Polycystic Ovary Syndrome + Womb Health
Image captured by Linden Jesensek
PCOS AWARENESS MONTH
September is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Awareness Month. In this article, I'm giving you some "easy to digest" information about PCOS: handling the emotions of it; how nutrition and regular exercise can help treat it.💪🏾
Although I can't cover everything about this complex condition, it's important to chat about this as it's very common amongst women, with organisations such as Jean Hailes stating that it affects up to 13% of women of reproductive age from age . It's also severely underdiagnosed worldwide and one of the leading causes of female infertility. It is treatable, so the earlier it's diagnosed the better.
Let's be real, as a society and culturally (here I'm talking about my African culture), we don't talk about fertility enough. Fertility is not just a female issue, but I'm focusing on women here due to the topic I'm discussing. Getting to a certain age and not having a child can be a difficult and shameful thing (even though it shouldn't be) for some women, yet we can be so insensitive and not think about the various issues women face behind closed doors.
The World Health Organisation states that even though both men and women can face infertility, infertility or perception of it can have more negative impacts on women who can then experience violence, divorce, social stigma, depression and low self-esteem.
The more we talk about what goes on health-wise, the more we empower each other and circulation of more knowledge can get women treated earlier.
I'm hoping that by sharing information from a nutrition and fitness perspective, this article can be useful to you; a female partner; sister; daughter; friend; colleague etc.
Please ensure you talk to your doctor first should you suspect you have PCOS or to find out more about it.
What is PCOS?
PCOS is a common hormone disorder which affects the ovaries, in which women have higher than normal amounts of male hormones.
The imbalance of hormones causes symptoms such as:
cysts in the ovaries
missed periods
heavy bleeding during periods
weight gain
more hair growth on face + other body areas
harder to fall pregnant
longer term health problems eg diabetes + heart problems.
Handling emotions
At Fitness To A Tee, its all about holistic health so approaching your health from the mental/emotional; physical and nutrition side. For women who experience PCOS, there are alot of different emotions that arise. Not only can the hormone imbalance cause anxiety and depression, you might also feel low if you've gained a lot of weight; are struggling to lose it and/or are struggling to fall pregnant.
Remember that seeking counselling to discuss your emotions is a great option because those around you may not be able to understand and delve deeper into some of your emotions.
If you are someone who's interested in meditation, you can also incorporate womb health meditations to help with managing your emotions; relieving stress and assisting with the healing process.
Nutrition
Nutrition is 80% of achieving any health goal and is one of the ways to help treat PCOS and improve overall womb health.
Check out this yummy Wild Rice Stawberry Salad here ("Life in the Strawberry Lane), which I made this week and that has so many essential ingredients which help in managing PCOS.
Whilst we are chewing, for those in Australia - we can also support Australian strawberry farmers because sources such as ABC News Australia have reported that strawberry prices have been forced down really low due to the Melbourne lockdown. Punnets have been selling for as low as $1.50 each! Usual strawberry customers such as restaurants and cafes have dropped drastically during lockdown.
Also, ensure you see the Fitness To A Tee #workoutwednesday video from this week, where I chatted about simple nutrition to help with PCOS and womb health.
Some foods for womb health
Anti-inflammatory foods are great for treating PCOS and keeping the womb healthy. This is particularly so with PCOS as inflammation is a key element of it. So foods such as strawberries; wholegrain carbs eg brown and wild rice; sweet potatoes; any leafy greens or other green vegetables are great.
Due to their great fibre content, foods such as wholegrain carbs like rye bread and green vegetables are great for digestion. Women with PCOS often experience bloating, so such foods can counter that. Also fibre rich foods can reduce the risk of diabetes and improve heart health - conditions which are long-term risk factors for women with PCOS.
Image: Linden Jesensek. Outfit available from Fitness Leaf.
Exercises and stretching
Movement is key in helping treat PCOS, particularly as women with PCOS often struggle with weight gain. You can choose between resistance based moves and/or yoga and plates based moves. Personally, I prefer a combination of all those to boost my womb health.
When it comes to exercise, some top tips which I can give you if you're struggling with weight loss due to PCOS are:
Don't be afraid to try out different exercises as some moves will flare you up. Try out a variety then be consistent with the style of exercising which suits your body.
Aim to combine moves where you are working several muscle groups at once so that you can burn more calories.
Be consistent with exercise but also kind to yourself. If your body is having a "flare-up" kind of week - rest and do gentle stretching.
See this video for examples of me showing you weight loss moves and stretches to boost your womb health. You can make the workout more low impact by doing it with body weight only or using light weights.
I hope this has been useful to you and please feel free to get in touch with me here if you have any questions or would like me to continue the conversation about womb health and fertility further on my pages. I base my content on what you need so drop me a message - we are in this together!
To sign up to the Fitness To A Tee Healthy Foundation plan to help you boost womb health or fertility, click here now.