Overview
PCOS, or polycystic ovarian syndrome, affects between 5 to 10 percent of all women. PCOS symptoms include irregular or heavy periods, acne, facial hair, scalp hair loss, increased belly fat, and increased levels of testosterone. It is also strongly correlated with infertility. While conventional medicine typically views PCOS as a gynecological issue, it is actually commonly driven by things such as diet, environmental toxins, genetics, and more.
In this episode, Dr. Hyman sits down with Dr. Elizabeth Boham to discuss the Functional Medicine approach to treating patients with PCOS. They delve into topics including the relationship between PCOS and insulin resistance, gut health, and much more. Elizabeth Boham is a physician and nutritionist who practices Functional Medicine at The UltraWellness Center in Lenox, MA.
Through her practice and lecturing, she has helped thousands of people achieve their goals of optimum health and wellness. She witnesses the power of nutrition every day in her practice and is committed to training other physicians to utilize nutrition in healing. Dr. Boham has contributed to many articles and wrote the latest chapter on Obesity for the Rankel Textbook of Family Medicine. She is part of the faculty of the Institute for Functional Medicine and has been featured on the Dr. Oz show and in a variety of publications and media including Huffington Post, The Chalkboard Magazine, and Experience Life.
Her DVD Breast Wellness: Tools to Prevent and Heal from Breast Cancer explores the Functional Medicine approach to keeping your breasts and whole body well.
In this conversation, Dr. Hyman and Dr. Boham discuss:
- The continuum of symptoms that can occur with PCOS
- The role that insulin and insulin resistance plays in PCOS
- How conventional medicine treats PCOS
- Common drivers of PCOS, including diet, environmental toxins, genetics, and more
- The hormone/gut microbiome connection
- The Functional Medicine approach to treating and testing for PCOS
- How dairy affects hormones and can cause acne and digestion problems
- PCOS and infertility
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