pcos and not getting rid of it

[preity]

i am a teen and i am onli 17 i am goin on to my 18th birthday and i wanted to knaow what will happen to me if i do not get anything done to resolve my pcos....will i get cancer how will my health deteriorate? what will happen to me when i am older.....how will it effect me if i do not het this pcos sorted. would i get cancer when i am older will i no be able to have children when i am married???? what else would happento me if i do not get this sorted. and what will happen to me in the long run..i have had this since year 6 and i have a dodgy menstrual cycle i have irregular periods..but i do not want to get this sorted to what will happen to me when i am older??

please help and inform me on singhny_gurpreet@hotmail.co.uk or jus email me on here please or jus reply to this post all of ur advice will be appreciated thank you very much

from Gurpreet kaur

[drheather]

i am a teen and i am onli 17 i am goin on to my 18th birthday and i wanted to knaow what will happen to me if i do not get anything done to resolve my pcos....will i get cancer how will my health deteriorate? what will happen to me when i am older.....how will it effect me if i do not het this pcos sorted. would i get cancer when i am older will i no be able to have children when i am married???? what else would happento me if i do not get this sorted. and what will happen to me in the long run..i have had this since year 6 and i have a dodgy menstrual cycle i have irregular periods..but i do not want to get this sorted to what will happen to me when i am older??

please help and inform me on singhny_gurpreet@hotmail.co.uk or jus email me on here please or jus reply to this post all of ur advice will be appreciated thank you very much

from Gurpreet kaur

Hello Gurpreet,

Thanks for writing in. I know that there is a lot of information out there regarding PCOS and I know that some of it can be scary to read. You ask great questions and I will do my best to address them.

First, you are not alone and there are many women who are going through this and doing very well.

Since you were diagnosed, you may know that the symptoms of PCOS may include irregular/absent periods, hair loss, excess facial and body hair, acne, weight gain, infertility, ovarian cysts, skin tags and dark skin patches. However, a woman may only have one or two of these and others will have them all. It is really individual.

Often the cause of PCOS is insulin resistance. In insulin resistance, there can be an excess of insulin in the blood because the receptors on the cells (the doors) are not sensitive to the insulin. The insulin cannot open the doors of the cells when there is insulin resistance. As a result, the body produces more and more insulin and more receptors, and eventually some sugar gets pushed into the cell. It's a long-term feed back loop that occurs from the cells in our body. The cells are hungry for glucose so a signal is sent to tell the pancreas to produce more insulin and the cells more insulin receptors so the glucose can get in the cell.

Sometimes insulin resistance results in high blood sugar, sometimes in low blood sugar, and sometimes there is no change whatsoever in blood sugar levels. I think this probably depends on how long the person has been insulin resistant, among other things. Like many things, developing insulin resistance was probably a combination of environmental and genetic factors.

Gurpreet, PCOS can affect fertility, it is a major cause of infertlity. But I can not say how it will affect you once you are ready to have children. I can tell you that I have worked with many women with who have children.

Some of the long-term consequences of PCOS and the underlying cause, insulin resistance, can include diabetes, cardiovascular complications, liver disease, infertility, and more. You can read about the long-term consequences on our website:
http://www.pcos.insulitelabs.com/PCOS-Insulin-Resistance.php This does not mean that this will be your experience however, it increases risk of these conditions.

Regarding PCOS and possibly developing cancer, here is another link with more information as well as additional resources: http://pcos.insulitelabs.com/Ovarian-Cancer-Resources.php. In addition,
some studies have detected a correlation between having had PCOS and LATER having ovarian cancer, but this is far from definitive. The general consensus in the medical community is that there is not a relationship between PCOS and ovarian cancer. If you have ovarian cysts associated with PCOS, these cysts are benign.

With all this said, there are things you can do to help your health now and in the future. Two things that you have control over are what you eat and exercise. These are at the foundation of health and especially for a young woman with PCOS. The diet should be a low carbohydrate, whole foods based diet with plenty of veggies and healthy fats and protein. We would want you to limit processed/packaged foods and others that are high in carbs such as pasta, rice, sweets, breads, etc. This can be difficult in the beginning but once you start feeling better the changed can become a bit easier to stick with.

Also, if you are not exercising, I would start as long as you don't have any contraindications to exercise. Walking for 15 minutes a day is a great start.

Gurpreet, I hope that this provides some information that is helpful. I know there are still alot of unanswered questions but it is difficult to know how you will be affected but you have the opportunity to make some changes that will positively affect PCOS.

Please contact me if I can help further.

[desiree]

:confused:meaning that im not alone!!! i too, am 17 going on 18. i was diagnosed at age 14.... my solution was birth control. the only problem i saw with that is, one day, i want kids but how can i if im constantly on birth conrol?????

[drheather]

:confused:meaning that im not alone!!! i too, am 17 going on 18. i was diagnosed at age 14.... my solution was birth control. the only problem i saw with that is, one day, i want kids but how can i if im constantly on birth conrol?????

Hello again Desiree,

Often birth control pills are the first choice in treating PCOS. It is done to help regulate the menstrual cycle with the hopes that when you are ready to try to conceive, your period will be regular. You will not conceive on the pill as you mentioned.

From our perspective, we want to support your body naturally so that you are more likely not to need birth control to regulate your cycles. Certainly, this approach to regulating the cycle means that you are most likely ovulating, if it has been regulated.

PCOS is complicated and although there are many women that have difficult conceiving, there are many who have had successful pregnancies.

I think it is great that you are educating yourself about PCOS. This will serve you well.

If I can help, please let me know

[lilhoward]

just want to share this here..once i've read that there was an asian woman athlete(sprinter) got banned from woman division because it was filed that she has more masculine than feminine hormones and structure..its just sad because she was one of that country's best and she was really good . and technically she cant join the man division because still, she's a girl... i'm just wondering if her case has to do anything with pcos..