If you don’t know about the connection between PCOS and insulin levels, I strongly recommend that you do some reading on the websites above and have your insulin level checked.
I was first diagnosed with PCOS in 1985. At that time, no one knew that PCOS was related to hyperinsulimia. All they knew was that most women with PCOS were obese, and many became diabetic. It was assumed that the obesity caused the diabetes. Sometime in the late 1990s, someone discovered that many women with PCOS had high insulin levels, which might be the underlying cause of the obesity. I read about this on the net in early 2000, got tested, and found out that my insulin levels were 5 times normal–the highest my MD had ever seen. No wonder I was sleepy after meals, got crazy hungry, and could not lose weight to save my life, despite maintaining a low fat diet. I started taking glucophage, following a low carb diet, and walking on a treadmill. Within 9 months, I had lost 100 pounds–I literally weighed less than at any time since about age 15 or so. My blood sugar is now stable, my insulin is within normal limits, I am fertile, and my triglicerides have dropped from over 300 to less than 100.
I did the metformin thing, but found that low carbing is what makes me feel best. I lost about 30 pounds and have kept it off for a couple of years that way. Unfortunately, I still have another 150 to lose.
FWIW I don’t think you have to do the hardcore Atkins thing to qualify as low carb - I typically eat “lower carb” in that I allow myself fruits and vegetables, as well as carbs in supporting roles in some foods, like a little bit of breading on baked fish to give it some texture.
I found I feel better this way than I did when I was doing the all-protein-all-the-time thing. YMMV.
