Fact or Fiction: PCOS

Here are some little random tidbits about PCOS sort of a "fact or fiction" but these are all fiction ones.

Fiction: All women who have PCOS have ovarian cysts. *The name of this disorder is very misleading. PCOS is a hormone-related disorder and ovarian cysts, while common in women with PCOS, do not need to be present in order for the disorder to be diagnosed. Conversely, not all women with ovarian cysts have PCOS.

Fiction: All women with PCOS are overweight. *While PCOS and the resulting insulin resistance can lead to excess weight and obesity, not all women who have PCOS are overweight. In fact, roughly 40% of women with PCOS are classified as "Thin Cysters".

Fiction: Women with PCOS cannot have children. *The truth is that, while PCOS can complicate conception and cause some women to be unable to conceive, the majority of patients with PCOS do achieve pregnancy through the help of medication and/or assisted fertilization. It may just take longer.

Fiction: PCOS only affects women in their 30's and beyond. *PCOS does not discriminate. It affects women of all ages, ethnicity and is independent of whether or not you have previously had children. The medical community has proven that PCOS can affect females of all ages - women as young as 8 and as old as 65 have been newly diagnosed.

Fiction: Birth Control Pills will regulate the menstrual cycle and "cure" PCOS. *Again, PCOS is not a reproductive disorder. There are many hormones in play when dealing with PCOS, and not all of those hormones can be regulated through oral contraceptives. While they may regulate your cycle, birth control pills have been proven to exacerbate insulin resistance and make PCOS symptoms WORSE or cause you to stop having a cycle all together, especially once you stop taking the pill. BCP-not a good idea most of the time for PCOS.