, his tests confirmed this condition. The first indication is not surprisingly multiple abnormal cysts on your ovaries. Generally, these cysts are harmless, and are filled with fluid, along with undeveloped eggs which them fuse themselves onto the ovaries.

The main symptoms are excessive hair growth on the face/body, obesity, irregular, or in my case absent periods, acne, high cholesterol, insulin resistance and decreased libido, however the list does not stop there. For most of the last 18 years, I have battled with my weight. It seemed to happen overnight, I went from being slim and eating well to being overweight and no matter what I did the weight would not come off. When I was diagnosed it all made sense. There was finally a medical reason, and I wasn't just greedy. The medical explanation is - Because insulin production of the pancreas is thrown off by the Insulin Resistance, the body struggles with the conversion of food to energy and this in turn leads to an increase in the amount of stored fats. When glucose cannot enter the cells efficiently it remains in the blood stream, causing elevated blood sugar - whereupon it is sent to the liver, which converts it to fat and stores it throughout the body. When the body takes in calories, it has a choice of either burning those calories for energy or converting them to fat and storing them. In patients with PCOS, Insulin Resistance encourages the storage of fat and the production of excessive amounts of testosterone.

==WHAT CAUSES PCOS?==
In a nutshell it is caused by a hormonal imbalance, but as with most things it is not that simple. Most suffers have low glucose tolerance and can develop type 2 diabetes in middle age. The high related insulin levels increase the testosterone, which in turn reduces the ovaries ability to release eggs, resulting in infertility. In my experience, this is also very painful.

==WHAT IS THE CURE?==
Disappointingly, there is no known cure at the moment - even the drastic step of removing the ovaries will not cure the sufferer. This is something I have thought about, but the cons outweigh the pros currently. The condition can be managed though through sound nutritional advice, regular exercise and in some cases medication (generally the same tablets that are prescribed to diabetics).

Me? I just learn to live with the discomfort and side effects. Fertility treatment enabled me to have my beautiful children. Eventually, I will probably go for some more radical treatment. At the moment, I am just trying to manage the condition.

Summary: Painful condition causing infertility