Fighting with Fat-is that PCOS?

PCOS Weight

Do you have unsolved problems with weight? Trying hard to lose weight with no success? Are you storing excess fat? Not able to lose weight at all? Dr. Vibhuti Rao says, this is what you need to Know- Veena (imagined name), has been to many doctors and nutritionist about her over-weight problem. When she walked into my clinic, I asked her what was happening with her.
She said, “doctor trust me, I am doing everything possible to lose weight; I am not eating much, eating only healthy food-trying organic food, not eating any oily stuffs, also I am doing lot of exercises like Yoga and walking but I am not losing even one kilo of my weight It is very hard for me even to maintain my current weight. I am feeling as if I am putting on weight slowly in spite of so much workout and strict diet. Please help me”.

Problems with weight have been around for decades now. Women, unlike men, are more prone to develop ‘issues’ with weight as a beauty concern.  It is now believed that ‘lean’ bodies are perfect and healthy and desirable.  And, ‘fat’ bodies are imperfect, unhealthy and undesirable, moreover they are miserable.  It is now more important the way a woman ‘look’ rather than if she is healthy or not.
I understood her frustration with excess weight and thus I examined her and found that there was imbalance in Vata and Kapha dosha and moreover she was 112kgs. That weight was a lot on her as she was of short height.  I further asked about her menstrual cycle. She said, ‘’doctor I am here to lose weight and not for period problems. I have regular cycle”. She did not understand the connection between her weight and menstrual cycle. I did not probe further as she was very anxious about her weight. ​She further explained that she has tried all kinds of weight loss therapies, medicines, exercise plan, and moreover she has even tried those internet best sellers for weight loss. But no miracle happened for her. She said she does not understand why her body is like this. Almost 5 years ago she was fit, not fatty. But now she does not believe that she has put on so much weight. For her satisfaction I gave her simple Ayurvedic medicines for weight loss for 15 days and gave some dietary instruction and asked her to come back after 15 days.

After 15 days, she walked in to my clinic with a sad face and said, “Doctor your medicines also did not work for me. I do not know what is wrong with my body”. I took this opportunity to explain her that she needs to think beyond her weight. Weight gain is merely a symptom of what she could be suffering from. This time she cooperated with my questions. I came to know that she has regular cycle but from past one year her cycle is becoming 35 to 40 days apart and she had periods for only 2 days or some days 10 days. She feels that her periods are kind of disappearing. I asked if she has ever tested her thyroid. She said, she never thought as it was fine 1 year ago.
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I explained her that she might be having a metabolic disorder called as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) in modern medicine.  Of course, if I talked to her about dosha imbalance she would have never understand , though I tried to explain her a bit of Vata and Kapha dosha and imbalance in Agni. PCOS is a very well known ‘group’ of diseases’ which affect endocrine and metabolic systems of the body.  ‘ If you ask me  in one word to define ‘PCOS’ , I would say ‘unhealthy habits’ – Let it food, exercise, lifestyle, eating, diet anything’’. Immediately she asked me, If it is something to do with ovary, then how it influence my overall weight? It is mainly cyst in the ovaries, which could be there due to hormonal imbalance, then what happens to my body to be concerned with weights?  Actually underlying pathology in PCOS.  Affects the way  - you eat food, digest it, metabolise it, expels it and moreover store it’’.

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