Critical Mass

Try as hard as I might, I couldn't find a body positive  image that conveyed the message that I am looking for. I found this one, but it objectifies a woman's body, she is essentially a tree. It's kinda cool, but not what I am looking for. I found other images with the standard tropes of large, curvy ladies eating ice cream and slim, muscular ladies working out. Bleck! How can I talk about such a weighty issue without proper illustrations to inspire and guide me?

Okay, well here goes: today's topic is weight. Managing weight, loosing weight, being okay with the weight we are is only a teeny portion of the discussion.

Just for today, let's say that we've made peace with our bodies, and we're simply focused on understanding the role weight plays as a symptom of PCOS.

Yeah, I think I can work with that.

Yes, extra weight on your frame for your height and age can cause all sorts of problems. With PCOS, I experienced a sudden weight gain that settled mostly around my belly and I wasn't able to lose it. Here's the kicker, I was eating healthy at the time. Color me confused. I continued to eat healthy until a series of unfortunate events, and then I went on a see food diet. You can imagine what that did to my waistline. The pending PCOS diagnosis makes changing my eating habits a must.

I'm not following any particular fad diet, nor am I overly concerned about getting into my "skinny size 8" jeans (which I turned over to Goodwill decades ago, but I digress). Fortunately for me, I work with ladies whose eating habits I simply emulate. Easy peasy. One lady eats a banana dipped in a mixed nut butter practically every morning. So yummy! Another lady brings to work salads with interesting and flavorful ingredients. With a little planning and just 5 minutes in the morning, I carry with me to work a salad concocted of greens, whole grains, goat cheese, and whatever protein we ate last night. I toss in a couple of extra pieces of fruit, and viola! I'm ready for the day.

Yet another lady at work orders soy lattes. The barista at the cafe (I know, we're so spoiled where I work!) let me taste the soy milk they stock. Yummy. Between listening to my friend order espresso floating in soy bliss and tasting said bliss, I quickly became a soy convert. That said, I'm trying not to over do the soy, so I've added Almond milk to the mix, too.

The worst news about this PCOS gig is the havoc dairy wrecks on my body. Essentially, the cheese that I crave beyond reason is off limits. Oh, just great! Happily, I'm a big fan of goat cheese, so now I just stock the fridge with variations on a theme of goat cheese. The awesomely cool thing is that both my son and husband are fans of goat cheese, and that makes it even more enjoyable. 'cuz you know, I'm not the family freak who can't eat the same things my family eats.

So there it is, my diet secret. Lean protein, lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, topped off with whole grains. Oh, and I pretty much got rid of anything white: potatoes, rice, and flour. Once the weather cools, I'm going to experiment with baking using Quinoa and Buckwheat flours.

Related Links

• Don't Be a Dairy Queen
• Is your PCOS Diet Dairy Free? It Should Be!
• Should your PCOS Diet Be Dairy Free? – Everything You Need To Know
• Soy and PCOS: Safe or Harmful?

Teal Ribbon Cysterhood

Yesterday I became an official, card-carrying member of the PCOS community. On the one hand, I feel pretty smart for figuring it out for myself. On the other hand, it's sucks and I'm mad-as-hell that I have a syndrome, which is essentially a catch-all phrase that experts use when they don't have a clue what to do with you. Great, just lump a bunch of us who share similar symptoms together, scratch your collectives heads, and label us with "syndrome." Yeah, that's me throwing a cyber tantrum. Fat lot of good it does, aside from letting off a bit of steam, huh?

Speaking of fat, the experts say that loosing just 10% of your weight can reduce the severity of PCOS symptoms. That sounds easy, yes? Well, as easy as it is for anyone to eat healthy and exercise. Only, with the added challenge that the PCOS syndrome can include that lovely increase in weight. What the heck, what's life without a few challenges, right? So, what exactly can one with PCOS eat, and what are the things that one should avoid?

I explored a cross section of PCOS diets out there, and most all of them agree that becoming the next non-Dairy Queen is the next best thing to sliced bread. This was a bit disconcerting, as I grew up believing that milk has something for every body. Is it possible that the dairy industry lied to me? To us? Shocking! Well, not really, they are in the business of selling milk, cheese, and ice cream. When it comes to cheese and ice cream - oh, and hot chocolate! - avoiding dairy hits me the hardest. I mean, try and order a bean and cheese burrito without the cheese, or a quesadilla, for that matter! I can do pizza sans cheese, but then there's the white flour used in the crust, and white flour is another no-no.

That does make things like eating out a problem. Heck, that makes eating in a bit of a challenge, too.

For me, losing weight and eating healthy means limiting my personal choices, thereby making it easier to shop, prepare, and stay on track. I've taken to wearing a pedometer again, and that helps me increase my daily activity, as I challenge myself to reach 10,000 steps every day. I've hit it a couple of times so far, yay me!

Related Links

• PCOS Diet Support
• PCOS Nutrition – PCOS Diet
• PCOS Support Groups

(non) Dairy Queen

I have crowned myself a non-Dairy Queen. No coronation, ballgown, nor tiara, heralded the occasion. (Curses! Someday I'm going to get a tiara!) I have discovered that keeping dairy off my plate and away from my stomach helps minimize my symptoms. The challenge came when I wanted to find substitutes for cooking with, and adding to coffee, which I talked about in the Critical Mass post. There are lots of alternatives, but which is the best choice, packs the most protein and contains the least amount of sugar? Then, of course, I must ponder what is satisfying, too.

I'm a bit of a show me the data kind of gal, so I searched the interwebs for facts and figures. Wow! There's a lot of stuff out there, from manufacturer's nutrition data to blogger's personal findings, to recipe re-dos using milk alternatives. While all that data can be overwhelming, I slogged through a great deal of it. I decided that I, personally, needed to focus on what works for my lifestyle, digestive track, and personal taste preferences. Oh, and I focused on milk alternatives that are high in protein and low in sugar. Soy has become my go to milk substitute. However, when it comes to satisfying my sweet tooth, I head for the Almond milk. I'm not a fan of Coconut milk, not even remotely. That said, I keep it on hand as I can use it to add a lot of sweet to whatever I'm making without inducing a sugar spike.

Beverage	Calories	Sugar	Fat	Protein
Almond Milk	40	0	3.5g	1g
Coconut Milk	50	0	5g	1g
Soy Milk	80	1g	4g	7g

My figures are for the brands I use, based on an 8 oz serving. Your values may vary.

Related Links

• 21 FAQ about Almond Milk
• Coconut Water
• Nutrition Facts: Soy Milk

So, What Do You Eat?

I have eliminated white flour, potatoes, and white rice from my diet. It's not that I don't like baguettes, french fries, and rice, it's because they don't like me, or rather, they cause symptoms I'd rather not experience.

When I make baked goods, or need to replace white flour in a recipe, I generally reach for Quinoa flour. Sometimes I’ll add oat or buckwheat flours, too.

For store-bought breads I stick to sprouted varieties. For rice or potatoes, I substitute Quinoa, Wheat Berries, brown rice, (I eat Basmati rice even though it's white because it is a slow sugar uptake into the bloodstream). 

I avoid dairy, too. I go for the goat when it comes to cheeses, sheep or goat for yogurt, and soy for milk. LaLoo makes amazing ice cream from goat's milk. My favorite is Rumplemint - yum! I love French toast, and by using sprouted bread and soy milk, I can have it. Pancakes, too, by using Quinoa and other flours, and soy milk.

There are some things that I love, but I can't eat because it sends me into a sugar shock, not fun, watermelon, for example. There are some things I eat and it seems like I shouldn't, maple syrup, for example. Maybe because I pair it with food items that are high in fiber and I only use a little bit. It's okay to have things like pasta or rice noodles on occasion, and I enjoy red wine on occasion, too. I simply avoid foods that have a high glycemic index because they either triggers various neuropathies or induces a sugar shock, brain fog, sweating, muscle weakness, or sleepiness. Not so much fun, but totally workable and easy to interact with water, exercise, sleep, or some combination thereof, depending.

To help me figure out what I can or can't have, or discover after the fact why I'm having a reaction, I check out an online GI database.

Related Post:  (non) Dairy Queen, Grains in Focus

Related Links

• Online Glycemic Index Database
• Glycemic Index and Diabetes

Symptomology 101

Throughout these posts, I have mentioned symptoms and associated many of those symptoms with possible root causes. I've made dramatic lifestyle changes and I'm experiencing either a resolution of or a decrease in the intensity of my symptoms.

I call that success!

I decided to take a moment to celebrate my successes and speculate on which life change may have contributed to the improvement of symptoms.

Acne
Significant changes in not only what I eat, but when and how much I eat have contributed to completely clearing up acne breakouts. I'm positive that going dairy free, and eliminating potatoes, rice, and white flour, have contributed to eliminating this particular malady.

Excessive Sweating
While I haven't found the off switch for this lovely symptom, it is greatly reduced. I've noticed that the onset is usually when my blood sugar levels are high that I'm particularly susceptible to sweating. Further, when I'm exercising my sweating is within acceptable limits, so long as I drink plenty of water before, during, and after an activity. I'm fairly sure that eliminating caffeine and drinking buckets of water have been key to alleviating this fun symptom.

Assorted
Some of the following symptoms I know are addressed by using a CPAP. Others depend on my blood sugar levels, amount of daily excercise, and my stress levels. Still, significant improvements overall.

• Anxiety reduced
• Depression reduced
• Daytime fatigue reduced
• Forgetfulness reduced
• Lack of energy during the day reduced
• Loud snoring gone!
• Mood changes reduced
• Morning headaches reduced
• Sleepiness reduced
• Slower reaction time reduced
• Restless sleep reduced
• Recurrent awakenings reduced
• Insomnia reduced
• Vision problems reduced
• Waking up with a very sore or dry throat gone!
• Waking up with a choking or gasping sensation gone!

Related Links

• How lifestyle, daily routine affect blood sugar
• Patient information: Diabetes mellitus type 2: Alcohol, exercise, and medical care (Beyond the Basics)
• Pre-Diabetes&Lifestyle Changes to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes

Coffee Calamity

There is quite a buzz out there in the interwebs for those with insulin resistance on the topic of coffee, specifically the caffeine in coffee, giving rise to blood sugar levels.

That's just not okay. I love my coffee! I have great need of coffee. I'm a troglodyte without coffee!

To say that I'm taking this news badly doesn't even come close to my state of abject horror at the thought of no longer partaking in my beloved beverage. There must be some mistake. Surly I can find a loophole somewhere... but no.

I know the truth of caffeine and what it does to me and my blood sugar by the neuropathic response I get whenever I drink coffee, or anything with caffeine, for that matter. I was happy ignoring the symptom. Didn't matter that I have a reaction to drinking my (legal) drug of choice. It didn't matter, that is, until I read the dreaded words on the Glycemic Index. Yup, coffee is listed in the red zone. Not only did I have physical evidence that coffee spiked my blood sugar, (which I chose to ignore), but now I have it in writing, too. Somehow, that just made it too important to ignore.

What am I going to do? I just recently switched to soy lattes because dairy does a number on me. Now I have to give up lattes altogether? Nooooo!

Turns out that while that caffeine isn't a good thing for me, decaf coffee isn't a bad thing. As I switched to soy lattes with nary a second glance, I think I can make the switch to decaf soy lattes, eventually. I'm not saying that I can go cold turkey, no way! Starting tomorrow, I'll ask for a split, or 1/2 decaf soy latte. Eventually I'll get to all decaf, sooner rather than later.

Nothing is certain except for change, eh?

Related Post:  Caffeine Quandary

Related Links

• Does caffeine affect blood sugar?
• Why does black coffee raise my sugars?