Dr. Ranjana Nanda

Uric acid is a product of the metabolic breakdown of purine nucleotides, and it is a normal component of urine. High concentrations of uric acid can lead to gout and are associated with other medical conditions including diabetes and formation kidney stones.
To lower the uric acid value:

• Increase water intake 
• Consume more citric fruits
• Have tomatoes, cherties, vegetable juices, apples, green tea etc.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common hormonal disorder among women of reproductive age. Polycystic means “many cysts,” and PCOS often causes clusters of small, pearl-sized cysts in the ovaries. The cysts are fluid-filled and contain immature eggs. PCOS affects one in 4 women.

What are the causes behind it?
While the exact cause of PCOS is unknown, doctors believe that hormonal imbalances and genetics play a role. Women are more likely to develop PCOS if their mother or sister also has the condition.
Overproduction of the hormone androgen may be another contributing factor. Androgen is a male sex hormone that women’s bodies also produce. 

PCOS Symptoms
PCOS is a syndrome disease defined by a collection of signs and symptoms. The symptoms of PCOS that one patient experiences can be very different from the symptoms of another patient. If you have two or more of the following symptoms, you need to have a thorough checkup to determine if you need PCOS treatment:

• Irregular or missing menstrual periods
• Infertility
• Excess or unwanted body or facial hair growth
• Thinning hair on the scalp
• Weight problems, often including weight gain around the waist
• Skin problems, including skin tags, darkening skin and acne

Does PCOS increase weight?
The answer is a ‘YES’. Most PCOS patients are overweight and are asked to exercise which helps control the symptoms but a lot many people have a completely normal body type.

What are the risks associated with PCOS-related weight gain?
No matter what the cause, weight gain can be detrimental to your health. Women with PCOS are more likely to develop many of the problems associated with weight gain and insulin resistance, including:

• Type 2 diabetes
• High cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Sleep apnea
• Infertility
• Endometrial cancer

Many of these conditions can lead to heart disease. In fact, women with PCOS are four to seven times more likely to have a heart attack than women of the same age without the condition.

Benefit of Weight Loss with PCOS

Modest weight loss will not cure PCOS, but it will help. Weight loss can restore the normal function of the ovaries and result in normal hormone production. This may, in turn, lead to improvements in symptoms of PCOS, such as excess hair growth, acne or scalp hair loss.

Protect Yourself From Weight Gain

• Eat Right: A healthy diet low in complex carbohydrates, moderate protein and low fat is important, as this can help regulate blood sugar levels. 
• Exercise: Start doing low-to-moderate activities like walking or swimming for 30-to-90 minutes per day because exercise (even without weight loss) has been shown to lower or get rid of insulin resistance.
• Lose Weight: The more overweight you are the more likely you are to be insulin resistant whether you have PCOS or not. Losing just 5% of your bodyweight will help lower your insulin resistance.
• Avoid Stress: Don’t over stress yourself as it increases the blood pressure level in your body and can’t help to resist with PCOS. So, try to stay as calm as possible.
• Get more sleep (at least 7-to-9 hours in a day): Not getting enough sleep can also make your insulin resistance worse, which in turn acquires you the weight.

DIET:

• Cereals: Barley, quinoa, oats, oatmeal, muesli, bran flakes, whole wheat porridge, brown rice, multigrain bread
• Pulses: Yellow moong, green moong, chana dal, beans, whole pulses
• Dairy products: Skimmed or toned milk, soy milk, tofu, paneer, yogurt
• Fruits: Berries, plums, peaches, oranges, papaya, pears, watermelons, apples
• Nuts: Walnut, almonds, flaxseeds
• Vegetables: Carrots, peas, broccoli, lettuce, mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers, onions, cauliflower, celery, spinach

  If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a dietitian-nutritionist.

The term infertility in females explains a wide range of disorders but in order to simplify things, lets’ just say, infertility in women is a condition in which women are unable to conceive. There are numerous reasons that can be responsible for this situation and although some are preventable or curable, most others have no specific cure or treatment.

Ovulatory Disorders

One of the most common reasons for infertility is an ovulatory disorder. Almost 30 percent of female infertility is caused due to this reason. 70 percent of such infertility is treatable with drugs such as Reprones/Menogan and Clomiphene. Here is a list of causes of failed ovulation-

1. Disruption in the complex hormonal balance.

2. Ovaries fail to produce mature eggs. Polycystic ovarian syndrome is the most common disorder causing this problem. This syndrome has reduced FSH production and increased production of LH, Oestrogen and Testosterone. Suppressed FSH production may cause the partial development of ovarian follicles.

3. Hypothalamus may malfunction thereby causing the pituitary to malfunction, thus losing control over the process or FSH and LH production.

4. Physical damage to the ovaries by multiple surgeries or due to the formation of cysts.

5. A rare case of premature menopause.

6. Problems of the follicle.

7. Poor functioning of fallopian tubes

Diseases or disorders in the tube have been another major reason of infertility in women. Almost 25 percent of women infertility occurs due to this reason. Although treatments exist, success rates of the treatments are as high as 30 percent. The causes of tube damage may be as follows-

1. Infection caused by bacteria or viruses

2. Abdominal diseases like colitis and appendicitis

3. Previous pelvic or abdominal surgeries.

4. A condition called ectopic pregnancy which occurs in the tube, and even if very carefully but successfully overcome, may leave permanent damage.

5. Rare congenital defects in which women may be born with tube anomalies.

Endometriosis

This is the condition where the endometrium expands excessively thereby preventing individuals from getting pregnant. This affects almost 10 percent of the population of infertile women. Almost 40 percent of women with endometriosis are infertile.

Other Factors

Other additional factors may include:

1. Abnormal uterus

2. Congenital diseases

3. Behavioural factors like personal habits, lifestyle and health factors.

4. Exercise and diet- extremely overweight or underweight women may have problems in conceiving.

5. Cigarette smoking reduces the chances of conceiving by one-third.

6. Alcohol increases the chances of birth defects.

Hence, pregnancy is tougher than it might really seem. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a gynaecologist.