Many women naturally go through specific stages in life that affect their health and well-being. Periods, pregnancy, and menopause can all cause hormonal imbalances in the body. These disparities can cause you to experience things like irregular periods, adult acne, and insomnia. These effects are even more pronounced in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Aside from the symptoms mentioned above, PCOS can also cause things like hair loss, infertility—and weight gain.
You should watch that last effect if you have a diagnosis. Up to 88% of women with PCOS are overweight or obese. If you’re one of them, you’re more vulnerable to conditions like diabetes, osteoarthritis, and even cancer. However, losing weight with PCOS to avoid these issues can be challenging: the disease affects your metabolism and insulin resistance. That’s why, aside from diet and exercise, you may be asked to take weight loss medications to boost your efforts.
If you’d like to address PCOS weight gain with natural rather than medical remedies, though, changing what and how you eat is a great way to start. Here are a few natural diet changes to lose weight with PCOS.
Avoid processed foods
Avoid processed foodsThe modern diet contains processed foods like bread, frozen meals, breakfast cereals, and fruit-flavored yogurt. Though they’re often convenient, delicious, and affordable options, you should eat them as little as possible on a PCOS diet to lose weight because they can worsen your condition and make weight management more difficult. These foods contain refined carbohydrates like processed white flour and added sugars, including dextrose, sucrose, and high-fructose corn syrup. They’ll make you even more insulin-resistant, causing your body to store compounds like sugar as fat. That means most baked goods are off the table. For other foods, like pasta, consider alternatives like chickpea spaghetti so you don’t need to cut them out of your diet entirely. Of course, that doesn’t mean you can’t eat processed foods on special occasions. Your diet should still be something you can keep up for a long time, so don’t let PCOS stop you from eating your birthday cake!
Despite the metabolic challenges posed by PCOS, research indicates that gradual weight loss through natural dietary changes can have significant benefits for women, including improved insulin sensitivity and hormonal balance.
Load up on fiber, protein, and complex carbohydrates
Did you know that there’s a natural way to eat less? With nutritious, whole, and unprocessed foods, you’ll stay full longer and easily manage your weight on PCOS without taking appetite-suppressing medications. First, consume more fiber by eating the rainbow. Everything from blueberries and oranges to kale and beets will help regulate your metabolism on PCOS by reducing the hunger signals your digestive system sends to your brain. Protein-rich foods boost that effect by affecting the primary hormone behind hunger: ghrelin. Chicken breast, fish, and eggs simultaneously promote the production of the YY peptide, which makes you feel full. And if you’ll be exercising alongside eating healthier, they’re also muscle-building foods that can help you burn calories and lose weight more efficiently. Finally, be sure to swap out refined carbohydrates for complex ones. It takes longer for your body to digest beans, nuts, and whole grains like oats and brown rice, so you’ll feel hungry less often.
Don’t drink your calories
Drinks don’t fill you up like solid food, so you must consume significant amounts to feel satiated. And if you’re sipping something with added sugars—like soda, frappes, or fruit juice—you’re drinking more calories than you think. That makes swapping out your usual calorie-filled drinks with healthier ones an easy, natural diet change you can make. Drink coffee without sugar, swap fruit juice for tea, or hydrate with good old water. You’ll also have to be wary of your alcohol intake. Just 100 grams of beverages like vodka contain more than 200 calories and can ruin your weight loss efforts. That’s not to mention that alcohol can worsen PCOS symptoms like insulin resistance and hormonal imbalances while also depleting your body of nutrients.
Dr. Mario J. Do Canto Filho suggests that weight reduction is achievable with the right diet (including more fruits and vegetables) and regular physical exercise.
Don’t skip meals
Though you may think that entirely skipping meals will help you eat less and lose weight, the opposite is true. Your blood sugar levels lower the longer you go without food, making you more likely to crave and indulge in sugary, processed fares that worsen PCOS symptoms and can negate your weight loss efforts. A study on the eating habits of women with PCOS found participants who tended to skip meals experienced the effects of the disease more often and even made women without it more at risk of getting a diagnosis. So instead of depriving yourself, eat small, healthy bites whenever you feel hungry—and stop not when you’re uncomfortably full, but when you’re satiated.
Hillary Wright, a registered dietitian, highlights that losing even 5% to 10% of body weight can improve insulin resistance, fertility, and overall health for women with PCOS.
Summary
Many women experience hormonal imbalances due to life stages like periods, pregnancy, and menopause. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) exacerbates these effects, leading to symptoms like irregular periods, acne, and weight gain. Managing weight with PCOS is crucial to prevent conditions like diabetes and cancer. Natural remedies include avoiding processed foods, prioritizing fiber, protein, and complex carbs, limiting calorie-filled drinks, and avoiding meal skipping to control blood sugar levels.
