PCOS is a complex hormonal condition that involves multiple organs systems. It’s is a clinical diagnosis, meaning that doctors diagnosis patients with PCOS based on symptoms – not on a specific lab test that is “positive of negative” for the condition. PCOS is diagnosed if a woman has two or more of the following symptoms:

• Signs of too much male hormone (excess dark hair growth on chin, cystic acne or elevated  testosterone on blood tests)
• Menstrual cycles > 35 days apart
• Enlarged ovaries on ultrasound

As hard as it was to grasp in med school, and as challenging as it is to explain it to my patients in a 10-minute office visit, it’s not surprising that there are a lot of misunderstandings about PCOS floating around.

Myth #1 “PCOS is caused by your ovaries”

PCOS is caused by a full body hormonal miscommunication – the actual polycystic ovaries are merely a symptom. There are many different metabolic issues going on that contribute to PCOS. The brain sends the ovary mixed signals causing it to secrete excess male hormones, which affects the delicate fluctuations of female hormone that trigger ovulation. At the same time, fat cells contribute to the problem by resisting insulin, triggering the body to make excess insulin when carbs are eaten. This insulin increase not only prompts the ovary to produce too much male hormone, but also causes weight gain. The ovaries can’t manage to ovulate because the hormones are all wrong.

Myth #2 “Women with PCOS are infertile”

Women with PCOS can have difficulty getting pregnant, but the infertility associated with PCOS is often easy to treat. Women who have PCOS and are overweight can often begin to ovulate regularly with very modest weight loss of even 10% of their body weight. Medication can also help; 50% of women with PCOS will conceive with clomiphene treatment (an inexpensive ovulation-inducing pill). Of women who conceive on clomiphene, the majority conceive within 4 months, so it should not be taken for an extended amount of time.

Myth #3″PCOS causes pain”

During a normal menstrual cycle, the chosen egg of the month begins to grow within a small follicle cyst on the ovary. When ovulation occurs, the egg escapes the cyst and makes a run for the fallopian tube, and its former cyst usually dissolves over time. In PCOS the ovaries are trying to ovulate but because of the body’s confused hormones, the ovulation cyst gets stuck and is unable to fully develop to the point it can spit out the egg, hence the ovary becomes swollen with underdeveloped cysts. These cysts cause the ovaries to become enlarged, but the cysts do not usually rupture or cause pain.

Myth #4 “Women with PCOS are overweight”

PCOS is often associated with obesity, but not always. At one time, PCOS was defined as having all three symptoms plus obesity, but we now recognize that there are different “types” of PCOS. You only need two of the three symptoms of PCOS to have the condition. The treatment of PCOS is based on the sub-type and your goal (for example, birth control pills do an excellent job of controlling the irregular cycles and treating the abnormal male hormone of PCOS, but would not be the best option for someone try to conceive). For overweight PCOS patients, a low carb diet with regular exercise is recommended. (My personal recommendation is the nutrition plan in  The Obesity Code by Dr. Jason Fung)

Myth # 5 “PCOS patients have very high risk pregnancies”

I often have patients worry that since PCOS makes it challenging to get pregnant, it will also put them at super high risk during pregnancy. Once pregnant, PCOS patients are at an increased risk of gestational diabetes and high blood pressure, but most go on to have normal pregnancies. They do not have an increased risk of miscarriage as previously thought.

Around 10% of women meet the criteria for PCOS worldwide and our understanding of the condition and treatments has evolved over the last 20 years. If you have symptoms of PCOS, don’t get discouraged by the myths. Instead, talk to doctor about customized treatment of your condition.