Читать книгу The Ultimate PCOS Handbook: Lose weight, boost fertility, clear skin and restore self-esteem - Theresa Cheung - Страница 18

Some researchers believe that PCOS is caused before you are born. A slight increase in testosterone levels occurs during pregnancy, especially in the first 14 weeks when the foetus’ ovaries are developing. The placenta has a large amount of an enzyme called aromatase which converts testosterone into oestrogen, but there have been reports of female foetuses becoming masculinized by androgen-secreting tumours. This suggests the possibility that an excessive amount of male hormones could alter a female foetus’ developing ovaries.

It’s also been suggested that insulin resistance may start in the uterus. If the mother is nutrient deficient, it’s possible that she sends a signal to her foetus that starvation is a possibility. The foetus, therefore, becomes insulin resistant as in times of famine, because the fat storage that this encourages has certain advantages. So far, studies¹⁴ haven’t confirmed this hypothesis, but if it were true then low-weight or small babies would have a higher risk of PCOS, when in fact the opposite is true: research¹⁵ has shown that babies who are overweight and overdue have a higher risk of developing PCOS later in life.