Scientists have reported that myo-inositol can be a safe supplement to use to promote ovulation and fertility.
I have known about inositol for years, as it is also a supplement that can be helpful in the treatment of anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and panic disorder.
Since 80% of the women with PCOS coming to my website are reporting some kind of anxiety, depression, and/or mood swings, it seems that using inositol as part of your overall health and fertility program may not be a bad idea. Even if you don't have a DIAGNOSIS of anxiety, it's so easy to feel stressed out when all you want is to conceive!
The supplement can be a bit expensive…but it's far cheaper than in vitro fertilization. And it's simply a form of a water-soluble B vitamin. If it can't hurt, and it might help, at least one issue you are looking for help with…why not give it a shot?
Papaleo E, Unfer V, et al. A novel method for ovulation induction," Gynecol Endocrinol, 2007; 23(12): 700-3.
Harvey BH, Brink CB, Seedat S, Stein DJ. Defining the neuromolecular action of myo-inositol: application to obsessive-compulsive disorder. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2002 Jan;26(1):21-32.
Palatnik A, Frolov K, Fux M, Benjamin J. Double-blind, controlled, crossover trial of inositol versus fluvoxamine for the treatment of panic disorder. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 2001 Jun;21(3):335-9.
So let's say you've landed on this website because you were doing a Google search at 3:30 in the morning.
Or because you're home from work and can't slow your head down enough to relax and enjoy a leisure activity…so you're surfing the Internet to distract yourself.
What's going on?
It could be a lot of things.
1. If your hormones are out of balance, as with PCOS, you may have excess levels of stress hormones such as cortisol that rise more easily than average, and take longer to normalize after a stressful day.
2. If you didn't sleep well last night and used caffeine and sugar to get through your day, you may be experiencing the aftermath of that.
3. If you over-exercised too late in the day, because it's only large amounts of exercise that help to calm your mind, it may have stressed you more than it relaxed you.
4. You may have a mood disorder (anxiety, bipolar disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder).
How to know which is which? If you've made major changes in your lifestyle, corrected nutrition choices, worked to prioritize sleep, etc., and your head simply won't slow down, that's a huge red flag that something important lies beneath those behaviors. In fact, the imbalances you adopted, from eating sugar to drinking alcohol to relax, to marathon exercise sessions, may have helped you to"medicate" something more important going on in your nervous system.
Mood disorders are important not to ignore. They can be degenerative, which means, left unchecked, they can prematurely age the brain and nervous system. Your new lifestyle choices are incredibly important in slowing that process down, but you may find that additional help, such as a medication, can be tremendously useful as far as finally bringing you back into balance.
If you feel as though I'm describing you, you may be interested in another blog I write, about nutritional aspects of psychotropic medications. It goes into more detail about this specific topic, and I do post a lot of information about nutrition for brain and nervous system health.
Awhile ago I made an informal (that is, never scientifically tested) questionnaire. It's not intended to diagnose, but rather to get you thinking about what kinds of thinking patterns may be underlying how often and how intensely you experience stress. You may be blaming your racing head on your stress, but it may be that your racing head attracts you to situations and relationships that are stressful.
There is no right or wrong way to answer these questions. But do consider, the more"yes" responses you give yourself, and the less your answers change in response to reasonable changes in diet, activity, sleep, and stress management, the more important it is to consider that you may have a mood disorder.
Are You A High energy Thinker? (Copyright 2000, www.afterthediet.com)
1. I am easily flustered.
2. I am easily drawn into a conflict.
3. I am very organized, and when my routine is disrupted, it can ruin my day.
4. I have a hard time with change, I would rather control thngs than let them take their natural course.
5. I can become so attached to a person, idea, or situation that I lose sight of the"big picture" perspective.
6. Staying focused on a task is a challenge; I am easily distracted/bored.
7. I can become obsessed with an activity. I ccan lose track of time because I get so absorbed.
8. People tell me I overanalyze things.
9. Peole tell me I am an adrenaline junkie.
10. I am a perfectionist.
11. I am very sensitive to criticism.
12. I worry a lot.
13. I procrastinate/can't finish projects I start.
14. I feel like I sabotage myself.
15. I have a way of saying or doing impulsive things that undermine relationships or which hurt my credibility.
16. I toss and turn a lot before falling asleep.
17. I can do a lot of things at once; in fact, it's easier thann doing one thing at a time.
18. I feel driven by some sort of internal machine.
OK. Today's the day. There was finally a quiet morning to read the research about d-chiro inositol. Ever since I posted a link to Sasha Ottey's interview on the topic on her PCOS Challenge radio show, traffic linking to us with that keyword has been very high. I've known we needed a blog post, but I just wanted to be sure it was scientifically accurate and presented information in a way that was beneficial, not hurtful.
What is inositol? It is a chemical that is necessary for several body functions, including: cell structure, insulin function, nerve function, fat breakdown, and maintenance of healthy cholesterol levels.
Inositol comes in nine different forms. Two of those types of inositol, myo-inositol and d-chiro-inositol, have been found to have therapeutic value. Myo-inositol supplementation has been found to alleviate symptoms of bulimia, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, agoraphobia, depression, and bipolar disorder. d-chiro-inositol supplementation has been found to be useful for symptoms associated with insulin, high androgen levels, and menstrual irregularity. It is also reported that myoinositol can help prevent hair loss.
Both categories of symptoms are common in PCOS, so it appears that inositol levels and metabolism may be problematic with a high percentage of readers of this blog.
One thing you can do to help improve your levels of both myo- and d-chiro-inositol is to know their dietary sources. Myo-inositol is found in brewer's yeast, liver, milk, whole grains, brown rice, oats, nuts, citrus fruits, molasses, legumes, raisins, and bananas. The best sources of d-chiro-inositol are buckwheat and garbanzo beans (hummous, anyone?)
The theory is, that women with PCOS have trouble converting myo-inositol into d-chiro-inositol. So they need to bypass that metabolic bottleneck with a supplement.
I haven't had the opportunity to use d-chiro-inositol with my clients yet. I haven't wanted to recommend anything unless I'd researched it. But I had a client once, with severe OCD, who responded well to myo-inositol in a way medication and behavioral therapy never achieved. The only issue she had with the supplement was the large dose she needed to take (10 grams per day) in order to see benefit.
Fast forward to today, I've been wondering for awhile if maybe the symptoms attributed to myoinositol deficiency weren't actually myoinositol issues at all, but d-chiro-inositol issues, and the large dose needed was because the conversion in this population is so low.
So here's the best way I would think it would work to determine if d-chiro-inositol deficiency is your problem.
1. Be sure to include all the foods I mentioned above in your diet on a regular basis.
2. Try d-chiro-inositol. Give it three months of regular use to see if it helps. --If it helps with your insulin levels, androgen levels, and menstrual cycles, then by all means continue using it! --If it helps with the above, but doesn't help with binge eating, mood, or obsessive thinking, then consider adding some myoinositol to the mix.
3. And please, check back with us. I'm really curious to know what happens. If d-chiro-inositol also helps with mood, etc., that's very important information.
Recommended doses of each: myo-inositol 12-30 grams per day d-chiro-inositol 100 mg, twice per day
I know, I know, if you're obsessive, you're going to want to take the higher dose of myo-inositol, or even double the dose I've listed.: ) I strongly encourage you to resist the temptation and start low and titrate up as you need to.
I spent quite a bit of time in the supplement department at Whole Foods, to get an idea of what readers would find if they went to buy inositol. As you can see at this link, the options on amazon.com, as they are in most health food stores, are primarily myoinositol.
If you'd like to purchase d-chiro-inositol, the most popular source for women with PCOS appears to be www.chiralbalance.com.
