Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome & Lifestyle

Polycystic ovarian syndrome is a lot more common than most women think. If you have recently been diagnosed, it's important to understand the disease, how to manage it, and what it means for the future.

What is PCOS?

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is shockingly prevalent — up to one in 10 women in their reproductive years are believed to live with this condition. Up to 2 million women live with PCOS just in the UK. The condition affects how a woman's ovaries work and causes three main problems:

1. Cysts that develop in the ovaries (small and polycystic)
2. Your ovaries do not release eggs on a regular basis
3. Having high levels of "male hormones" called androgens in your body

These cysts are produced from under developed sacs from where eggs have grown, where the eggs are unable to be released — meaning ovulation does not occur. As a result, a woman with PCOS may not experience menstruation on a regular basis, as most women do.

More and more people have been describing PCOS as an intersex condition (disorder of sexual development) in recent years. It is not. PCOS only affects biological women, as the fact that ovarian cysts are one of the main symptoms already suggests. PCOS is a syndrome rather than a disease, in reference to the fact that a specific set of symptoms occur together, but it can also be described as a hormonal condition.

Signs and Symptoms of PCOS

PCOS can cause many different symptoms, but many women have polycystic ovaries and have no symptoms at all. If you do start to experience them, they usually make an appearance in your late teens or early twenties.

The most common symptoms of PCOS include:

• Irregular periods or none at all. It is hard to diagnose PCOS on the basis of this symptom alone, as a lack of periods can be caused by many factors. Many women who have irregular periods never get it checked out because they put it down to external factors such as stress.
• Difficulty getting pregnant. Now obviously this symptom only becomes apparent when trying for a baby and again it can be left undiagnosed because every woman understands it can take time to become pregnant.
• Excessive hair growth. This is caused by the extra male hormones or androgens that are present when you suffer from this condition. The hair growth usually appears on the face, chest and back.
• Weight gain. Again very hard to associate weight gain with PCOS but combined with other symptoms its a key factor.
• Acne. Many PCOS sufferers have acne in their late twenties, when it should have cleared up by then.

As you can see from the list there are lots of reasons for each of the individual symptoms so diagnosing PCOS can be difficult.

See Also: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

If you think you have any of the symptoms above you should consult your GP as they can often rule out other causes and will check your blood pressure. Usually if your doctor suspects PCOS, a blood test is ordered to determine your hormone levels, and an ultrasound scan will also be used to see if there are cysts on the ovaries. However, diagnosing PCOS is normally the last option as many other causes are found for the symptoms.