Sunday 2 October 2011

Ten Tips to Kick "Start" your PCOS diet


TEN TIPS TO KICKSTART YOUR PCOS DIET

1. Eat low Glycemic Index (GI) carbohydrates such as vegetables and whole grains. It is very important for women with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) to completely avoid refined carbohydrates including sugar, white flour, whole wheat flour and products made from them eg: pasta, breads, desserts, lollies, soft drinks)

2. Keep your blood sugar stable with a daily schedule of meals and snacks every three to five hours that includes some protein and good fats (for example some nuts/nut butter, seeds/seed butter, hardboiled egg, hummus dip). Protein foods take up to 5 hours to digest while carbohydrate foods digest within 30 minutes.

3. Eat at least five servings a day of vegetables including two of leafy greens

4. Have a daily serving of legumes like black beans or lentils.

5. Enjoy grass or pasture fed (organic) meat up to three times a week

6. Eat at least three daily servings of fruits like berries --which have a lower glycemic impact each fruit as part of a meal or with a protein.

7. Limit or eliminate milk and dairy as these can aggravate internal dampness. If you do have dairy have only non- homogenized full fat milk

8. Pay careful attention to portion sizes in order to moderate glucose load and minimize insulin resistance

9. Add one or two Tbsp of cinnamon on cereal each morning to help decrease insulin resistance.

10. Include pre-biotic and pro-biotic foods which promote the growth of beneficial bacteria in the intestinal tract. Pre-biotics are found in whole grains, onions, bananas, garlic, honey, leeks, artichokes and some fortified foods. Pro-biotic foods are found in fermented foods (sauerkraut, live culture yogurt, kim chi, miso).