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Bloating and PCOS
As if irregular periods, acne, and hair problems weren’t enough, bloating is another surprising, yet common, symptom of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a hormonal disorder affecting up to 20 percent of women. You may be tempted to try various probiotics, diets, or tonics for your bloating; however, this article will explain how to identify and treat PCOS bloating by finding your true root cause.
Supplements for Male Fertility
While improving sperm quality is vital in men with less than optimal sperm parameters, it is also equally crucial in cases where the female partner has poor egg quality or conditions that may affect fertility, like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Fortunately, there are several evidence-based ways to improve sperm quality. It is commonly known that improving sperm quality may increase chances of conception; however, many people do not realize that sperm quality may also play a role in the risk of miscarriage and/or chromosomal abnormalities. In this article, we’ll review our favorite supplements for male fertility.
PCOS Acne Diet
Acne is a common symptom of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). In fact, up to 30 percent of women with PCOS reportedly suffer from acne.
Is Functional Medicine Covered By Insurance
Chances are, if you are in a true functional medicine practice where your doctor is practicing in a functional medicine model of care and not a conventional insurance model of care, the most likely answer is no, it’s not covered by insurance.
IBS and PCOS
An estimated 30 to 40 percent of women with PCOS also have IBS (2, 3). IBS is more common in PCOS than the general population because these two conditions share one major root cause: dysbiosis.
Best Soil Based Probiotics
As the name implies, soil-based probiotics are bacteria found in the soil which generally contain bacteria strains from the Bacillus family. These bugs are commonly referred to as spore-forming probiotics because they are encapsulated with a hard shell, or endospore, making them very stable and highly resistant to extreme conditions.
PCOS Meals
Optimizing your overall diet—as in the foods you eat—is foundational in treating the root cause of PCOS. A diet high in refined carbs, inflammatory fats, and added sugar worsens insulin resistance and inflammation.These types of foods are also much easier to overeat, which can lead to an overabundance of calories, frequent blood sugar imbalances, and weight gain. On the other hand, an anti-inflammatory diet improves your body’s sensitivity to insulin, reduces inflammation, and provides the necessary nutrients to optimize hormone function.
Inflammation Evaluation and Dietary Approaches
An important thing to understand about inflammation is that it is not an on/off switch but more like a dimmer switch. Often there are many lifelong contributors that push the dimmer switch towards a full force inflammatory process. But the good news about that is once we understand these inflammatory drivers, we can work on reducing or eliminating them from our lives.
Turmeric for PCOS
Most of the benefits of turmeric stem from its powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. While there are not a large amount of studies specifically assessing PCOS and turmeric yet, the few available show promising results.
Fertility Diet To Improve Egg Quality
By improving your diet and lifestyle during this approximately 90 day time period before ovulation, you can improve egg quality and increase your chances of a healthy and successful pregnancy.
Functional Medicine for Sports Performance Optimization
Nutrition is particularly important for athletes due to the stress and high energy demands they put on their bodies. There are many basic and more advanced (functional) tests that we can check on our athletes.
Gluten and PCOS
Although there are no studies specifically looking at the relationship between gluten and PCOS, many women report a reduction in symptoms after eliminating gluten from their diet.
Zinc for PCOS
Taking zinc for PCOS may help reduce common symptoms of this condition like unwanted hair growth and/or hair loss, acne, high blood sugar, and more.
Anti-histamine Foods
While no single food matches the antihistamine strength of over-the-counter drugs, there are some nutrients, antioxidants, and extracts that contain natural antihistamine properties.
Best Supplements For PCOS
We’ll review the best supplements for PCOS, how they help treat hormonal imbalance, and which dosage to consider for best results.
Soy and PCOS
research suggests that eating soy may be beneficial for women with PCOS.
Good Food Good Mood
Nutritious food benefits your mood by supporting healthy communication in the brain and reducing chronic inflammation.
D-hist for Allergies
D-Hist is a popular supplement containing various antioxidants, enzymes, and plant extracts. The ingredients in D-Hist are intended to degrade the histamine load, reduce inflammation, and thin mucous secretions. Many people use this supplement as a way to reduce seasonal allergy symptoms.
PCOS and Insulin Resistance
Insulin resistance is one underlying root cause of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). In fact, some studies report that up to 70 percent of all women with PCOS have some degree of insulin resistance.
NAC for PCOS
Through its powerful antioxidant benefits, NAC may help treat the root cause of PCOS in a few ways.
Intermittent Fasting and Hypothyroid
Limiting your eating window often results in lower calorie intake. While this may be helpful for weight loss, calorie restriction has a significant impact on your thyroid.
SIBO and Acne
Some people with SIBO also (or only) present with non-GI symptoms like acne, eczema, fatigue, or nutrient deficiencies. In fact, one study reported SIBO is 10 times more prevalent in those with acne versus healthy controls
PCOS and Thyroid
While researchers aren’t quite sure how these two conditions are related, it is clear that there is a bidirectional relationship. For example, women with PCOS are three times more likely to also suffer from Hashimoto’s thyroid disease than the general population. At the same time, polycystic appearing ovaries can be a clinical sign of hypothyroidism. This is why your doctor should rule out hypothyroidism before diagnosing PCOS. PCOS and thyroid conditions also share common characteristics, like period irregularities, increased insulin resistance, and dysregulation of the immune system.
Tea for PCOS
Drinking tea can be helpful for polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) symptoms like facial hair growth.
Why am I waking up at 3am?
Insomnia (including trouble falling asleep, waking up throughout the night, or early morning awakening) is a symptom of an underlying imbalance.
Curing Histamine Intolerance
Despite the name, histamine intolerance is not an “intolerance” to histamine. Rather, histamine intolerance occurs when you have too much histamine than your body is able to effectively break down.