Polycystic ovary syndrome is a disease where women have high levels of the male hormone. This hormone causes an imbalance in the woman’s body that results in having no period for months. It affects women age between 15 to 44 years old. A lot of females have PCOS, but they do not know it. The disease is not life-threatening, but PCOS may cause other health problems.
In PCOS, many small sacs grow inside the ovaries. These are the polycystic ovaries, meaning many cysts in the ovaries.
Today, doctors still not know the exact cause of why do some women have polycystic ovaries. However, here are some of the possible causes.
1. Genes
Studies show that PCOS runs in the family. You may inherit it from your family members who have the same condition.
2. Resistance to Insulin
If your body has difficulty processing insulin, it will give a signal to the pancreas. The pancreas will then produce more hormones. Also, insulin is a hormone that helps the body use sugar from the foods as energy. Therefore, too much of this hormone, the ovaries will produce more male hormones. Aside from that, you will also be at risk for type 2 diabetes.
3. Androgen
It is a male hormone present in both males and females. This hormone’s role in a woman’s body is the growth of hair in the underarm and pubic area. The hormone also helps in preventing bone loss. But having too much androgen in the body causes PCOS.
Women who have the disease may experience these PCOS symptoms.
4. Having Irregular Periods
Your body does not release an egg from your ovary into your fallopian tube. That is why it prevents the uterus from shedding every month. Eight periods or fewer in a year is the common number of periods that a woman with PCOS has.
5. Heavy Bleeding
Since the uterus was not shredding for a long period, the lining of it builds up. PCOS causes you to have heavier period flows whenever you have one.
6. Hair Growth
High-levels of the male hormone cause your body to produce more hair than usual. Women with PCOS symptoms will grow hair on their faces and bodies, including the back, belly, and chest.
7. Acne
Your skin will be oilier that will cause breakouts in your face, chest, and upper back. Acne breakouts are because of the hormonal imbalance that is happening in your body.
8. Weight Gain
Most women who have this disease are overweight. Your body cannot manage insulin. PCOS causes problems in your body’s metabolism, which will make you overweight.
9. Male-pattern-baldness
Excess male hormones would also give you the type of pattern on how males lose their hair. The hair on your scalp gets thinner and would start falling out.
10. Darkening of the Skin
Can you see black or purplish skin in your underarm and collar areas? Hence, it is not a sign that you have PCOS. It is a sign that you are resistant to insulin. If you have a high level of sugar, you may also see some discoloration in your skin. Since one of the effects of PCOS is being insulin-resistant, you will also have dark skin patches in your body.
Detection
The diagnosis of PCOS is through a pelvic exam. During this check-up, your doctor will insert his/her gloved fingers into your vagina. The doctor will then check for any growth in your uterus so that the doctor can see if there are any problems in your uterus and reproductive tract.
Another type of method is a blood test. This test can check the levels of your male hormones. Aside from that, it is also used to check your insulin and cholesterol levels. By checking, you would know if you are at risk of any heart problems or diabetes.
Ultrasound is also used to see if there are any problems in the uterus. This method uses soundwaves to know the problems in your body.
PCOS can affect your body and health in a big way. If you like to be a mother in the future and have this problem, it will be hard for you to be pregnant since you do not release eggs ready for fertilization. But there are some treatments for this problem.
