The PCOS Diet Plan, Second Edition

Book excerpt: An updated edition of registered dietitian Hillary Wright's popular book on nutrition and lifestyle management of PCOS, this prescriptive guide focuses on using diet and exercise to manage polycystic ovary syndrome and has new information on diet therapy and exercise, current food and fitness logging technologies, and all-new nutrition-backed meal plans. PCOS is the most common hormonal disorder among women of reproductive age, according to the Mayo Clinic. Characterized by numerous small cysts in the ovaries, PCOS affects up to 10 percent of all women and 14 million women in the United States alone. It is linked to infertility, diabetes, heart disease, and endometrial cancer. While this disorder is believed to be genetic and incurable, it is controllable. In this prescriptive plan, dietitian Hillary Wright demystifies the condition by explaining its underlying cause--insulin resistance--and helps readers understand how diet and lifestyle can influence reproductive hormones and decrease risk for diabetes, heart disease, and infertility. This book is packed with simple dietary and nutritional specifics: day-to-day strategies, sample meal plans, and shopping and snack lists. Updates include new information on diet therapy and exercise, the newest research on PCOS and soy and dairy, revised meal plans, and updated resources and shopping lists. The PCOS Diet Plan is the most comprehensive and authoritative guide to managing this increasingly diagnosed condition.