Читать книгу PCOS Diet Book: How you can use the nutritional approach to deal with polycystic ovary syndrome - Theresa Cheung - Страница 9

The first reason food is so important for PCOS is its direct impact on our hormonal system. All the food we eat evokes a hormonal response in our bodies. Since PCOS is a health condition linked with hormonal imbalances and – as the latest research suggests – insulin resistance¹ (a precursor state to diabetes), food may well be the cheapest and most effective medicine available.

Many women with PCOS have high levels of insulin in their blood, a condition called hyperinsulinism. Insulin is a peptide hormone (a small protein made from a string of amino acids) made by the pancreas. It controls blood-sugar levels by allowing the body’s cells to take up and use glucose (sugar) for energy.

Normally when a meal is eaten, the pancreas releases insulin into the bloodstream to encourage the body’s cells to store away or use the energy released from the meal.

If the body’s cells don’t respond to the insulin, they are described as ‘insulin resistant’ – ‘hard of hearing’ to insulin’s message. To make the cells hear the message, the body has to turn up the volume by increasing the amount of insulin the pancreas makes for a given amount of glucose in the blood.

The problem with high levels of insulin is that they stimulate the ovaries to produce large amounts of male hormones known as androgens, of which testosterone is the most powerful and well known. Excess androgens are thought to stop the ovaries releasing an egg, causing irregular or absent periods – one of the most common symptoms of PCOS. High testosterone levels in women also cause acne, male-pattern baldness and excess hair growth. Last, but not least, it is the insulin problem, combined with high levels of androgen, which puts women with PCOS at increased risk of diabetes as well as heart disease.

You can eat in a way that helps to reduce insulin resistance and make your body’s cells more responsive again. The health benefits of a diabetes diet to regulate blood-sugar levels are well known. When you have diabetes, your main concern is always how what you eat affects your blood-sugar and insulin levels. Since insulin resistance and excess androgen are strongly linked to PCOS, the key to treating or avoiding PCOS through nutrition is to achieve balanced blood-sugar levels while nourishing your body in such a way that it can maintain an appropriate balance of hormones.

Changing my diet changed my life. It took being diagnosed with PCOS for me to fully appreciate the incredible impact food can have on my health and my symptoms. I’ve really learned the hard way that you are what you eat.

Samantha, 36

Once I started to make the connection between the food I was eating and my symptoms, I saw a remarkable improvement in my symptoms. I lost weight and I lost the cravings I had when my blood sugar dropped. Best of all, I got my energy back.

Diana, 40