Hey guys, it’s Dr. Shadi, I’m a naturopathic doctor with a focus on women’s health, and today we’re going to go talk about 3 things you should know if you have PCOS and are thinking of getting pregnant.
I’m always so happy to hear when my patient’s are ready to get pregnant. But it’s important that I also educate my patients on what their fertility journey may look like so they can have a better chance of actually conceiving a baby.
Alright so let’s dig into the top 3 things that you should know if you have PCOS and are thinking of getting pregnant.
Number 1 –
The number one thing you should know is that because you have PCOS, you are likely not ovulating regularly. Normally a woman’s ovary produces an egg every 24-35 days. Ovulation, which is the process of releasing that egg, occurs 12-14 days before every menstrual period. In women with PCOS, there is a lot of confusing hormonal messages being sent to the ovaries. This results in the eggs not maturing well, becoming partially developed, and these partially developed eggs often showing up as cysts on the ovaries. So what does this mean for fertility? It means that the egg that the sperm needs to fertilize is not available when it should be. Because of this, it may be harder for you to get pregnant.
So what can you do about this?
You’re medical doctor may suggest that you be put on medications that will help you ovulate like clomidene or letrozole. These drugs help send ONE message to the ovary, so it knows exactly what to do, and that’s to OVULATE!
There are also natural ways you can support your ovulation. The most important and effective way to restore your ovulation if you have PCOS and are overweight, is to lose weight. Research shows that even a loss of 5-10% of body weight can help to restore normal ovulation. I’ll be posting a video about some of the nutritional supplements that have research for helping with ovulation shortly, so stay tuned for that!
Number 2-
And this is important!!
If you have PCOS, and have been trying for over 6 months to get pregnant, you can be refered to a fertility clinic. This is important because fertility clinics obviously specialize in fertility. Their experts, and can be pivotal in your fertility journey. Advocate for yourself, because you qualify for specialized care.
Number 3-
Women with PCOS have a higher risk for miscarriage. This is because the environment that surrounds the growing baby is not ideal. Common problems we find in the maternal-placenta environment of women with PCOS include low vitamin D, low progesterone, high insulin, high testosterone, and high homocysteine.
Let’s talk about each one, and why it can contribute to miscarriage.
Low vitamin D – Vitamin D helps the immune system to be less reactive to the growing baby, and helps to improve the thickness of the uterine lining. When we improve vitamin D levels, we see that the risk for miscarriage goes down.
Low progesterone – Progesterone, like vitamin D, helps to improve the blood flow to the growing baby and improve the uterine lining.
High levels of insulin – High levels of insulin are toxic to the fetus. Not only that but high insulin and high testosterone can really lower the quality of the blood vessels that give blood and oxygen to the growing baby.
And then lastly - High homocysteine – Homocysteine is amino acid that when not recycled in the body properly, can elevate and disrupt the development of the placenta. Women with PCOS often have high levels of homocysteine because of their high levels of insulin. Insulin blocks the enzyme which breaks down homocysteine. The higher the homocysteine, the more risk for miscarriage.
To help prevent miscarriage, and to make the environment for your growing baby more ideal, it’s important that you test and and treat all of these things. A simple blood test can save you a lot of heart break. Ask your doctor to test your vitamin D, your progesterone on day 21 of your cycle, your fasting insulin and fasting blood sugar, and you’re homocysteine levels.
So to sum it all up, there are 3 things to keep in mind if you have PCOS and are thinking of getting pregnant. 1) You may need some help ovulating 2) If you have been trying for 6 months with no result, its time for you to be refered to a fertility clinic and #3 – Women with PCOS have a higher risk for miscarriage. It’s important to test for some of the things that make miscarriage more likely, and treat it ideally before getting pregnant.
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