Newbie- bloated belly , PCOS the culprit?

DeterminedDi122

Hi everyboby,

I just discovered this group today, and I am feeling so glad that there is a place in MFP for me to share my experience.
I was diagnosed in Feb this year.
Initially I did not notice any symptoms other than the missing periods and a bit of hair loss(Have not got my period in a year).But for the past couple of months, I have been extremely bloated every single day.
I am not overweight (5'4'' and 103-106 lbs). In fact I think I am considered a bit underweight.I don't have a lot of fat tissues, which makes my bloated belly even more conspicuous(like I am 6-7 month into pregnancy).
The only Meds my doctor gave me were birth control pills, I stopped taking them after feeling nauseated every day for 2 months (plus it did not bring back my cycle)
I eat really clean( plant based) and I exercise daily...But no matter what I do, it seems that I just can't get the bloating to go away. It is hurting my self-image and causing discomfort physically.
Any of you had/have the same experience? Is that even PCOS related?
I did X-Ray and some other screening tests to rule out digestive problems...PCOS is the only possible culprit I can think of...


Thanks.

KnitOrMiss

The first things I would look to do would be to reduce or remove grains, gluten, and dairy from your diet. These are common contributors to belly bloat. I would also look to add in a good probiotic.

BCP *CAN* mess up your overall digestive system and gut bacteria (it's one of the things listed to exclude when working on your gut), so it's possible that even the time you took them messed up your system.

If those things don't work, I would probably explore your thyroid function and stomach acid (search for symptoms of LOW). The thyroid actually is one of the main "control systems" that tells your body when to make stomach acid. When it is low functioning, you don't make enough and have problems digesting your food, particularly greens, and raw greens are exponentially worse.

Also, for better info on how to get a cycle to return, Leanne Vogel of healthfulpursuit.com has some great information for how she did this for herself.

It's hard to pin down whether this is PCOS related, but since so many of the factors of PCOS, even when it is not including obesity, affect the same parts of the female body, it's just as likely for it to be the cause or culprit as not. Regardless, I'd feel pretty confident to saying if it is NOT the culprit, it is likely a compounding factor...

DeterminedDi122

KnitOrMiss wrote: »

The first things I would look to do would be to reduce or remove grains, gluten, and dairy from your diet. These are common contributors to belly bloat. I would also look to add in a good probiotic.

BCP *CAN* mess up your overall digestive system and gut bacteria (it's one of the things listed to exclude when working on your gut), so it's possible that even the time you took them messed up your system.

If those things don't work, I would probably explore your thyroid function and stomach acid (search for symptoms of LOW). The thyroid actually is one of the main "control systems" that tells your body when to make stomach acid. When it is low functioning, you don't make enough and have problems digesting your food, particularly greens, and raw greens are exponentially worse.

Also, for better info on how to get a cycle to return, Leanne Vogel of healthfulpursuit.com has some great information for how she did this for herself.

It's hard to pin down whether this is PCOS related, but since so many of the factors of PCOS, even when it is not including obesity, affect the same parts of the female body, it's just as likely for it to be the cause or culprit as not. Regardless, I'd feel pretty confident to saying if it is NOT the culprit, it is likely a compounding factor...

Hi KnitOrMiss,

Thank you very much for your detailed reply.
I have the same suspicion that BCP might be a contributing factor...
The doctor put me through thyroid function test and it turned out OK.
I have acid-reflux and I am currently on anti-acid meds (pantoprazole).But I do eat A LOT of greens and I love eating them raw...maybe I should try to cook my veggies....
Thanks for the input again!

KnitOrMiss

Okay, first, this is my response to acid-reflux stuff. Unless you have an actual physical problem (your flap won't close or you have Barrett's or something like that), acid reducers are a bad deal. Most heartburn, acid reflux, and even most GERD stems from not having too much acid, but having too little of a key acid component, which triggers the other forms to overproduce in an attempt to compensate. Adding in digestive bitters, apple cider vinegar, or one of the many types of digestive enzymes available will *most likely* do more to help.

This will also combat any ongoing bad gut bacteria stuff, too. Without enough stomach acid, your bad gut bacteria will not get killed off through the normal digestive process. Getting put on or increased doses of acid reflux meds will trigger the bloating from the bad bacteria that would normally die in the stomach to live and such.

Some people can't eat raw veggies, due to reactions such as above and otherwise. Me, personally, since I have no gallbladder, I can't eat any raw greens. The majority of raw greens need at least a light steaming to make them easier to digest - spinach in particular is one of those we'll get tons more out of if we cook it in some form first. Not all things may be this way, but all of the greens I've experimented with eating raw since I developed the low stomach acid have caused a very immediate and not fun reaction if I miss my enzymes.

Now, as far as the thyroid function test, if they only tested TSH, the results are practically meaningless. That is actually a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland instructing the thyroid what to do. That system could be broken down anywhere - the pituitary itself, the thyroid, in between, etc. That being said, if you have any thyroid concerns, a full panel should be run which includes two or three types of antibodies tests - issues can show up in these tests 10-15 years BEFORE it will show up in the standard TSH test results. Total and Free T4, as well as Free and Reverse T3 are critical to evaluate true thyroid function.

All of that being said, if you have vitamin or mineral deficiencies, you likely have a problem in your gut, your thyroid, or both. Now, if you are not eating animal products of any kind, you might have, what is it, the vitamin B deficiencies, but I'm sure if you've ever been told that, you know to supplement something like nutritional yeast to get that part covered. If you are eating nutritious food, taking supplements to bridge any gaps, and still feel bad, I'd revisit both things above...

And you're welcome. I hope something here helps you out!

DeterminedDi122

KnitOrMiss wrote: »

Okay, first, this is my response to acid-reflux stuff. Unless you have an actual physical problem (your flap won't close or you have Barrett's or something like that), acid reducers are a bad deal. Most heartburn, acid reflux, and even most GERD stems from not having too much acid, but having too little of a key acid component, which triggers the other forms to overproduce in an attempt to compensate. Adding in digestive bitters, apple cider vinegar, or one of the many types of digestive enzymes available will *most likely* do more to help.

This will also combat any ongoing bad gut bacteria stuff, too. Without enough stomach acid, your bad gut bacteria will not get killed off through the normal digestive process. Getting put on or increased doses of acid reflux meds will trigger the bloating from the bad bacteria that would normally die in the stomach to live and such.

Some people can't eat raw veggies, due to reactions such as above and otherwise. Me, personally, since I have no gallbladder, I can't eat any raw greens. The majority of raw greens need at least a light steaming to make them easier to digest - spinach in particular is one of those we'll get tons more out of if we cook it in some form first. Not all things may be this way, but all of the greens I've experimented with eating raw since I developed the low stomach acid have caused a very immediate and not fun reaction if I miss my enzymes.

Now, as far as the thyroid function test, if they only tested TSH, the results are practically meaningless. That is actually a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland instructing the thyroid what to do. That system could be broken down anywhere - the pituitary itself, the thyroid, in between, etc. That being said, if you have any thyroid concerns, a full panel should be run which includes two or three types of antibodies tests - issues can show up in these tests 10-15 years BEFORE it will show up in the standard TSH test results. Total and Free T4, as well as Free and Reverse T3 are critical to evaluate true thyroid function.

All of that being said, if you have vitamin or mineral deficiencies, you likely have a problem in your gut, your thyroid, or both. Now, if you are not eating animal products of any kind, you might have, what is it, the vitamin B deficiencies, but I'm sure if you've ever been told that, you know to supplement something like nutritional yeast to get that part covered. If you are eating nutritious food, taking supplements to bridge any gaps, and still feel bad, I'd revisit both things above...

And you're welcome. I hope something here helps you out!

Wow, That's a lot of info to take in...Thank you so much. your reply is so informative!
I have printed it out to read on my bus ride home

stacicali

Hi there - PCOS could definitely be to blame. From what I've read lately, most (if not all) PCOSers are insulin resistant. People who are insulin resistant don't process carbs as gracefully as others which could possibly be the cause of the bloating. Here's an excerpt from Dr Mercola:
"Intestinal bloating. Most intestinal gas is produced from dietary carbohydrates. IR sufferers who eat carbohydrates suffer from gas, lots of it. Antacids or other remedies for symptomatic relief, are not very successful in dealing with the problem."

Here's the whole article if you're interested:
http://www.mercola.com/article/carbohydrates/lower_your_grains.htm

Have you tried going lower carb (150 or less carbs per day?) I also have lean PCOS and noticed my bloating went down when I restricted carbs to 100 per day.