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  1. #1
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    Update Swaying under special circumstances Part 3 PCOS

    Swaying under special circumstances Part 3 PCOS

    PCOS, or Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, is a very common condition believed to be suffered by 1 out of 10-15 women (and this number may actually be higher because many people have some symptoms of PCOS without having the condition full-blown). It occurs when hormones get out of balance in a woman’s body and can affect fertility negatively.

    This hormonal imbalance can create challenges for swaying both pink and blue – for pink, PCOS not only makes it harder to conceive, but actually causes your hormones to shift in a way that favors boy conceptions, while at the same time making it more difficult to follow all three of the TTC girl diets. For blue, PCOS can make it tougher to conceive and the medications often prescribed for PCOS can make you more likely to conceive a baby girl and gaining weight on a blue-friendly diet may aggravate PCOS. But don’t despair, there are ways that we can tweak the sways for both genders to help you stay healthy and conceive the baby you’ve been dreaming of.

    What is PCOS?

    PCOS occurs when the body develops a condition called insulin resistance. Normally, after you eat a meal, some of your food is converted by your liver into glucose, a very basic, chemically uncomplicated sugar that provides easy to use energy to the cells. This causes the amount of glucose in your blood****** to skyrocket. But your body doesn’t use glucose well alone; it needs a second chemical, the hormone insulin, to be able to metabolize the glucose. Insulin helps glucose make it into your cells where it then can be used as energy. In addition, insulin bundles up extra glucose into a form called glycogen, which it then stores for later use. This process keeps your blood sugar from getting too high.

    Unfortunately, after a lifetime of eating foods that provide the body with massive doses of glucose (refined carbs and sugar, eating excessive calories) our cells start to get a little bit “deaf” to the effects of insulin. They don’t respond to it at regular levels any more and your body must begin to produce more and more insulin to compensate for that. Lifestyle factors such as being overweight, constant snacking, and lack of exercise exacerbate this problem.

    Over time, the pancreas, the organ that produces insulin, gets tired. It just can’t make enough insulin to cope with this situation and extra glucose builds up. Your blood sugar stays high all the time, makes it extra hard for your body to lose fat, makes it easier for your body to store fat, and this road eventually leads to Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, blindness, nerve damage, and kidney disease.

    In terms of fertility, the excess glucose triggers an odd chain of events. High insulin levels stimulate the ovaries to make extra testosterone. This excess testosterone causes the signs and symptoms related to PCOS (see below), can stop you from ovulating, and can make the eggs you do ovulate, lower in quality and less likely to produce a viable pregnancy.

    Why do we get PCOS??

    Well, that’s a pretty stupid design, isn’t it?? The very thing we need to provide energy to our cells, can actually go haywire and render us infertile, even eventually KILL us!

    PCOS, like Type 2 diabetes, is considered a “disease of civilization” meaning that humans in their native environment, probably didn’t get it (we’ll talk more about this below). PCOS was not even described by the medical establishment until 1935 and it was a rare disorder. Yet it is currently so widespread that many doctors no longer refer to it as a disease and consider it more of a genetic variation. In fact, it may be that 75-100% of all women would eventually develop PCOS if their diet and lifestyle promoted it strongly enough. Some women just seem to develop it more easily than others, and particular ethnic groups and the women in certain families are much more likely to develop PCOS than the general population. Some evidence indicates that the youngest woman in a family of mostly brothers may be more likely to develop PCOS than others are.

    Evolutionarily speaking, then, is there any POINT to PCOS?

    Medical research is beginning to conclude that when a condition is widespread throughout the general population, that usually means that condition carries with it some sort of survival benefit that in humanity’s native environment; aided in survival and/or passing down genes to future generations.

    PCOS is no exception – if food was scarce and you frequently went for days or even weeks without a good meal, the person whose body was the best at keeping blood sugar elevated for longer after eating and hanging onto every calorie it could in the form of fat, had a distinct advantage over the skinny mini’s who immediately burn off every scrap they put into their mouths.

    Even higher testosterone itself carries with it survival benefits – a person who may need to struggle for survival, and even fight over scarce resources, NEEDS to be able to make testosterone. Testosterone in small amounts is imperative for building and maintaining muscle mass, and testosterone in women has been linked to higher sex drive as well. So if one person’s body was a little better at keeping T levels adequate even in times of scarcity, that person would have an advantage for competition for mates and resources, and may be interested in mating when others with lower T levels are not.

    Beyond that, some genes are more functional in males vs. females but both genders still carry the genetic blueprints even if they are less important for one gender. An example would be nipples in men – they don’t strictly need them, of course, but since women DO need them, both sexes still develop them, just in different forms. PCOS may be a vestigial form of some metabolic process that is highly important to male survival, but in women serves either no purpose or one that is much less important.

    One other side effect of PCOS that is important to us here is ~warning~ nothing other than my own speculation. It occurs to me that in a time of famine, if very little meat was available and people were subsisting largely on pure carbohydrates, the tendency would be for many more girls than boys to be born…maybe even exclusively girls if things got bad enough. If a culture turned its back on meat all together by choice or circumstance, and went entirely vegetarian, over time this could lead to drastic imbalances in the gender ratio. In this scenario, it would then be a “genetically smart” strategy to be able to produce an excess of sons. So if one woman’s body takes a sudden excess of carbs and exchanges them into testosterone and then has 2 sons instead of 4 daughters, those lads may then have a very large genetic advantage – even IF due to PCOS, the woman was only able to achieve half the number of pregnancies! PCOS may be one mechanism by which Mother Nature balances gender ratio and part of the reason why gender ratio hovers at 50-50 regardless of a culture’s diet.

    How do I know if I have PCOS??

    The symptoms of PCOS include acne, weight gain (particularly the “apple” shape), trouble losing weight that may get worse when you eat a lot of carbs, hair growth on places like the face, chest, and neck, thinning hair on the top of the head, irregular, infrequent periods, bleeding between menstrual cycles, repeated ovarian cysts with pelvic pain (your doctor will see these cysts on ultrasound), and frequent positive OPK even when you’re not ovulating. MANY if not all women have some of these symptoms some of the time and do not have PCOS and others have no visible symptoms other than unexplained infertility but DO have PCOS.

    For a real diagnosis, you must have your doctor run a series of blood tests that will measure your testosterone level, your blood sugar, your insulin levels, cholesterol, blood pressure, (for a complete list see PCOS) and also to rule out other things that can cause similar symptoms, like thyroid conditions. You will most likely also need a pelvic ultrasound to check for ovarian cysts (and just a warning to those who have never had this done, it is an internal exam and an ultrasound wand must actually be inserted into your vagina…this is a lot less scary than it sounds and the techs are very kind and sensitive to your feelings.)

    It may be a good idea to have these tests run before you sway (especially if swaying for pink) if there is ANY doubt in your mind as to whether you have PCOS or even just mild insulin resistance, because the IGD, FGD, and “crash and burn” variation of LE Diet where people focus more on empty carbs, may aggravate PCOS and make it less likely to get your DG if you attempt to follow it. (The whole-grain, high-vegetable variation of the LE Diet is actually quite good for PCOS as is the HE Diet, with a couple of minor changes we will discuss below.)
    Last edited by atomic sagebrush; January 26th, 2014 at 02:14 PM.
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  2. #2
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    If I DO have PCOS, what do I do?

    First of all, don’t panic. I PROMISE that anyone can conceive a boy or a girl, even people with PCOS. One of the most beautiful little girls I’ve ever seen belongs to a friend of mine with PCOS (and three handsome sons besides). Kate Gosselin has 5 daughters and she has PCOS!! It may be a little more difficult for those with very severe PCOS to have daughters than it is for some others, and may be a little more difficult to conceive sons while on meds for PCOS, but it is nothing that we can’t overcome.

    Secondly, listen to your doctor. Most people are allowed to manage their PCOS thru diet and lifestyle changes and this is, of course, always the best option. However, if your hormone profile indicates medication, then don’t be afraid of taking it. For a pink swayer, it will help your sway. For a blue swayer, you will want to take the medications for a short period while you lose some weight and get your diet under control, and then see if you can wean off of them because these medications do tend to sway pink.

    What are the prescription medications given to people with PCOS?

    1)Metformin - This is a diabetes drug that will help lower your blood sugar, and in turn, your testosterone levels (sways pink)

    2)Clomid – this drug makes you ovulate by temporarily lowering your estrogen levels. (sways pink and can only be used for 6 months in a row maximum.)

    3)Birth Control pills – Often prescribed to regulate menstrual cycles in women with PCOS who are not currently TTC, and can help keep hormones working in a more normal fashion (sways pink)

    4)Spirolactone – this medication lowers androgens, male hormones like testosterone and the precursor hormones to testosterone in your blood****** (sways pink but unsafe during pg and should be stopped at least a few weeks before you TTC.)

    What if my doctor won’t give me medication for PCOS?

    While we all want a quick and easy fix, PCOS responds very well for most people, to changes in diet and lifestyle (see below) that will only enhance your sway. Doctors only tend to prescribe medication for people whose PCOS is quite severe. If you’re not a person who requires medication, many herbs are used to help control PCOS. If you are on medication, do not mix and match medication with herbs.

    1)Vitex – a lot of women with PCOS have claimed great results with vitex. Others have reported that they believe it aggravated their PCOS. Since every woman’s body and hormone profile are unique, it’s likely that both are correct! If you are swaying pink and not on medication for your PCOS, taking 800-1200 mg vitex for a few months in the 2 W on (CD1-CD 13/14 EVEN if you do not ovulate on CD 13/14), rest of cycle off pattern, may help to make your cycles more regular. If you notice any negative changes, stop the vitex. (sways pink, but for blue swayers, if it helps you get off the much stronger and more effective prescription meds, that is a good trade!!)

    The exception to the 2W on, rest of cycle off pattern, is if you’re going to take Clomid. Since you cannot take both vitex and Clomid, you may wish to take vitex nonstop for 1-2 full months (while using reliable barrier birth control), then stop the vitex on CD 1 and start Clomid on CD 3.

    2)Saw Palmetto – helps to reduce the levels of androgens in your body, that your body can turn into a form of testosterone it easily uses. Take 320 mg SP in the same 2 W on, rest of cycle off pattern and you can also use it nonstop for 1-2 months before starting Clomid as described in the Vitex section. (sways pink, but for blue swayers, if it helps you get off the much stronger and more effective prescription meds, that is a good trade!!)

    3)DIM – this is an enzyme found in cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli. It helps you metabolize estrogen, which is helpful for those with PCOS who often have too much estrogen in their bodies or develop excess estrogen when they work to lower testosterone. Lowering androgens like testosterone, sometimes has the side effect of raising estrogen. (not fully known how this supp sways) 100 mg a day taken every day for at least 90 days before you want to TTC, then stop it once you wish to start TTC because your body needs estrogen to get pg.

    4)DCI – this is a compound found in buckwheat that has been shown to lower insulin levels and testosterone, and improve ovulation in women with PCOS. 600 mg a day was the dosage used in the study that I read, but you may want to start at a lower dose and work up from there. (not known how this sways, but lower testosterone indicates it would sway pink.)

    5)Chromium – a trace mineral that improves glucose and insulin levels. 200 mcg a day. (not fully known how this sways)

    6)Cinnamon powder – ½ t per day thru diet OR supps reduced blood sugar, triglyceride levels, LDL (bad ) cholesterol, and cholesterol overall. Lower blood sugar and cholesterol, indicates that cinnamon sways pink – but for blue swayers with PCOS, if cinnamon helps you get off the stronger prescription drugs, it’s a good trade.

    7)NO LONGER RECOMMENDED L-Carnitine – Helps to get rid of glucose in the blood that your body isn’t metabolizing and also helps your body turn food into muscle,which will burn off more calories than body fat. (sways blue) LADIES - I no longer recommend this at all due to the fact that it raises T levels and may aggravate PCOS that way. If you have already bought some, you can give it to your husband if you're swaying blue.

    8)Magnesium – Magnesium may help preserve insulin sensitivity. 250 mg a day – no more! (some claim magnesium sways pink, but blue swayers, you should either get some mag in a prenatal vitamin or thru foods – trying to avoid magnesium is pointless because your body will simply rob your bones to get it and there will be absolutely NO change in the levels of magnesium in your blood******.) If you're taking a prenatal that will have enough magnesium in it, no need for more.

    9)Fiber – People who eat high fiber and whole grains, have better insulin sensitivity than those who do not. Fiber also helps reduce estrogen and testosterone. Vegetarians have been shown to excrete more testosterone and estrogen in their feces than meat eaters because of increased fiber. Pink swayers should take extra fiber supps, while blue swayers, you should simply get ample dietary fiber thru foods.

    10)Vitamin X (exercise!!) – when you have PCOS you MUST exercise. Pink swayers, even if you cannot do the 60 min. a day, 6-7 days a week level of exercise, exercise is so good for lowering your blood sugar levels that you must include it even if it is moderate exercise. Blue swayers, moderate exercise and weight lifting will help control your PCOS and will also sway blue for you!

    Pink swayers – I would feel good about taking vitex, SP, DIM, DCI, magnesium, fiber, and cinnamon. And don’t forget Vitamin X!!

    Blue swayers – I would feel good about taking Chromium, magnesium (via prenatal), and getting ample fiber thru foods. If I was trying to get off prescription medication for PCOS, I would def. be willing to try the other supps, because they will still keep your PCOS under control but not as dramatically as the prescription drugs do. And don’t forget Vitamin X!!

    Drinking enough water can help both pink and blue swayers, because sometimes our bodies confuse thirst with hunger and we eat when we are actually just thirsty. You don’t have to drown yourself; you only need 8, 8 oz. glasses of water a day – about the size of a coffee mug.

    ALL SWAYERS SHOULD TAKE FOLIC ACID!!!!!

    Things to avoid for everyone with PCOS –

    Caffeine (can spike blood sugar – green tea may be better than coffee/soda)

    Conjugated Linoleic Acid (makes insulin resistance worse)

    Vit. E (in supplement form, may make insulin resistance worse and also can inhibit cell division which is not good for fertility – both LE and HE Diets will provide ample Vit E thru diet anyway.)

    Smoking (aggravates insulin resistance and lowers egg quality, contributes to miscarriage) NOTE to blue swayers – move heaven and earth to get your husband to quit smoking if you want a son!!! Smoking is terrible for sperm quality and it has been proven that men who smoke father more daughters.

    Constant snacking (eating constantly keeps blood sugar elevated. Some people find that by eating less often, their insulin response improves because it’s as if they’ve given their insulin receptors a “rest”.)

    Irregular meals when you NEED to eat (some people find that regular meals and snacks – not CONSTANT eating but every few hours – keeps their blood sugar levels stable and helps to avoid hunger and cravings for carbs.)

    Eating refined carbs/sugars at all, and eating large amounts of even whole grains. (whole grains are ok in moderation because the fiber in whole grains helps rises and falls in blood sugar - but just watch your portions and limit yourself to 2-3 servings of whole grains a day)

    Milk – (milk has a LOT of carbs in it in the form of lactose, which is a type of sugar that your body easily converts into glucose. Cheese, yogurt, and kefir are ok because the microorganisms that turn milk into cheese/yogurt/kefir also digest most if not all of the lactose. Cheese has NO carbs, while a cup of milk has 13 g carbs per cup…it’s easy to see how the high-milk intake of the IGD and FGD can really aggravate PCOS. If you are sold on cal-mag and swaying, it’s best for you to get cal-mag via supps rather than milk.)

    Eating too many calories (pink swayers, you should be limiting calories to 1500-1800 (if you are very short or have a lot of weight to lose, you may drop down to 1200-1500, no lower) which will help your PCOS anyway. Blue swayers, you will have to aim for the lower end of the HE Diet guidelines. 2000 cals - this seems like a lot, but you should be exercising and even if you do not lose a pound, by virtue of adding exercise, you will be converting some body fat to muscle mass and improving your insulin resistance as you do. Blue swayers, if you have a LOT of weight to lose or your weight plateaus, you may even want to drop down to 1800 calories but no lower. It may even be best for you to take a year and lose weight safely and slowly at lower caloric intake, while adding muscle mass thru exercise, and then resume your sway at that point.)

    Gaining weight (and in fact you should LOSE some if you can. Pink swayers, you should be losing a bit of weight anyway. Blue swayers, if you are lifting weights and eating enough protein, gradually reduce your weight by 5-10% of your body mass – you don’t need to waste away to nothing. Remember, you are trying to get off of medications that are swaying pink for you and a little weight loss may be just what the doctor ordered.)
    Last edited by atomic sagebrush; May 6th, 2017 at 12:45 PM.
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  3. #3
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    The DIETS!

    There are two schools of thought on diets for PCOS. One school of thought allows small amounts of whole grains in an otherwise PCOS-friendly diet, and the other school eliminates grains all together and focuses more on vegetables and meat, fruit in smaller amounts. I personally prefer that whole grains are eaten in small amounts (esp. for pink swayers) and I explain why below – note, I am aware the following essay goes pretty far afield but I want people to truly understand that I have legitimate reasons why I believe the things I believe…not to mention that I find it way more interesting to talk about than how many times to BD or how much RepHresh to use and I hope that you all find it interesting as well.

    Of course, above all you must do what works best for you and your body.

    The higher protein, no-grain diets include the Paleo/Primitive/Caveman Diets, along with the Atkins Diet in the induction phase (Protein Power and South Beach and later phases of Atkins, do allow small amounts of whole grains). The basic idea underlying the Paleo-style diets is that humans did not evolve eating grains in large amounts and so grains should be eliminated all together from the modern diet, fruits should be limited due to the sugar content, and people should get most of their carbs from vegetables and eat more meat.

    While at first blush this does make some sense, it isn’t quite borne out by historical fact. In nature, our closest living primate relatives eat a LOT of fruit and seeds and insects, not a lot of meat and their diets are higher in carbs, lower in protein than one might think (while seeds and insects do have protein, you have to eat quite a few to amount to much in the way of protein). The amount of evolutionary time in which proto-humans were avid hunters eating a lot of meat, is miniscule compared to the amount of evolutionary time they spent eating mostly fruit, seeds, insects, and the occasional bit of scavenged meat. In fact, it was probably an increase in meat eating that caused protohumans to evolve into modern man. The earliest tools found for butchering meat date to 2.5 million years ago and modern man appeared 200,000 - 300,000 years ago.

    Furthermore, there is a fundamental difference between fruits and vegetables – the entire purpose of fruits is to be eaten, because when animals eat fruit, they spread the fruit seeds far from the parent plant and that’s how the parent plant manages to spread their offspring far from home (if you’ve ever planted too many seeds in one spot, you know that for a plant, having your babies sprout under your feet is bad for both you and your offspring because there’s not enough resources for them all to live in such a confined space). Fruits are sweet and luscious and high in carbs, because they WANT animals to eat them so they can reproduce their genes. Fruits have ALWAYS been sweet and luscious and high in carbs because it’s in their best interest to be that way and any animals that eat a lot of fruits, get a lot of calories from carbs.

    Vegetables on the other hand, are generally consumed earlier in the life cycle than fruits (bear in mind that tomatoes, squash, avocado ARE fruits, and seeds that are consumed when mature or nearly so, like legumes and grains, also depend on animals to spread them about and behave in a similar fashion and all these veggies tend to be higher in carbs than some of the low carb diets allow).

    Low carb vegetables such as lettuce, broccoli, spinach, asparagus, and more primitive ones like fern heads, nettles, etc have no evolutionary motivation for being tasty and high in carbs because if they are eaten before they reproduce, they die without handing down their genes to future generations. Root crops do have some sugar in them because they store it for their plant’s future use but they also often contain high levels of toxins that require cooking/processing to eliminate before they can be eaten (I’m sure we’ve all seen green potatoes at the supermarket – that green color is a toxic chemical that the potato develops when exposed to sunlight, to prevent animals from eating it). Most plants in nature that aren’t fruits/seeds, contain high levels of toxic chemicals as a deterrent against being eaten in large amounts. People DID NOT eat many of these low-carb vegetables at all in their native environment, nor do other primates, and when they did, it was often only in times of severe hardship.

    In fact, I have read two very plausible theories that claim that morning sickness and also children’s aversion to green vegetables and anything “bitter” is actually an evolutionary tactic that causes the most sensitive individuals to avoid ingesting too much of these plant-related toxins during critical phases of development. The only reason why we eat vegetables at all now, let alone in the high quantities we now eat them, is due to the fact that over centuries of agriculture and selective breeding, we managed to develop veggies that have lower amounts of these toxic chemicals, actually taste good, and are edible in more than just a mouthful here or there. If you research the history of vegetables, you will discover that many vegetables we now take for granted, actually were not even EATEN by anyone, let alone the majority of people, until the 1500’s or even later. Since many of us had not heard of arugula until 10-20 years ago and now no one will shut up about the stuff, I can totally believe this is true LOL!!

    Where do the grains come in, then?? We know that grains were in cultivation by humans at least 11,000 years ago and evidence indicates that humans were grinding and storing grain they had gathered in large quantities from the wild (they’ve discovered the grindstones and found grains in storage buildings) hundreds of years before that if not longer. That’s right – we’ve been eating grains and high carb fruits and vegetables, milennia longer than we have low carb vegetables!!!

    Additionally, it is HIGHLY likely that humans were eating grains long before they developed technology to grind them and store them in storehouses. Our teeth themselves bear this out – the reason why so many kids have to have orthodontic work is because most of human existence the human diet was heavy in foods that required significant chewing in order to be digestible (fruits, seeds, grains - all high in carbs) and as a result, our teeth are too big for our skulls. Our skulls shrank as a meat-heavy diet caused our brains to grow and we needed more room for brain – but too large a head size made it too risky to give birth to large-headed babies and so evolution struck a compromise…less bone, more brain. Our teeth have not caught up yet because even as our brains grew and skulls shrunk, we were continuing to eat large amounts of high fiber, chewy foods - and history supports that these foods were predominantly grains.

    Putting this all together, it is highly likely that for at least the last portion of the evolution of modern humans, all our ancestors were eating at least SOME grains and for much of that time, most human diets were based primarily around grains/seeds because unlike fruits, vegetables, and meats, grains and seeds are easy to store.

    Fans of the Paleo-Style Diet claim that 12,000 years of eating grains, is not enough time for any human traits to evolve, but that is nonsense. Dogs, cattle, vegetables, have all evolved significantly in that time, with a little help from their humans. Animals in the wild including guppies and finches have been observed to significantly evolve within only 10 years! We know for a fact that many humans evolved the ability to digest lactose in adulthood within the last 8000 years. And the higher the population, the greater the odds that favorable mutations will take hold and spread…since the human population has skyrocketed since the domestication of grains, it is EXTREMELY likely we are more able to digest grains now than ever before. Also, I would point out that since the human population has increased exponentially since the advent of agriculture, it's really unlikely that grains are rendering wide swaths of humanity, infertile due to PCOS or any other reason.

    Virtually all humans on the face of the planet eat starchy, high carb, grain/seed/root crop foods as dietary staples and yet only humans eating the high calorie, highly refined modern Western Diet is suffering these rampant health problems that the promoters of the high protein, Paleo-style Diet claim are being caused by grains and starches. The McDougall Newsletter - For the Love of Grains PCOS was not described in medical literature until 1935 and was a rare condition at that point despite most humans around the world having lived on a grain/starch based diet for milennia previously. Whole grains and starchy carbs in and of themselves, just cannot be the issue here.

    I feel that the logical conclusion that must be drawn is that PCOS is NOT caused by eating small amounts of whole grains or fiber-rich carbs in an otherwise low calorie diet. PCOS is caused by eating LARGE amounts of refined grains/sugars in an unnaturally high calorie diet (the human diet has NEVER been as calorically dense as it is today...even when we were born!)

    I personally believe that whole grains in sane, healthy portion sizes, are fine for those with PCOS. According to the book Fertility Foods by Dr. Jeremy Groll, a diet that is overly high in protein (50% or more of cals from protein) is not good for fertility because your body produces something called ketones that it needs MORE insulin to break down!! More insulin, wheter it comes from carbs OR protein, is bad for PCOS. We will be including a good amount of insulin-healthy, high fiber carbs and also good fats so we aren’t getting too many cals from protein.
    Last edited by atomic sagebrush; March 11th, 2012 at 11:20 AM.
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  5. #4
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    PCOS PINK Sway Diet!!!!!!!!!!

    When swaying with PCOS, insulin resistance, have a significant amount of weight to lose (more than 30 lbs), or are having trouble losing weight on the "crash and burn" style of LE Diet (this may be a sign that you are a bit insulin resistant), empty carbs are not going to help your sway. They may in fact harm your sway by sending your testosterone levels skyrocketing (other people would see T drop on the "crash and burn" style of LE Diet).

    So if you fall into one of these categories, you need to change the proportions of protein and fat to carbs (cutting carbs overall in favor of more protein and fat) and get most, if not all, your carbs from small amounts of whole grains and fiber-rich fruit and vegetable (fresh or lightly cooked is much better than canned/well-cooked). This is what we call the "slow burn" style of LE Diet.

    How does this work?? Protein and carbs have the same amount of calories in them - about 4 calories per gram. Fat has 9 calories a gram. So by getting more protein and more fat, you make up for any caloric deficit that you would incur by cutting back on carbs somewhat, and yet you are still sticking within the overall limits of LE Diet in terms of calories. Don't just cut out carbs, you'll starve that way! Remember, no one should ever drop below 1200 calories!! Also keep in mind that low carb vegetables are free for everyone on both types of diets - you do not count them for calories, fat, or protein and you can eat as much as you want.

    Protein - increase to 50-60 g (up from 40-50 g) and if you are super tall and/or are working out a lot, you may want to even increase this a bit more. I would not increase over 70 g protein no matter what and if you're less than 5-10 (178 cm), I would not increase above 60 g unless you are exercising a lot.

    Fat - should be at upper limits for calorie intake, so 30% of your calories from fat. On a 1200 cal diet this will be 30 g fat (although we've seen best results with more like 50+, on 1200 calories that may not be possible) on a 1500-1800 cal diet this will be about 50-60 g fat. VIRTUALLY EVERYONE SHOULD BE EATING 50-60 GRAMS FAT ON PCOS DIET. Please make an extra effort to get the majority of your fat calories from Omega 6 and transfats as described in this essay The Skinny on Fats for pink and blue!

    So while a traditional "crash and burn" type diet would look like this (and please try not to get too hung up on the numbers, this is really just ballpark for illustration only):


    1500-1800 cals Roughly 1000-1500 cals are going to be from carbs, depending on the amount of calories overall and the proportions of protein/fat you are eating. These carbs can be in the form of empty white carbs but can also include small amounts of whole grains and also fruit and higher carb vegetables.

    40-50 g protein 160-200 day's cals from protein

    30-60 g fat 250-540 day's cals from fat
    (and while you might wanna try to get more Omega 6 fats, if you're eating low fat in the 30 g range, it becomes less important to do this, and in fact you may need to make some effort to get at least a bit of saturated fat to ensure you continue ovulating.)

    The "slow burn" type of diet would look more like this:

    1500-1800 calories Roughly 750-1000 cals from carbs and these carbs will all be in the form of whole grains, fresh or lightly cooked fruit and higher carb veg with lots of fiber to help with insulin resistance
    (and while I rarely LIKE to see anyone drop to 1200-1500 calories, some gals with PCOS/IR may benefit from this low a caloric intake at the beginning - as the weight comes off, insulin sensitivity will improve and you can increase calories at that point)

    50-60 g protein 200-240 cals from protein, and if you're tall and/or are working out a lot, you can up this as high as 280

    60 g fat 540 cals from fat
    (and if you can get primarily Omega 6 fats, that's going to help your sway a lot - you don't need to worry about getting any Omega 3 or saturated fat, because your protein foods and the Omega 6 fats will have a little bit in them and that will maintain ovulation)

    Wow that was a lot of writing and mathematical equations there! I know, I know, very confusing. So, here is a simplified version LE Diet I made for custom swayers with PCOS/IR - while it's not going to be right or necessary for everyone to be quite this strict, it will help you kinda envision what a "slow burn" type of LE Diet is going to look like.

    (Where it says "eat X number of times a day" that means you eat that amount that many times per day. It's like the Weight Watchers points system - you can have 2 or 3 servings at one meal or 1 at 3 meals or however works the best for you. You do not, and in fact shouldn't, be eating 5 times a day on any form of LE Diet. On the "slow burn" style LE Diet, it can be very beneficial to your insulin response to have a nice long fast period up to 16 hours every day with no food coming in and this also seems to sway pink.)

    --Eat every day:

    1 full fat Brown Cow yogurt (or any full fat yogurt) OR 3/4 c whole milk
    1 Taste Nirvana Coconut water (or any coconut water, that one is good tasting while some other brands are ucky)
    (this will ensure you get a decent amount of potassium and will help with fat and protein)

    --2-3 times a day, pick one :

    (You can split them into smaller servings and have more often if you would prefer this. These products are not going to be available in all areas and in that case you just would substitute an equivalent product. The salt limits are only for those who are limiting sodium.)

    ½ c brown rice
    ½ c cooked whole wheat pasta
    1 slice whole grain bread (NOT wheat bread, must be 100% whole grain)
    4 Ry Krisp crackers (unsalted)
    8 Hint of Salt Triscuits
    16 Hint of Salt Wheat Thins
    One graham cracker (this is a treat to be had when you’re craving something sweet and you MUST top with the peanut butter option below.)

    2 times a day, pick one:

    1-2 cup fruit (if the fruit is chunky and not too sweet like watermelon, you can have more; if it’s kind of dense like blueberries, stick with the smaller amount.
    1 baked potato (pick a smallish one)
    1 baked yam (smallish one)
    Carrot Sticks (you can have quite a few, like 2 carrots’ worth)
    1 banana
    1 apple or pear (I actually want you to leave the skins on these for extra fiber that will keep your blood sugar in check.)
    1 corn on the cob
    ½ c storebought pasta sauce

    5 times a day pick one:

    2 egg whites
    1 whole egg (best to keep these to a few times per week to prevent getting too much saturated fat)
    2 T hummus
    ½ c beans, lentils, or peas
    1 1x1 inch **** of cheese
    2 chick. nugget size pieces of chicken (use on top of salad or on taco)
    1 oz. turkey (ground or sliced deli meat)
    Piece of tofu about the size of a deck of cards
    1/8 of a cup of nuts or seed (use to top a salad)
    3 large shrimp or scallops (this is an occasional treat – no more than 2x a week)
    2 T peanut butter (eat on top of the graham crackers if you are craving something sweet)

    (eating that amount of the above foods, plus the protein in the yogurt/whole milk and grains, will ensure you get enough protein)

    3-5 times a day pick one:

    If you don't NEED to eat them, this is a place to cut some cals, but please feel free to include them if you would like.

    1 T oil (corn or vegetable oil with Omega 6 fats are best)
    1 T butter (margarine with Omega 6 fats may be better)
    1 T mayo
    1 T not-very-sweet salad dressing like vinaigrette or ranch
    1 T whipping cream (can pour over berries)
    1 T parmesan cheese

    UNLIMITED

    You can have as much as you want.
    Mustard and unsweetened Salsa
    Mushrooms
    Herbs
    All low carb veggies (asparagus, bell pepper, broccoli, cauliflower, eggplant, green beans, lettuce, spinach, spaghetti squash, tomato, zucchini)
    If you can, use leeks and green onions instead of garlic and onion

    REMINDER - the PCOS Pink Diet and atomic fertility diet are meant to be SUGAR FREE. If you are doing these diets and are eating sugar more than just as the occasional cheat when you're dying for some (meaning, several times a day or week) you are not doing the diet correctly and are not going to get the superior results achieved by those who avoided sugar.

    Quite a few of our opposites this last year were in people who ate lots of sugar when they had PCOS or had 30+ lbs to spare against my recommendation. Most of them simply didn't understand it was an important recommendation and assumed I was being overzealous about this and/or thought I was trying to get them to lose more weight. Weight loss is NOT why sugar is avoided on these diets. It is because the people I recommend to be on these types of diets have poor insulin response so their blood sugar stays elevated longer after eating sugar. Avoiding sugar with PCOS is BY FAR more important than weight loss so if you're justifying eating sugar because you're losing weight anyway, please stop eating a bunch of sugar.

    YOU ARE HURTING YOUR SWAY BADLY if you eat sugar when you have PCOS or have a fair bit of weight to spare. For best results stick with little to no sugar till your BMI drops to 21 and then add it in in reasonable amounts as a braking mechanism on weight loss, ONLY if you need it, and ONLY if you don't have moderate to severe PCOS even when your BMI is on the low side.
    Last edited by atomic sagebrush; February 17th, 2020 at 02:16 PM.
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    atomic Fertility Diet!

    The atomic Fertility Diet - aka an alternate diet for Pink Swayers needing to boost fertility (if you've swayed a long time or are going HT) and for blue swayers needing to lower blood sugar (if you have PCOS or are going HT)

    THIS IS ONLY FOR PINK SWAYERS WHO HAVE GONE ON A LONG TIME SWAYING, AND/OR HAVE LOST TOO MUCH WEIGHT, AND WHO ARE IN LATE 30'S-EARLY 40'S. BLUE SWAYERS WITH PCOS/PCO-TENDENCIES, OR WHO HAVE GAINED MORE THAN 30 LBS (OR EVEN LESS IF YOU WERE HEAVY TO START WITH), AND THOSE WHO ARE PLANNING ON GOING HT. THIS IS NOT THE DIET I RECOMMEND FOR THE AVERAGE PINK OR BLUE SWAYER.

    Pink swayers, if you have been TTC a long time, have wasted away to nothing, and/or need to adjust your diet to help you get pregnant, this is the diet for you. It is also suitable for those with PCOS, if you find the diet above to be too restrictive and you just can’t manage it, this may be a different option. I believe it is more blue-friendly than the alternate diet posted above. Pink swayers, if you are going HT or even just thinking about it and are not ready to totally give up on a sway diet just yet, this diet is also suitable for you.


    Blue swayers
    , if you went onto HE Diet and gained more than 30 pounds and/or developed PCOS-tendencies (your cycle got long and irregular, your LP got short, and this is NOT explainable by supplements you are taking) OR anyone who wants a boy and is going HT or just thinking about it and not quite ready to give up on a sway diet just yet, this is the diet for you.

    Brief note about carbs and fertility particularly for those going HT:

    I know that a very low carb diet is “trendy” right now for those going HT but it is not right for everyone. The study that originally found a link between carb intake and IVF success found that keeping carbs below 40% of day’s cal intake, and keeping protein at 25% or more, helped boost IVF success. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/803821 https://www.acog.org/About_ACOG/News...rove_Fertility The way this was reported in the media with several articles claiming “high protein, low carb diets boost fertility and IVF success” is highly misleading. 25% protein is not high protein, and 40% of carbs or less is NOT low carb. Many of the women who were poor responders were eating as much as 70% of their day’s calories from carbs and little to no protein.

    NOWHERE was it found that super high protein, very low carb diets such as Atkins are necessary or beneficial for most people’s fertility and yet that is the diet I am seeing people attempt in the HT forums. A very few people who have severe PCOS, IR, or have a much higher than average BMI may benefit from a very low carb diet, but I am seeing people with low BMI and no problems metabolizing carbohydrates going onto Atkins Diet because they think it will boost their chances of IVF success. Based on what?? On misleading titles of articles about a study that found no such thing whatsoever!!

    IF you eat too much protein, your body converts it into glucose ANYWAY. Low-Carb for You: How Can Eating Excess Protein Raise Blood Glucose?

    Women NEED carbohydrates to stay fertile. Paleo for Women | Carbohydrates for Fertility and Health Higher Carb Dieting: Pros and Cons - Perfect Health Diet | Perfect Health Diet
    Why I Ditched Low Carb - CHEESESLAVE And VLC diets may actually make it harder for your body to sustain a pregnancy by causing your thyroid to go wacko. (long but interesting) Is a Low Carb Diet Bad For Your Thyroid? « AnthonyColpo and Carbohydrates and the Thyroid - Perfect Health Diet | Perfect Health Diet This may be even worse if, as I’ve seen several HT ladies do, you make a sudden, drastic dietary switch 90 days before you plan to cycle Going Low-Carb too Fast May Trigger Thyroid Troubles and Hormone Imbalance | drcate.com

    So without any further ado here is the diet I have come up with that is suitable for:

    Pink swayers who have gone on swaying a very long time and/or lost too much weight, and have lowered their fertility too far, and need to correct it.

    Blue swayers who have gained too much weight (over 30 lbs or even less than that if you were heavy to start with) and/or have found the HE Diet has aggravated PCOS-tendencies

    Pink swayers who are going HT

    Blue swayers who are going HT

    Comments and variants are in the colorcoded comments following the statements below.

    This diet is based on Doctors Paul and Shou-Ching’s book “The Perfect Health Diet”
    The Diet - Perfect Health Diet | Perfect Health Diet

    and Dr. Jeremy Groll’s “Fertility Foods” Fertility Foods: Optimize Ovulation and Conception Through Food Choices: Jeremy Groll M.D., Lorie Groll: 9780743272810: Amazon.com: Books

    REMEMBER, THIS IS ONLY FOR PINK SWAYERS WHO HAVE GONE ON A LONG TIME SWAYING AND/OR HAVE LOST TOO MUCH WEIGHT, BLUE SWAYERS WITH PCOS/PCO-TENDENCIES, OR WHO HAVE GAINED MORE THAN 30 LBS (OR EVEN LESS IF YOU WERE HEAVY TO START WITH), AND THOSE GOING HT. THIS IS NOT THE DIET I RECOMMEND FOR THE AVERAGE PINK OR BLUE SWAYER.

    Do not worry about counting calories, go off the quantities of food and don’t worry about the particulars. This is IMPERATIVE if you are a pink swayer who may have cut back too far and dieted too strictly for too long – you need to let go of calorie restrictions because if you keep focusing on them, you will be unable to relax enough to follow a more fertility-friendly diet. Remember, it’s a radio dial, not a light switch!! http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...s-swaying.html

    3 lbs. plant foods per day broken up into the following 3 categories

    --1 lb “safe starches” (white rice, white potato, sweet potato, taro, plantain, tapioca, AND I include brown rice and oatmeal for blue swayers and blue swayers going HT) AVOID wheat, corn, and products made from them like breads, pasta, tortillas, and other baked goods.

    PINK swayers: white rice and white potato are best, you can also have sweet potato in moderation but remember these are more nutrient dense.

    Pink Swayers going HT: If you have a history of insulin resistance, are heavyset, or are over 40, use mainly sweet potato and brown rice (limit brown rice to 2-3 ½ c servings a day if you have PCO-tendencies). Avoid oatmeal.

    BLUE Swayers: Sweet potatoes and brown rice are better for you. Oatmeal is a blue-friendly food that you can have as much as once a day provided that you do not have PCOS running out of control – if you do, you may need to avoid ALL grains including brown rice and oatmeal.

    Blue Swayers going HT: As long as you have no history of PCOS, you are fine to follow the directions for blue swayers AND also include white rice and white potato, but do stick to the 1 lb guideline.

    --1 pound fruit and/or sugary (higher carb) vegetables such as beets and carrots and turnip and winter squash, but NOT corn, peas, beans – above all, avoid soy based foods.

    Pink swayers you will want to focus more on lower nutrient fruits

    Pink swayers going HT: eat all fruits and veg – the more colorful, the better. Avoid/limit fruit juices and dried fruit, they are carbs for no good reason for you.

    Blue swayers: limit/avoid lower nutrient fruits like apples and do NOT drink any fruit juices or eat dried fruits, they are too carb heavy and will aggravate PCO-tendencies.


    Blue swayers going HT: focus primarily on brightly colored, nutrient dense fruits and veg. If you are the “classic” girl mama and underweight, you CAN have fruit juice and dried fruit but they are carb-heavy, and so keep them minimal. IF you have PCOS or are overweight, then do not use juices or dried fruit.

    Unlimited amount of low carb vegetables – these are good for EVERYONE!! Eat up!

    1 serving of full fat dairy per day.

    This is good for EVERYONE. This can be in the form of whole milk or full fat yogurt such as Brown Cow or Mountain High brand. Natural cheeses such as cheddar, mozzarella, Monterey Jack are allowed, avoid processed cheeses like Velveeta or American. AVOID skim and part-skim dairy, it is bad for fertility. (keep an eye on your yogurts, if it’s not full fat, it needs to go)

    Avoid all milk replacers and use full fat dairy instead.

    Iodized salt or iodine supplements

    Use iodized salt instead of sea salt or table salt. You need ample iodine to be able to sustain a pregnancy. If you can’t find or don’t want to use iodized salt, add in an iodine supplement of 150 IU or a prenatal containing that amount of iodine. If you have any history of thyroid issues and especially if you are taking medication for thyroid, PLEASE double check with your doctor before beginning iodine.

    1/2 to 1 lb of meat per day. 2 days a week but no more than that, eat a serving of salmon. You will need to avoid shellfish, whitefish, and tuna because you can only have fish 2x aweek when TTC and you are already getting that from the salmon. (the salmon is healthiest and best option)

    Avoid all processed meats like lunch meat, hot dogs, bacon, ham. Even the so-called “nitrate free” products have nitrates, it’s just that they are derived from vegetable concentrates and chemically are the same stuff. Pork is ok for pink swayers going HT, but probably has too many Omega 6 fats for blue swayers to include very often, and too nutrient dense for pink swayers TTC naturally to use.

    Pink swayers – Eat the lower level of meat intake and stick to lean white chicken and turkey. Do NOT use the shellfish/whitefish option that I often recommend for pink, because you will already be having fish 2x a week and when TTC you should only eat fish 2x a week.

    Pink swayers going HT – Eat upper level of protein intake but it may help to stick with chicken, turkey, and pork.

    Blue swayers – Upper level of meat intake, stick with beef, goat, lamb, game meats, and only occasionally pork and dark meat poultry.

    Blue swayers going HT – follow directions for blue swayers above.

    Eggs. Avoid the eggs that are advertised as being high in Omega 6 fats and supposedly “healthy” – they aren’t, and esp are not healthy for fertility!! For everyone but blue swayers going HT, on the days you eat eggs, you may want to eat a bit less meat because the protein in the eggs will compensate for the protein in the meat.

    Pink swayers – 4 eggs a week


    Pink swayers going HT- 8 eggs per week

    Blue swayers – 2 eggs per day (this is an average, if you had a big omelet one day with 4 eggs then you can skip
    eggs the next day and eat more meat)


    Blue swayers going HT – 2 eggs per day AND eat upper level of protein.

    Fat intake. No one should be eating an extremely low fat diet while TTC. You NEED fat for your body to be able to make the sex hormones that enable us to get and stay pregnant.

    Pink swayers – If you have been avoiding or limiting fat, increase intake to the upper level of LE Diet – 60 g. Focus on Omega 6 fats like vegetable oils as described in this essay http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...pink-blue.html However, if you have truly gone on swaying a very long time and are ready to pull out all the stops in order to get pregnant, start gradually increasing intake of Omega 3 and saturated fat…but be aware you will already be DOING this by adding in full fat dairy, eggs, and salmon. I recommend giving it a couple months just with that change before upping intake of blue-friendly fat.

    Pink swayers going HT – Limit intake of Omega 6 fats in favor of Omega 3 and saturated fat. Follow the directions for blue. We do not have any evidence that changing the % of fat types does anything to help get a good gender split when going HT and I think it very important that you go in with the absolute best odds of HT success.

    Blue swayers – Focus on Omega 3 and saturated fat as outlined in this essay. Limit Omega 6 intake and if you are taking evening primrose oil or flaxseed oil, be SURE you are taking an equal or preferably greater amount of fish oil. Avocado every day and coconut oil daily is also beneficial. Nuts are great for blue but DO be aware that they have a fair amount of Omega 6 fats in them so take care to balance that with Omega 3 and saturated fat http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gend...pink-blue.html

    Blue swayers going HT – follow directions for blue swayers and you should also limit/avoid peanuts all together; while I do believe them to be good for blue, there is a little conflicting data about how they affect fertility and when in doubt, since HT is such an all-or-nothing thing, let’s err on the side of avoiding them when going HT.

    Chocolate, coffee, tea, alcohol, coconut water

    These are all almost certainly beneficial in moderate amounts so as long as you do not have any known issues with egg quality. Moderate amounts of these foods/drinks as a treat are allowed for everyone. High intake of caffeine is not a good idea but 2 cups a day is fine – exception being if you have suffered repeat unexplained losses and just want to do anything possible to help boost the odds a little. Alcohol should of course be avoided if you may be pregnant but it is fine beforehand.

    Coconut water is good for both pink and blue – an easy way to get a lot of much-needed potassium for very few calories and not many carbs.

    We believe milk/white chocolate is “pinker” than dark chocolate – be sure to watch out for high levels of sugar/carbs in chocolate and limit serving size! But a little chocolate can help nip cravings for less beneficial, empty carb foods.

    We believe coffee is “pinker” than tea

    We believe red wine and dark beer are “bluer” than white wine, light and “lite” beer, and spirits

    Things to AVOID when trying to boost fertility

    Excessive amounts of sugar/corn syrup/artificial sweeteners

    Wheat, corn, peas, beans and other legumes and products made from them (such as breads, pastas, tortillas)

    Wheatgrass juice – despite its reputation, the Drs Jaminet, authors of the Perfect Health Diet, believe that wheat contains harmful toxins made by the plant as natural pesiticides, and should be avoided. Wheatgrass would have even MORE of these toxins than the grains themselves. I think that particularly for blue swayers going HT, you don’t NEED the wheatgrass and let’s err on the side of caution and leave it out.

    Seaweed in supplement forms such as spirulina, blue-green algae, chlorella, and the drinks containing them, and also probably kelp and kelp supplements, are best avoided when TTC. They contain toxins that are produced naturally by the plant (so the “purity” of the product has nothing to do with it, this is toxin that the plant grows naturally) and are not monitored by any governmental agency in terms of safety. The Japanese snack type of seaweed is probably fine and beneficial in dietary amounts.

    Very low fat and very low carb diets, and very high protein diets unless recommended by your doctor on the basis of having severe PCOS and/or insulin resistance/prediabetes

    Shellfish and organ meats, processed meats with high levels of nitrates, any fish that is high in mercury, and fish in any greater amount than the salmon 2x a week

    Milk replacers or skim part/skim dairy. Full fat dairy has been proven to boost fertility so drop any alternate milk replacers, particularly rice milk and soy milk.

    Royal Jelly and bee pollen. There is NOTHING in them other than a concentrated form of B vitamins and a little bit of fatty acid and protein (which you'll be getting in ample amounts). Plus, it sensitizes your body to the bee venom which may prime you for a fatal allergic reaction. People have DIED, both from taking RJBP in and of itself, and then also having taken it and then bee stings or exposure to RJBP in other foods/drinks at a later time.

    Maca - huge unknown and next to no quality info about it. One person I know started hallucinating after taking it. If you're eating a healthy diet you don't need it anyway so why take the risk?

    Soy for both you and DH. do NOT use soy isoflavones as a DIY-Clomid. IF you're having trouble conceiving, soy iso will only aggravate that in most cases. If you need Clomid, go to a doctor and get some.

    Large intake of herbal teas such as peppermint – a cup of tea here or there is not going to have a negative effect, but even as little as 1 cup a day may have a deleterious effect on fertility. Even tea blends marketed as being GOOD for fertility often have bad juju in them (such as vitex which lowers fertility, alfalfa, and the cohoshes among many other herbs which can lower odds of conception and may reduce your body's ability to sustain a pregnancy. Stick with regular good old tea (both green and black), good and good for ya.
    Last edited by atomic sagebrush; June 29th, 2014 at 01:02 PM.
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    I'm unable to read sections #4 and #5 in this thread! Is there any way I can get a hold of this information. I would really like to know the correct diet for a person with PCOS who is trying to sway PINK.
    Thank you SO MUCH in advance!
    Katie

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    Quote Originally Posted by fourunderfour View Post
    I'm unable to read sections #4 and #5 in this thread! Is there any way I can get a hold of this information. I would really like to know the correct diet for a person with PCOS who is trying to sway PINK.
    Thank you SO MUCH in advance!
    Katie
    That's because I haven't had the time to complete them yet, I'm sorry.
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    HI Atomic

    Thank you so much for this, it is very helpful. I have a few questions:

    1) I had gestational diabetes with my first baby 6 years ago (mild and diet controlled, baby was not big etc, I only just scraped in over the level considered to be GD), but not at all with my next 2 babies (I was well under the value for GD). I have had a glucose challenge test after the first baby too and passed it easily. I have breastfed by boys for 2 years each and have heard that longterm breastfeeding can change the way a mother metabolises glucose and reduce her chances of developing diabetes, so maybe this is why. I am in a healthy weight range but definitely carry my weight on my stomach (apple shape) and could afford to lose some (I will on the LE diet!), and have long irregular cycles but have been tested for PCOS with bloodtests and told I didn't have it as my testosterone levels were fine. No other PCOS symptoms. Do you think the crash and burn diet is ok for me to do? I hope so as I have been planning it for ages and spent my time making meal plans etc.

    2) Is Vitex compatible with breastfeeding? What about DCI? What does DCI stand for?

    3) I am confused about whether chromium is for pink or blue swayers? You were saying it improves insulin levels so I thought that might mean it is good for pink swayers, but then you mentioned it is good for blue a bit later?

    Thanks so much!
    Mummy to three beautiful little men :

    And 2 beautiful both brought into my life by Gender Dreaming sways on the LE diet.

    So grateful for this wonderful site with all the information on it. I am sure without this site I would not have my 2 beautiful girls.

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    Gestational diabetes is one of the most commonly misdiagnosed things around and I wonder that given your subsequent history, if you might have been misdiagnosed in the first place.

    PCOS can be tough to diagnose, but the odds are good that if you got a clean bill of health, esp. with testosterone, you don't have it. That doesn't mean you couldn't develop it at a later date, tho.

    I would give it a try on Crash and Burn and see how it goes, esp. since you're breastfeeding. It will SOON become apparent if you're having insulin resistance issues because you won't lose much weight if any, and you can then change it up at that point. (plus, weight loss will only help IR if you do have it.) If you notice anything weird - your cycles get longer, facial hair, acne, etc. then you can rethink things at that point.

    Vitex is compatible with breastfeeding and I felt good enough about it to take it twice while BF (and I am pretty particular about what I take while BF)

    DCI is D-chiro-inositol and it has never been tested while BF. I wouldn't use it because it's too much of an unknown.

    The chromium concerns me for pink because it is a trace mineral and also because it's often taken by high protein dieters to better metabolize protein, and it's said to build muscle. I think it's better off used by blue swayers for now until we have more data.
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    more awesome advice.. thanks!
    *Ashley*
    diagnosed PCOS: May 2012.. clomid and we got our baby GIRL 2014! TTC again for some more pink!




    PROUD FUR MOM

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