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Basic Nutritional Treatment Principles in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome:

• Daily energy needs are determined according to individual characteristics. While providing bodyweight loss, it is aimed to lose 5-10% of the current weight in the first 6 months.

• Foods with a low glycemic index, high fiber content, low fat, and high protein content are preferred.

• Adequate consumption of oily fish (fish of unknown origin should not be consumed as it may contain heavy metals) is beneficial in terms of intake of omega-3 fatty acids. Appropriate Omega-3 supplementation is important in nutritional therapy.

• Fresh vegetables and fruits, which fight against inflammation with the vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants they contain, should be consumed sufficiently in the diet. In addition, packaged foods and allergic foods should be restricted to reduce inflammation in the body.

• Saturated fat intake should be limited and healthy fats (such as olive oil, almond, avocado) should be preferred.

• Particular attention should be paid to adequate vitamin D and calcium consumption.

• The consumption of refined carbohydrates, processed foods, and alcohol should be avoided.

• Daily caffeine intake should be limited and a sufficient amount of water should be consumed.

Rabia Yalinca, Dietician

Since the development of IVF, one of the most controversial topics highlighted by specialists has been the link between fertility treatment and a higher risk of ovarian cancer. New research from the Netherlands was published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute on November 17, 2020. “It’s reassuring to know that women who had ovarian stimulation for assisted reproductive technology have no elevated risk of malignant ovarian cancer, even over time,” says leading author Flora E. van Leeuwen, Ph.D., of the Netherlands Cancer Institute.

The new study, done in the Netherlands, included 30,625 women who received ovarian stimulation as well as 9,988 those suffering from infertility who did not receive any such treatment. The study followed these participants for a median period of 24 years. In comparing the two groups, no increased risk was shown for those women who received ovarian stimulation, even after two decades. Another noteworthy discovery was that women with more successful IVF cycles had a lower risk.

Experts have evaluated these findings based on all available information. After a thorough examination, they concluded that the study’s findings contradict the premise that IVF procedures raise the risk of ovarian cancer. This new study is all the more critical when the number of infertile couples is at an all-time high.

As Cyprus IVF hospital, we understand how stressful and challenging fertility treatment can be. Reassuring our patients is a goal we work on daily. We’re more excited than ever to share the findings of this study with you.

We are constantly expanding our partnerhips around the world aiming to make IVF journey as comfortable as possible for our patients.

In this respect, we are delighted to announce that we have launched a new partnership with Fertility Help Hub.

Fertility Help Hub (FHH) guides and connects a likeminded community, from the highs and lows of pre-conception, through pregnancy and parenthood. Everything FHH does, rooted in a place of experience: from shared stories, and offers to daily expert advice and events.

Eloise Edington, Founder & CEO of FHH, explained their mission as to create a community and to connect with others who actually understand what a fertility struggle feels like. It is an inclusive and free platform, offering everyone around the world all of the things they might need to have along the way: a supportive community, fertility specialist guidance, shared stories and offers, collected together in one beautiful, optimistic space.

Eloise expressed that “We are delighted to be partnering with Cyprus IVF Hospital, to offer our readers medical expertise and third-party reproductive choices at an affordable cost.”

The most common overall cause of female infertility is the failure to ovulate, which occurs in 40% of women with infertility issues.

Ovulation disorders:

Ovulating infrequently or not at all accounts for most cases of infertility. Problems with the regulation of reproductive hormones by the hypothalamus or the pituitary gland or problems in the ovary can cause ovulation disorders.

– Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). PCOS causes a hormone imbalance, which affects ovulation. PCOS is associated with insulin resistance and obesity, abnormal hair growth on the face or body, and acne. It’s the most common cause of female infertility.

– Hypothalamic dysfunction. Two hormones produced by the pituitary gland are responsible for stimulating ovulation each month — follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH). Excess physical or emotional stress, a very high or very low body weight, or a recent substantial weight gain or loss can disrupt production of these hormones and affect ovulation. Irregular or absent periods are the most common signs.

– Primary ovarian insufficiency. Also called premature ovarian failure, this is usually caused by an autoimmune response or by premature loss of eggs from your ovary, possibly as a result of genetics or chemotherapy. The ovary no longer produces eggs, and it lowers estrogen production in women under age 40.

– Too much prolactin. The pituitary gland can cause excess production of prolactin (hyperprolactinemia), which reduces estrogen production and can cause infertility. This can also be caused by medications you’re taking for another condition.

We need to know some things before we go into detail. If you are looking at infertility, we have to know that we are not talking about male or female; it’s a mutual inability to conceive and have a pregnancy within one year of regular sex. It means 2 to 3 times per week without using any contraception as it is a peer diagnosis. We have to understand that females should be consulting in the case of natural pregnancy cannot be reached, but a male also needs to go to a specialist. It’s usually an andrologist, and if the partners do it simultaneously, it’s much faster, we can get a result. Approximately 15% of couples face fertility issues, one half of them having a malefactor.

In the future, there will be more and more couples facing fertility issues. If you remember, we look at sperm quality issues, and it’s still a problem, especially for Western countries where, and as I’ve mentioned, it is also a case for Europe. One-third of all male infertility cases, we cannot say why it is so-called idiopathic male infertility; a lot of it is still not clear in the field. A lot of studies are still ongoing, and I believe in the nearest future, we will have more and more information, and therefore we can help a lot of patients to get pregnant.

I already mentioned the age of the partner. It’s not only female age which is important but also male because, after the age of 35, several processes begin in the body that increases sperm DNA fragmentation, for example. As well as stem cells are starting to die slowly. Therefore we have to be very careful with planning our family. If we are delaying this decision the to late 30s or 40s, then there is more probability of getting some issue with natural pregnancy due to the malefactor. One of the cornerstones of male infertility tests is a semen analysis, and this is the first analysis which we are usually starting with to check the male. But semen analysis needs to be checked, and it’s an assessment of all body, all diseases, it’s a proper physical examination that needs to be done, like a further investigation for endocrine, genetic and maybe other tests.

This is something that we do during a visit case-by-case. Suppose you are looking at the probability of natural pregnancy by looking only at semen analysis. In that case, we can predict approximately only 60% because there’s a lot of other things that need to be taken into account besides semen analysis. Therefore I encourage not to look only at the semen analysis but to look at the whole body health.