The best birth control for pcos and weight loss. Can’t lose weight? Do you have coarse, excess hair on your face, chest or back? Do you suffer from hair loss or acne? Are you depressed? Unable to conceive? If so, you’re experiencing common symptoms of PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome)
What is PCOS?
PCOS refers to multiple cysts on the ovaries and a host of other problems that go along with them, including lack of ovulation and menstrual abnormalities, facial hair, male pattern baldness, acne, and obesity. Women suffering from this condition may also have varying degrees of insulin resistance and an increased incidence of Type II diabetes, high cholesterol & elevated androgen levels.
Why does it occur?
PCOS occurs when a woman doesn’t ovulate, which causes a disruption in the normal, cyclical interrelationship among her hormones, brain and ovaries. The exact cause of PCOS is unknown. In the past, it was thought that PCOS was caused entirely by excess production of androgen. More recent research has shown that Metabolic Syndrome associated with insulin resistance and high levels of insulin play key roles in PCOS.
How does PCOS interfere with fertility?
High levels of insulin can pose considerable risk to pregnancy. Data from New Zealand indicates that miscarriage in women with type 2 diabetes was triple that in those without diabetes.
The main reason for this is that weight gain associated with PCOS, interferes with ovulation. To simplify a very technical process, basically the more overweight you are, the more fat cells you have. This means you have a steady over supply of estrogen. This blunts the peaks and valleys of the ovary’s function, which ultimately interferes with ovulation and can cause infertility.
Treatment
The standard treatment is to take birth control pills or other medications. Besides undesirable side effects, there is no pill or drug that will stop or cure PCOS. Unfortunately, polycystic ovary syndrome is not a temporary problem. Because of its genetic roots, you will be prone to PCOS for the rest of your life. Therefore, you could end up taking drugs for the rest of your life. If you don’t want to do that, what else can you do?
Treatment for PCOS has to do with managing the condition so that you can get pregnant with PCOS by regulating ovulation. One of the ways in which to treat the condition is with lifestyle changes such as eating healthier, exercising, and weight loss (if overweight).
Reducing your sugar intake and excess weight naturally reduces the androgen and insulin levels, which will restore a woman’s ovulation making pregnancy a possibility.
In addition to changing your lifestyle, your doctor may prescribe Metformin which is often given to type 2 diabetes patients to lower insulin levels so that ovulation returns. Typically Metformin is given for a period of about six months, which is how long it might take to begin seeing regular ovulation.
Women who suffer from PCOS do have a more difficult time getting pregnant than women who do not have the condition. This is because these women have ovaries that do not function normally because they have cysts on them.
This affects all aspects of a woman’s reproductive health, including pregnancy and fertility. If you are a woman diagnosed with PCOS and you are pregnant, you may have several concerns regarding your health and the health of your unborn baby.
One of the greatest risks for women with PCOS is the risk for miscarriage. Women with PCOS are 45% more likely to suffer a miscarriage. However, some researchers believe that this number may be higher. Doctors are unsure about the cause for this significant risk of miscarriage.
One theory is that, because of the PCOS, the quality of the woman’s egg may not be as high as it would normally be. This can result in a miscarriage. It is also possible that elevated insulin or hormonal levels contribute to the loss of the pregnancy.
Women who have PCOS are also at a greater risk for developing diabetes later on in life. They are also at a much greater risk of developing gestational diabetes during the pregnancy. This is a serious condition that can impact the health of your unborn baby.
Women who have gestational diabetes need to be carefully monitored so that the baby does not become insulin resistant. Another concern is baby weight. Women with gestational diabetes also tend to have larger babies. This needs to be monitored so that the baby’s health is not put at risk.
While you are pregnant, you doctor may warn you about gaining too much weight during your pregnancy. This is because the more you weigh after your pregnancy, the more pronounced your PCOS symptoms will be once your pregnancy is over. This can be avoided if you choose to go on birth control pills after your pregnancy until you lose the baby weight.
Most women who have PCOS deliver healthy babies because they are being carefully monitored by their doctors. Unless the baby is very large, the delivery experience should be exactly the same as a woman would experience without PCOS. If you do develop gestational diabetes, your baby will be checked, but the vast majority of these babies are very healthy.
Women who have experienced one successful pregnancy with PCOS often have a much easier time conceiving a second child. Because these women now know what to expect, they also experience less stress and worry less. This leads to a more peaceful pregnancy.
To truly come to grips with PCOS, you need to do three basic things: improve your diet, get more exercise, and reduce stress. Here are ten essential tips for making these changes.
It is vital to make sure you work closely with your doctor to ensure you are regularly ovulating before you attempt to get pregnant with PCOS because women with PCOS have a higher rate of miscarriages.
Therefore understanding how to track your ovulation using a basal thermometer is very useful to know when you are ovulating and if you are ovulating every month. Once the diet and medication is making your ovulation regular your doctor will recommend that you and your partner attempt to conceive.
It is best that both you and your partner work closely with your doctor so that you can successfully become pregnant with PCOS. Many women have had healthy babies even though they have PCOS but they worked closely with the medical professionals to make sure that their condition was under control before they attempted to get pregnant. Once your doctor has you ovulating regularly for several months your chances of becoming pregnant and carrying the baby to term is very high.
One of the key ways to manage PCOS is with diet, a healthy weight, and exercise. However, even with these three combined you still may need medication in order to get pregnant with PCOS. This is because your hormones need to be regulated so that your body will ovulate every month.
One benefit that many women have found with PCOS is that once they have successfully given birth, along with a healthy weight and diet it helps their menstrual cycles become more regular. Therefore many couples go on to have more children once their PCOS is under control.
Eating healthy should be a lifelong commitment. Avoid foods that have little or no nutritional value such as chips, snack cakes, soda, candy, and fast food. This doesn’t mean you can’t occasionally indulge, just make sure you don’t indulge too frequently! Remember the old adage to take all things in moderation.
To successfully shed your unwanted pregnancy pounds, you need to get back to basics. That is, to eat sensibly and exercise.
The birth of your baby offers a unique opportunity to change unhealthy eating habits. You have a few extra pounds that you are determined to lose. Persistence combined with basic nutritional knowledge will help you lose your excess baby weight and regain your beautiful pre-pregnancy figure.
However, as a busy mum, an eating plan that is easy to implement is a must. When planning meals, select foods that can turn into quick meals that require minimal preparation time. By planning healthy meals and shopping smart, you can successfully lose weight without sacrificing time with your family.
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