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PCOS is a condition that has a strong impact on a woman's
fertility, and affects between 5% to 10% of women of child
bearing age. Because a woman's body doesn't produce enough
eggs when she suffers from PCOS, it can cause infertility
and contribute to difficulties in falling pregnant.
Most cases of PCOS are not genetic, but they are all related
to hormonal abnormalities. The reason not enough eggs are
produced is because of an excess of the androgen, or 'male'
hormones. Both men and women have androgen hormones, but men
have them in much greater quantities. This hormonal imbalance
means that the cysts that are a normal part of producing eggs,
do not grow. So a woman with PCOS has a lot of small cysts
on her ovaries that do not mature to release their eggs. Normally,
once this process happened, the cysts would go.
Another consequence of the higher levels of androgen hormones
is the increased risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes,
as well as a likelihood of having more facial hair.
Interestingly, low carb diets such as the zone diet may help
overweight women with PCOS. A recent study of 11 non diabetic,
overweight women with PCOS who had an average age of 33 was
conducted. The study compared a 'standard' diet with 56% carbohydrates
and 16% protein, with a lower carb diet of 43% carbohydrate
and 15% protein. The fat component of the lower carb diet
was a lot higher than the standard diet, by 14%. This is higher
than it would be in the Zone diet. The fat content of the
low carb diet was almost evenly split between polyunsaturated
fatty acids and monounsaturated fatty acids. The fat content
of the standard diet was almost evenly split between the two
types of fatty acids, but was slightly higher (by 3%) in the
monounsaturated variety.
A third diet, one high in both carbohydrates and monounsaturated
fatty acids, was also compared. The study participants only
followed each diet for 16 days. They had a 3 week break between
each diet, and tried all 3.
Because production of the androgen hormones are influenced
by the presence of insulin, the researchers were interested
in finding out whether a low carb diet could reduce the amount
of insulin circulating in the body. They believed this would
have an indirectly positive effect on PCOS.
The results of this study found that whilst hormones that
were circulating weren't significantly affected by the lower
carb diet, the women's cholesterol, fasting insulin levels,
free fatty acids, and their response to insulin were positively
affected. The fact that their response to insulin improved
is an indicator of the possible benefit of a low carb diet
to PCOS sufferers. And because the women only followed the
diet for 16 days, this may be why their levels of circulating
insulin were not more prominently affected.
The authors of the study state that: ?Because elevated insulin
is thought to contribute to the endocrine abnormalities in
PCOS, a reduction in insulin would be expected to ultimately
result in an improved endocrine profile."
They go on to say that these improvements indicate that using
a low carb type diet, with a lower calorie intake, would probably
benefit overweight women who suffer from PCOS.
Not all low carb diets are created equal however. The Atkins
diet has been associated with an increased risk of heart problems
for some, as well as being implicated in the hospitalization
of others.
A 40 year old woman was hospitalized with very high levels
of acids in her blood as a result of following the Atkins
diet strictly for about a month. The release of acids in the
blood, called ketosis, is an indicator of the 'success' of
the Atkins diet, and is actually a result of the process of
starving the body of certain nutrients beyond a threshold
level. The nutrient being, of course, carbohydrates.
Carbohydrates are a source of energy for the body, the only
source used by the brain. But when the body is deprived of
carbohydrates after the threshold level, it will use alternate
methods of metabolizing energy. It uses stored fats and protein,
but this is not a very biologically efficient way of producing
energy for the body. So, there are a lot of acidic metabolic
by products, called ketones. These are released into the bloodstream,
to be excreted by the body.
In the case of this woman, these metabolic by products weren't
excreted fast enough and built up in her bloodstream. She
was vomiting 4 to 6 times a day. This build up of blood acids
represented a dangerous situation and she was admitted to
intensive care.
The Atkins Foundation responded that this woman must have
had abnormal metabolic or clinical issues. But given that
this woman, who was obese, is in a category at which the Atkins
diet is marketed, there is a real cause for concern here.
With obesity, there is a greater likelihood for both general
medical problems, and metabolic problems. If an obese person
did not have metabolic problems of one form or another, they
would not be obese. Perhaps there were circumstances that
were particular to this woman here, but until those potential
dangers are understood more fully, this is a significant issue.
It's ironic that a diet should be implied as not being suitable
for anyone with metabolic issues, particularly if this diet
is marketed as a 'way of life' - that is, recommended for
long term use.
References:
1. nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=67217&m=1NIU421&c=qgtqmovbyiaxdub
2. nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=66493-atkins-low-carb-weight-loss
Fertility
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