PCOS and insulin resistance - what this actually means for you & what you can do about it

Think of the hormone insulin as a key. Just like you use a key to get into you're home, our body uses insulin to let our blood sugar into our cells. Once the blood sugar is in our cells, we can now use it for energy. In women with PCOS however, this process is not ideal. The cells don't respond as well to the insulin. Even though we are putting the key in the hole, the door is not opening like it normally would.

So, what does our body do?

We just make more and more insulin, hoping that it will solve the problem. The problem with that is that now we have so much insulin roaming around, that it starts to effect other things, ESPECIALLY OUR HORMONES.

The excess insulin now starts to bother receptors in our ovaries, causing them to release testosterone, and other male sex hormones. This is why we see unwanted hair growth, hair loss, and menstrual irregularities.

So what can you do about it?

The good news is that you can treat insulin resistance! Here are my top 3 ways:

1) DIET !! Our blood sugar is a reflection of what we eat. If we eat a lot of simple carbs, like white bread and cold cereal, our blood sugar goes through the ROOF. When blood sugar goes up, so does insulin. Complex carbohydrates like sweet potatoes and brown rice cause blood sugar and insulin to rise, but way LESS INTENSE. The trick is then to lower how much our blood sugar goes up by lowering our intake of carbs, especially simple carbohydrates.

2) EXERCISE !! When we exercise, our cells don't actually need insulin to get blood sugar in. Exercise does it all on it's own. So to combat high blood sugar and insulin resistance, we NEED to exercise!

3) SUPPLEMENTS - Supplements like berberine and myo-inositol do a GREAT job at lowering insulin resistance, lowering blood sugar, and improving hormones for women with PCOS. It's important to dose it correctly though, so I strongly suggest you work with your naturopathic doctor to help guide you!

Do you want to reverse insulin resistance and improve you're hormones? Book an appointment today to get started!