Trying to Get Pregnant with PCOS

If you’ve been trying to get pregnant with PCOS, then this is the article for you.

Trying to get pregnant with PCOS is not as mysterious as it may seem.
It may be a diagnosis for a lifetime, but it doesn’t have to rule your world or prevent you from trying to get pregnant with PCOS. There are natural ways to manage PCOS so you can conceive.

PCOS can have a hereditary component but it’s mostly due to metabolic imbalances. Namely glucose – a simple sugar. It’s interesting to note that we’ve been seeing an increase in PCOS over the last 50 years — hand in hand with modern food manufacturing.

Sugar, ah honey honey…

Have you noticed how many processed foods contain sugar? It’s in everything, from instant soups and savory dishes (where you wouldn’t expect sugar) to salad dressings, yoghurt, cereal, sodas, crisps, bread and of course all the deserts, jams, lollies and chocolates.

So it comes as no surprise to me that we are seeing so many problems with glucose tolerance, insulin resistance, diabetes type two and PCOS.

Next time you’re in the supermarket check the ingredients of the packaged food you usually buy, and look for sugar and corn syrup. Even many organic products and ‘natural’ products are loaded with ‘raw sugar’.

The bottom line is this — we are ingesting refined sugar with almost every meal if we only eat packaged, processed food bought in the supermarket or the local take-away.

Get pregnant with PCOS

PCOS can be managed with lifestyle and dietary adjustments. Studies have shown that up to 90 percent of women with PCOS are overweight. The ideal BMI for pregnancy is 21. What is yours? To calculate your BMI go here: http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/

If you are overweight aim to loose 5-10 percent of your current weight. Studies show even such small reduction in weight can kick-start your ovulation.

I have had patients who were trying to get pregnant with PCOS, who were not overweight, but who still had insulin resistance. If you are insulin resistant your ability to ovulate is diminished.

Simple Solution

The key to overcoming insulin resistance is a simple solution — avoid sugar in all shapes and forms for two weeks. Then reintroduce fruit and only whole grain organic products. Avoid refined sugar products such as cakes, lollies, biscuits, sodas, pizza, alcohol, white flour and products made from white flour.

The solution is not to avoid these foods for the rest of your life — that would be torture and would take all the fun and spontaneity out of life. But once your condition is under your control — you can get pregnant, you are not overweight and you don’t have insulin resistance — you can treat yourself to those foods occasionally.

The 80-20 Rule

Remember the 80-20 rule! 80 percent of the time your diet should be fresh, unprocessed, organic and mainly vegetarian (vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, and small amounts of whole grains and fruit). 20 percent of the time you can indulge in the foods on the avoid list.

What are your thoughts? Do you have PCOS? Have you been been trying to get pregnant with PCOS? I’d love to hear from you.

Iva Keene

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