The Truth About PCOS and Ovarian Cysts

There is a lot of misinformation out there about the nature of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), and it’s important to clarify a few issues surrounding the condition and related symptoms. It’s important, on the one hand, because PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) is so commonplace; with 5 to 10% of all women of childbearing age suffering from it, it’s the most prevalent women’s hormonal disease there is.

But it’s also important because the symptoms of it can be quite serious, and it’s important to separate this severity from the much more commonplace and less worrisome effects of benign ovarian cysts.

Ovarian Cysts are a common occurrence among women of reproductive age. There are several types of Ovarian Cysts – some are no cause for concern, while others create ovary pain and require treatment. Ironically, women with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), or PCOD (Polycystic Ovarian Disorder), might not have the characteristic Polycystic Ovaries for which this disorder is named. At other times, they might have other kinds of Ovarian Cysts.

Ovarian cyst symptoms range widely in makeup and degree of seriousness. Some women with Ovarian Cysts do not experience any symptoms. Others suffer from abdominal pain, weight gain, pain during sexual intercourse, breast tenderness, painful menstrual periods, abnormal bleeding, and/or nausea or vomiting. Cysts may bleed, rupture, or twist the ovary, causing significant pain. Symptoms a woman experiences can vary in accordance with the type of cyst she has. Types of Ovarian Cysts include:

  1. Functional
  2. Endometriomas
  3. Cystadenomas
  4. Dermoid Cysts
  5. Polycystic Ovaries

Functional Cysts

The most common Ovarian Cysts are functional cysts, which form during a woman’s normal menstrual cycle. Each month, the ovary grows tiny sacs that hold the eggs. After a sac breaks open and releases the egg, the sac normally dissolves. On some occasions, however, the sac doesn’t break open, but continues to grow, or it might release the egg and then fail to dissolve. The resulting growth is a functional cyst. These cysts usually disappear naturally within a few weeks or months. Functional cysts are almost never associated with cancer.

Endometriomas, Cystadenomas, and Dermoid Cysts

Some women experience other, more serious Ovarian Cysts, when they have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, such as endometriomas, cystadenomas, and dermoid cysts. Endometriomas develop in women who have endometriosis whereby tissue from the lining of the uterus attaches to an ovary and forms a growth. Other cysts include cystadenomas and dermoid cysts, which develop from cells in the ovary. Cystadenomas are filled with a liquid or a sticky fluid. Dermoid cysts can contain hair, bone, teeth, and cartilage. All of these cysts can become large and painful and usually require removal.

Polycystic Ovaries

Women who suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome have multiple small cysts located on their ovaries. In a picture of a polycystic ovary, the ovary is larger than normal, with cysts resembling a string of pearls located around the edge. Fertility with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is often an issue; sufferers frequently experience difficulty with conception. A causative factor of PCOS is Insulin Resistance, a condition that occurs as a result of the inability of the body’s cells to properly utilize insulin. When Insulin Resistance occurs, your body’s cells begin to be impervious to insulin, which is supposed to allow glucose, blood sugar, to enter and convert into energy. The imbalance of this extra insulin can cause imbalances in other hormones, like androgens (male sex hormones), making levels that are disproportionately high. When this occurs regular functions cease and excess levels of testosterone bring about Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and other physical changes that are painful, like ovarian cysts.

Detection of Ovarian Cysts

Most women with Ovarian Cysts don’t exhibit symptoms. It’s not until a cyst causes pain in the belly or pelvis that it’s noticed. The pain is often caused any of the following reasons:

  1. Quick growth and stretching
  2. Bursting of the cyst
  3. Bleeding into the cyst
  4. Torsion (a twisting of the cyst around its blood supply)

If the cyst has reached a large size, then you might have other symptoms arise as a result of pressure or distortion in your pelvis. These symptoms can include conditions like abdominal fullness or bloating, indigestion, feeling full after eating only a small amount, feeling an urge to defecate or having difficult bowel movements, or painful sexual intercourse.

Your physician can detect the presence of cysts through a routine pelvic exam or an ultrasound, and verify it with a check of hormone levels. If a physician believes more information is needed, in addition to an ultrasound, cysts can also be detected with other imaging methods like a CT scan or MRI scan (magnetic resonance imaging).

The symptoms associated with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) can be quite numerous, and include infertility, miscarriage, skin conditions, the growth of excess facial and body hair, and more. The sheer number of symptoms that can spring from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) make it difficult to diagnose, but tracing its root cause proves a bit easier. The underlying condition that tends to cause this disorder is that of Insulin Resistance—essentially, the inability of the body to properly utilize insulin. This inability to properly utilize insulin leads to an entire range of hormonal issues, and can often lead to weight gain.

But a PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) diagnosis is not a hopeless one by any means; while it is impossible to totally prevent the development of ovarian cysts, this hormonal condition is very much reversible. Easier said than done? Maybe, but it’s certainly well within the grasp of any woman suffering from the often maddening symptoms of multiple ovarian cysts or of Insulin Resistance.

The first step toward dealing with this condition is simply to improve your overall health. The best Ovarian Cyst Treatment is actually prevention. Taking good care of your health by eating a nutritious diet, exercising regularly, and taking healthful nutritional supplements is the first line strategy for PCOS and its troubling symptoms. This may seem like a no-brainer, but if it is, it is for a reason; it works, and it’s essential. Women afflicted with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) are encouraged to increase their level of physical activity, and also to take measures to improve their diet, both by eating foods richer in nutrients and taking in fewer carbohydrates.

The next important step to take is to reach out to Insulite Health. No other company has done as much to further the means by which PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) is reversed. Their system includes exercise and diet but also a supplement that will regulate insulin levels and ultimately restore hormonal balance; it is scientifically formulated to treat PCOS. Insulite Health also offers a library of informative articles about the disorder and how it can be dealt with—something that offers women not just a necessary form of education, but ultimately the hope that comes from knowing this disorder, while serious, is imminently reversible.


Learn more about the subject of Ovarian Cysts and Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) and how it could be affecting your ability to get pregnant, visit us on the web at www.pcos.com.

Insulite Health, a Boulder, Colorado USA based company, is committed to reversing Insulin Resistance – a potentially dangerous imbalance of blood glucose and insulin. Scientific research has revealed that this disorder can be a primary cause of excess weight gain and obesity, plus Pre-Diabetes and Type 2 Diabetes. Insulin Resistance can also underlie the cluster of increased risk factors for cardiovascular damage called Metabolic Syndrome (Syndrome X) as well as PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) – a major source of serious diseases as well as heartbreaking female infertility.

Recognizing that there are millions of people who need this kind of systematic approach to reversing insulin resistance, Insulite Health has, developed systems to address the underlying causes of metabolic syndrome, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), excess weight/obesity, pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes.

For more information about Insulin Resistance and research links to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), PubMed Health, GenBank and more visit us at www.pcos.com.

Could the symptoms you are suffering with be PCOS? Take the PCOS Test and find out!

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Next Steps

  1. Take the PCOS Quiz!  Get your score and assess your hormone health risks.
  2. Join our Facebook Sisterhood Group Pose your questions to this group of like-minded women. Get the answers to your questions and the support you need.
  3. Checkout the Hormone Reset. Guided Practices to eliminate anxiety, lose weight and boost energy.

We are committed to helping women reverse their symptoms of hormone imbalance – a major cause of excess weight gain, adult acne, unwanted facial hair, depression, anxiety, and heartbreaking female infertility.

©Insulite Health empowers women with hormone imbalance to transform their lives through a process of healing with the Natural Hormone Solution  –a complete solution for helping women reverse the symptoms hormone imbalance..