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I've chosen this garden theme for a reason. To grow a beautiful garden, you must give the plant the right nutrients, water, light and you must also weed that garden and get rid of those pesky bugs that are getting in the way. If one thing is off - too little water, too much sunshine, etc. then the garden doesn't continue to grow well. Insulin resistance (IR) and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) are similar ... these two disorders actually work together, but the insulin resistance is usually what gets things started. From the link above, "We now believe that many women with PCOS become resistant to the hormone insulin, which is normally responsible for carrying the sugar glucose into the cells. As the cells become more insulin resistant, sugar levels increase in the blood, eventually causing glucose intolerance, along with many of the problems we commonly see in adult-onset diabetes. In fact, PCOS may be a very early type of adult-onset diabetes. It is the excess insulin that is apparently responsible for directly stimulating the ovaries to produce an excess of male hormones, throwing the entire system out of balance." So, you see, when one of the disorders is "off," the other one is, too!
The symptoms of IR, as well as PCOS, vary from person to person. You can find a list of symptoms here. IR is also called Syndrome X, metabolic syndrome or pre-diabetes. I do not want to get full-blown diabetes! It took a long time for me to get diagnosed. I kept telling my Dr. that I couldn't lose weight no matter what I tried. Lots of blood work was done, but nothing showed up abnormal. I finally switched Dr's and was lucky enough to choose one who has the PCOS herself! She recognized my symptoms immediately and sent me to a nearby PCOS specialist who did a full battery of tests confirming her diagnosis. The treatment for me is to take glucophage, a drug usually taken by diabetics, daily and to cut the sugar out of my diet. I did lose some weight by following the plan in The Insulin Resistance Diet. I know it worked because I lost about 10 lbs. in 3 months and when I went off the diet, the weight came back on.
Other methods of eating that help are to eat whole foods and good carbs - no "white" food - flour, rice, starchy potatoes and corn, etc.; only eat whole wheat, brown rice, and other items like that. It also helps to severely limit the sugar in your diet. The other thing that helps is to add Omega 3 and 6 into your diet. I put ground flax seed in my smoothies or sprinkle on my cereal. I also eat salmon weekly. Basically, I shop the perimeter of the store and cook most of our meals from scratch - no freezer or boxed dinners in our home. The processed meals are full of junk that I cannot eat. This, of course, isn't the cheapest way to eat, but it's definitely healthier. There are several other books that I have read lately which I have followed & would be good for someone with IR. When I eat the foods recommended in these books, I lose weight!
Ultrametabolism
The Sonoma Diet
Superfoods Rx
Some good whole foods cookbooks include:
More-with-Less Cookbook
Whole Foods from the Whole World
Whole Foods for the Whole Family
I am learning more and more each day about IR and PCOS. It's difficult sometimes to deal with it, like when I experience breakouts on my chest, back or neck (yuck!). My irregular cycle makes it difficult to plan vacations around (LOL!) and then there's the constant struggle to lose those last pesky 20 lbs. Nothing I do is successful, but I'll keep trying in the hopes that I will figure it all out! There are LOTS of books on PCOS. If you are struggling with infertility, consider getting tested for PCOS as it is a leading cause in infertility. I know of several people who successfully got pregnant after treating the PCOS medically. There is also a PCOS Diet Book that might help in losing weight.
There is sooooo much information out there on IR and PCOS that I can't even begin to list all of the wonderful websites. However, there is one site that deserves mentioning because it is a wonderful community offering message boards for support and answering of questions. It can be found at Soulcysters.com.
It is my hope that you will find something useful here on my site!
I currently enjoy the privilege of being able to stay at home
to homeschool my children and I am always striving to be
the best caretaker for my precious family.
"I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me."
~ Philippians 4:13 ~
Website owned and all Content Copyrighted by Kris Price.
All Rights Reserved. © 2006.
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