Losing Weight Can Bring Bundles of Joy

(NewsUSA) - Obesity affects every aspect of a person's life, from their insulin levels to their ability to start a family.

Several studies have linked female obesity with lower conception rates, but the link between obesity and fertility is complex.

Excess fat causes the body's adrenal glands to produce extra estrogen, which can stop women from ovulating. Some conditions, like hypothyroidism, or low thyroid hormone levels, cause both obesity and infertility.

For women with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome), the most common cause of female infertility, obesity and infertility form a vicious cycle.

PCOS patients' adrenal glands produce extra androgen, a hormone that stops or limits ovulation. Women with PCOS grow ovarian cysts, which cause reproductive problems. PCOS causes weight gain, which encourages the body to produce yet more androgen, which further reduces fertility and causes symptoms ranging from excessive hair growth and pelvic pain to acne.

PCOS cannot be cured, but medications and treatments can ease its symptoms. Prescriptions exist to treat hair growth, skin problems and unhealthy insulin levels separately. For women who do not wish to become pregnant, birth control can regulate monthly bleeding.

But many medications can interfere with pregnancy or breast feeding. When a PCOS patient wishes for a child, her best bet lies with lifestyle changes.

Vitaline, a weight-control clinic that specializes in PCOS patients, found that dropping 21 pounds can help most PCOS women regulate their periods and become pregnant.

According to Vitaline founder Norah Lane, exercise, combined with a healthy, organic diet featuring frequent meals, helps PCOS women become healthy enough to conceive, with or without infertility treatments.

The Vitaline Web site (www.pcos-vitaline.com) features a "baby gallery" showing some of the 183 children who have been born to women following the diet program.

Doctors can diagnose PCOS after eliminating other conditions through blood tests and performing a pelvic exam.

PCOS affects one out of every 10 women. For the many PCOS women trying to have children, lifestyle changes might succeed where medical treatments have failed. For more information, visit www.pcos-vitaline.com.

"Article By: NewsUSA"