Diet Plan for PCOS

The relationship between PCOS and weight

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) suffer from a hormone imbalance which makes them ovulate infrequently and erratically but which also alters their metabolism so they put weight on very easily and find it difficult to diet.

Fertility is higher and pregnancy is healthier when a woman has a BMI (body mass index) between 20-25.
BMI is calculated by comparing the ratio of height and weight (BMI = weight in kg divided by height in meters squared).

The maximum ideal BMI is 25 kg/m2.

Height 

Max ideal weight
5’           9st 3lb
5’3”       10st 3lb
5’6”       11st 3lb
5’9”       12st 3lb

A good diet for a woman with PCOS is very low in fat and high in fruit and fibre.
This is Fertility Fitness! Good Luck!

Tips for dieters

• boredom is the enemy and always leads to ‘nibbling’. Take up a new hobby you will enjoy

•  social events do not have to involve food. Ask friends to join you for a country walk or to go ten-pin bowling rather than meet for a meal

• start each meal with two glasses of water – it will fill you up and make you feel less hungry 

•  keep a supply of handy ‘treats’ – carrot sticks, apples, satsumas, grapes – for when you are tempted

• serve your food on a small plate – it makes you eat less and still feel satisfied

• identify your ‘danger’ times (eg when you get in from work) and fill them with a new activity – embroidery, the internet, a bath

• exercise is vital and helps convert fat into muscle. Take up a new sport that you (and your partner) enjoy

•  stick a graph of your progress on the fridge door

• get friends to sponsor you a pound (£) for a pound (lb). Spend it all on a new outfit when you reach your target

• maximum healthy weight loss is 1-2 lbs per week. It will take 2 months to lose 1 stone. Do not get disheartened and do not give up

• special diet foods are extremely expensive, highly refined and such small portions

• remember, you are losing weight to make you more fertile not just to make you less fat

Suggested diet plan

1. Fruit and vegetables

So good for health – eat vegetables, salad or fruit with every meal. Snack on fresh fruit.
Choose at least 3 portions of vegetables or salad each day from the following:

 bamboo shoots             beansprouts                  beetroot
 broad beans                  broccoli                        Brussels sprouts
 celeriac                        celery                           Chinese cabbage
 courgettes                    cucumber                      French beans
 lettuce                         leeks                             marrow mushrooms                  onions                           parsnips
 peas                            peppers                         runner beans
 spinach                        spring greens                 swede
 sweet corn                   tomatoes                       turnips
 watercress

Choose at least 3 portions of fruit daily from the following:

 1 apple                       1 slice fresh pineapple
 1 pear                         1 peach or nectarine
 1 orange                     handful of grapes or cherries
 1 banana                     1 large wedge of melon
 1 grapefruit                 2 satsumas or tangerines
 ½lb strawberries         1 glass of orange juice
 ½lb raspberries
 rhubarb, gooseberries, blackberries, red or blackcurrants stewed without sugar
 diet yogurt or sugar-free jelly can be taken as a fruit alternative

2. Bread, potatoes and cereals

Eat bread, cereals, potatoes and other starch foods with every meal.

Choose your portions from this list:

 1 large slice of wholemeal bread
 1 small wholemeal roll or ½ pitta bread
 2 crispbreads, wholegrain crackers or Rich Tea biscuits
 1 bowl wholegrain cereal; eg Bran Flakes, All Bran or porridge
 1 Weetabix or Shredded Wheat
 1 small boiled or jacket potato
 ½ cup cooked pasta; eg macaroni, spaghetti

3. Meat, fish and other protein foods

Choose your portions from this list:

 2 thin slices if lean meat or chicken (2 – 3 oz)
 2 – 3 oz casseroled pork, beef, lamb or poultry
 2 thin slices of grilled liver
 2 – 3 oz casseroled liver or kidney
 1 small fillet (4 – 6 oz) of white smoked fish (grilled, steamed or poached)
 ½ small can of salmon, tuna, sardines or pilchards
 4 oz shellfish, prawns, crab or mussels
 2 fishfingers (grilled)
 1 small tin baked beans
 4 oz cooked pulses; eg kidney beans, soya beans or chick peas
 1 egg
 1 small carton of cottage cheese of 1 oz cheese; eg low fat Cheddar or Edam
1 oz nuts; eg peanuts, almonds, walnuts

The following foods should be avoided

1. High fat foods

 all fried foods, including fish and chips
 meat products, including sausages, beefburgers, salami, spam, luncheon meat and paté
 fatty cuts of meat, including breast of lamb and belly pork
 cream, ice-cream, condensed and evaporated milk
 crisps and corn snacks
 cream soups
 Yorkshire pudding, stuffing, cheese and parsley sauces
 butter, margarine, lard and vegetable oils
 cream cheese and hard cheese; eg Cheddar and Stilton
 salad cream and mayonnaise

2. High sugar foods

 sugar, glucose, honey, treacle, golden syrup and jam
 boiled sweets, peppermints, pastilles and gums
 sugar sweetened fizzy drinks and squashes
 all sugar-coated cereals

3. High fat and sugar foods

 all biscuits, cakes and puddings
 sweet pastries, including jam tarts, Danish pastries
 chocolate, fudge and toffees
 drinking chocolate, Horlicks, Ovaltine and Bournvita
 processed food and ‘ready meals’

Diet 1 – 1200 kCal (daily allowances)
 bread, potatoes, cereals                         7 portions from list
 meat, fish and other protein foods        2 portions from list
 skimmed milk                                       up to ¾ pint
 fruit                                                       3-4 portions
 vegetables                                             3 portions

Diet 2 – 1500 kCal (daily allowances)

 bread, potatoes, cereals                        9 portions from list
 meat, fish and other protein foods       2 portions from list
 skimmed milk                                      up to ¾ pint
 fruit                                                      3-4 portions
 vegetables                                            3 portions

Diet 3 – 1700 kCal (daily allowances)

 bread, potatoes, cereals                        11 portions from list
 meat, fish and other protein foods        2 portions from list
 skimmed milk                                       up to ¾ pint
 fruit                                                       3-4 portions
 vegetables                                             3 portions

Drinks

Have plenty of fluids every day. Choose tap water, mineral water, lemon tea, slimline fizzy drinks and pure fruit juice
.
Avoid alcohol – it’s high in calories – or limit it to a maximum of two units per week.