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PCOS Myths & truths
Some common myths surrounding Polycystic Ovary
Syndrome (PCOS):
Myth 1: All women with PCOS have polycystic ovaries Fact: 25% of the female population has polycystic ovaries on ultrasound, yet only half of them are diagnosed with PCOS symptoms. And some PCOS patients don’t have any cysts at all. Most doctors will check if you have polycystic ovaries as part of their investigation into PCOS. But even if they aren't present you may still have the syndrome.
PCOS is diagnosed using symptoms and blood tests, but an ultrasound is not always necessary, as the presence or absence of polycystic ovaries does not matter for diagnosis.
Myth 2: You will never have children This is wrong, wrong, wrong. Don’t believe the doctor who tells you this. Many women are incorrectly told they’ll never have children because PCOS causes infertility. Some patients use the information as their only form of contraception, and have found out it is wrong! Some women with PCOS do fall pregnant naturally and others will need medical assistance to get pregnant. If you aren't planning on having children just yet, still use some form of contraception as there is a chance that you may fall pregnant.
Myth 3: All women with PCOS are fat/obese Many women with PCOS do have an excess weight problem but there are also quite a few who don't. Even countries with traditionally slim people, like Asian countries, experience PCOS. Most studies have been done with women who are obese and therefore the focus has been on that group of women with PCOS. This misconception can even be held by your doctor who may not initially consider a diagnosis of PCOS if you don't have a weight problem.
Myth 4: Lose weight and everything will be better Obesity can cause fertility problems but telling a woman with PCOS to ‘lose weight and all will be better’ is simply not enough. For women with PCOS, losing some weight, as little as 5% helps balance hormone levels, improve symptoms and may help restore or boost their fertility. Losing weight with PCOS is not a simple thing and many women with PCOS find it extremely hard to lose weight on traditional diets as a result of their condition.
Myth 5: Low fat/high carbohydrate diets are the way to go In the past when PCOS patients were told to lose weight, they were given a low fat/high carb diet. All this did was made the PCOS patient gain more weight. Research over the past decade has shown the most likely underlying cause of PCOS is an impairment of the woman's body to process insulin. Therefore a diet like those prescribed to a diabetic patient – that focuses on foods with low glycemic indexes, is likely to be more helpful than the traditional low fat/high carb diet.
In 2004, Professor Jennie Brand-Miller and Sydney dietitian Kate Marsh together with Professor Nadir R Farid published a book called “The New Glucose Revolution: Managing PCOS”. This book, published by Hodder, has become a bible for many PCOS women. However, there is still not enough research about which sort of diet is best for women with PCOS. At the moment, the studies show that any calorie-controlled, healthy diet will help women lose weight and improve their symptoms (e.g., low GI, low fat, etc).
Myth 6: PCOS is a great syndrome to have... This is absolute rubbish. An endocrinologist told one POSAA member that: “if she (the patient) had to pick a disorder to have, PCOS was actually a pretty good one to have". Trivialising the disorder is not in the patient’s best interests. Some women might envy the fact that PCOS women sometimes have very few periods. But this is due to their lack of ovulation and this is a very important process for every woman.
PCOS is associated with a number of significant health risks and unpleasant symptoms. No woman who has PCOS would choose to have a syndrome which increases their chances of heart disease, increases their chances of developing diabetes, impairs their fertility and increases their chances of developing uterine cancer.
Myth 7: My aunt had a cyst on her ovary and had 8 children There are many different types of cysts that ovaries can have and because someone may have a relative that had a certain type of cyst and went on to have many children doesn't mean that the aunt had anything like PCOS. If a woman with PCOS has cysts (and they aren't compulsory) then they are follicular cysts from unreleased eggs. Other women (and even those with PCOS) can experience other types of cysts which may not affect their fertility.
Myth 1: All women with PCOS have polycystic ovaries Fact: 25% of the female population has polycystic ovaries on ultrasound, yet only half of them are diagnosed with PCOS symptoms. And some PCOS patients don’t have any cysts at all. Most doctors will check if you have polycystic ovaries as part of their investigation into PCOS. But even if they aren't present you may still have the syndrome.
PCOS is diagnosed using symptoms and blood tests, but an ultrasound is not always necessary, as the presence or absence of polycystic ovaries does not matter for diagnosis.
Myth 2: You will never have children This is wrong, wrong, wrong. Don’t believe the doctor who tells you this. Many women are incorrectly told they’ll never have children because PCOS causes infertility. Some patients use the information as their only form of contraception, and have found out it is wrong! Some women with PCOS do fall pregnant naturally and others will need medical assistance to get pregnant. If you aren't planning on having children just yet, still use some form of contraception as there is a chance that you may fall pregnant.
Myth 3: All women with PCOS are fat/obese Many women with PCOS do have an excess weight problem but there are also quite a few who don't. Even countries with traditionally slim people, like Asian countries, experience PCOS. Most studies have been done with women who are obese and therefore the focus has been on that group of women with PCOS. This misconception can even be held by your doctor who may not initially consider a diagnosis of PCOS if you don't have a weight problem.
Myth 4: Lose weight and everything will be better Obesity can cause fertility problems but telling a woman with PCOS to ‘lose weight and all will be better’ is simply not enough. For women with PCOS, losing some weight, as little as 5% helps balance hormone levels, improve symptoms and may help restore or boost their fertility. Losing weight with PCOS is not a simple thing and many women with PCOS find it extremely hard to lose weight on traditional diets as a result of their condition.
Myth 5: Low fat/high carbohydrate diets are the way to go In the past when PCOS patients were told to lose weight, they were given a low fat/high carb diet. All this did was made the PCOS patient gain more weight. Research over the past decade has shown the most likely underlying cause of PCOS is an impairment of the woman's body to process insulin. Therefore a diet like those prescribed to a diabetic patient – that focuses on foods with low glycemic indexes, is likely to be more helpful than the traditional low fat/high carb diet.
In 2004, Professor Jennie Brand-Miller and Sydney dietitian Kate Marsh together with Professor Nadir R Farid published a book called “The New Glucose Revolution: Managing PCOS”. This book, published by Hodder, has become a bible for many PCOS women. However, there is still not enough research about which sort of diet is best for women with PCOS. At the moment, the studies show that any calorie-controlled, healthy diet will help women lose weight and improve their symptoms (e.g., low GI, low fat, etc).
Myth 6: PCOS is a great syndrome to have... This is absolute rubbish. An endocrinologist told one POSAA member that: “if she (the patient) had to pick a disorder to have, PCOS was actually a pretty good one to have". Trivialising the disorder is not in the patient’s best interests. Some women might envy the fact that PCOS women sometimes have very few periods. But this is due to their lack of ovulation and this is a very important process for every woman.
PCOS is associated with a number of significant health risks and unpleasant symptoms. No woman who has PCOS would choose to have a syndrome which increases their chances of heart disease, increases their chances of developing diabetes, impairs their fertility and increases their chances of developing uterine cancer.
Myth 7: My aunt had a cyst on her ovary and had 8 children There are many different types of cysts that ovaries can have and because someone may have a relative that had a certain type of cyst and went on to have many children doesn't mean that the aunt had anything like PCOS. If a woman with PCOS has cysts (and they aren't compulsory) then they are follicular cysts from unreleased eggs. Other women (and even those with PCOS) can experience other types of cysts which may not affect their fertility.
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