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PETALING JAYA: Ensuring a minimal accumulation of body fat will go a long way in helping women cope with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
This can be achieved through a low-carbohydrate diet and cardiovascular exercise three to four times a week.
These steps can help keep body mass index (BMI), a measure of body fat based on height and weight, at a healthy level, and this will help reduce the effects of PCOS, according to the consulting obstetrician and gynecologist. Dr. Patricia Lim Su-Lyn.
“A BMI of 18 to 22 is ideal for someone suffering from polycystic ovary syndrome,” Lim told theSun yesterday.
September is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Awareness Month.
The most common complaint among women with PCOS is irregular menstrual cycles caused in large part by hormonal imbalance. This often manifests itself in menstrual cramps and, in many cases, obesity.
The condition, which is incurable, affects the lives of between 6% and 10% of women of reproductive age in Malaysia.
However, many of their screams are not heard.
Lim, who works at KPJ Tawakal KL Specialist Hospital, said that typically, women with PCOS tend to get their periods only once in three to four months.
Some even have symptoms of hyperandrogenism, such as male-pattern hair loss, hair on the upper lip and other areas of the body where hair does not commonly grow in women, he said.
“Since women with PCOS ovulate irregularly or do not ovulate, it also contributes to infertility,” he added.
Lim said that long periods without menstruation could cause a growth in the inner lining of the uterus and, in some cases, can even lead to cancer. Other risks also associated with PCOS include heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.
Unfortunately for those who suffer from it, polycystic ovary syndrome is a genetic disorder that cannot be prevented or cured. However, treatment is available to relieve pain and slow its progression.
Lim advised women with irregular periods to seek treatment.
One of the people who had the worst is Kiran Kaur Dhillon, a professor at the Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman.
“It started in 2007. I had horrible menstrual cramps and the flow was heavier than usual. I dismissed it as a normal period problem because my mother used to have it, ”she said.
But in 2009, when the pain became unbearable and she couldn’t even complete her daily routines, Kiran decided to seek help. It was then that he was diagnosed with PCOS.
“They gave me medication but it didn’t help much. My periods started to stabilize but the pain never went away. I started to gain weight and had big breakouts. “
They told her that she might not be able to conceive. That caused a major change in her lifestyle. She reduced her carbohydrate and sugar intake, and eight months later she conceived her first child.
However, a new challenge arrived. Doctors found a cyst in the muscles near her ovary that had caused her a lot of pain.
She gave birth to her son when she was eight months pregnant, and the 16 cm cyst was eventually removed.
Read this story on our iPaper: ‘A healthy lifestyle can keep genetic disorders at bay’
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