PCOS: symptoms and signs

PCOS sufferer Siobhain Fletcher grows a beard to participate in Movember for charity. (Photo: ABC News)

PCOS: symptoms and signs

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, better known as PCOS is a disorder that that affects up to 15% of women.  The symptoms and signs of PCOS are varied.  Many of the women who suffer from PCOS, find that they are overweight and have hair in all the wrong places.

So what is PCOS?

Basically PCOS occurs when a woman’s hormones are out of whack.

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Many women are never even diagnosed.  For the women that are, they find out when they are trying to conceive a child.

Because of PCOS they can’t seem to get pregnant.

PCOS can start in childhood for many of the women, for others it can develop later on.

All women make a small amount of male androgen’s; women with PCOS make more.

This can cause women to stop ovulating, get acne and grow facial hair.

It seems that there is a link between insulin resistance and PCOS; the body doesn’t use insulin well and blood sugar levels placing women afflicted with PCOS at a greater risk of developing diabetes.

Symptoms are usually mild at first so many women might not be sure what it is.

PCOS: symptoms and signs

Here are the more common symptoms;

Trouble gaining weight and losing weight

Excess facial hair that is usually dark.  Hair can sprout from the chin and above the lip.

Acne

Excess body hair or hair in places that women do not normally have hair like the stomach, back, and thighs.

Irregular of stopped periods

Skin tags

Dark patches of skin on the elbows, neck, armpits and neck (acanthosis nigricans)

One woman that suffers with PCOS, Siobhain Fletcher, 36, of Northern New England, took part in Movember, in which men grow the facial for charity.

You can see from the photo above that Sibhain grew a very visible beard.

Do you have PCOS?

You can take an online assessment to determine if you suffer from PCOS, however only a doctor can really determine if you suffer from PCOS.

Managing PCOS

Diet seems to be the way to manage PCOS by strictly limiting sugars and carbs consumed.

Some women have also reported success with spearmint tea.

Women should discuss PCOS with their dotor before embarking on any alternative treatments

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