Im currently looking around for suitable diet/lifestyle changes for my pcos. I was looking into the paleo diet and I found mixed reviews from women with pcos. Some are saying it work and others are saying it made their symptoms worse.

Have any of you ladies had any experience with the paleo diet?

I have a love/hate relationship with the Paleo Diet. But before you read about my experience, please know that PCOS is highly individualized for each woman...and the Paleo Diet might be the golden ticket for you, even though it doesn't seem it was for me.

I went Paleo 2 years ago (high-fat organic meats, veggies, limited fruit, 1300-1400 cals/day):
Pros:
Crystal clear thinking, no longer needed coffee
Steady energy
Daily headaches GONE!
Dermatitis rash and dandruff GONE!
Acne GONE!
Hair thinning STOPPED and it got thick!

Cons:
No period (but I never had one anyway with PCOS)
Gained 32lbs (went from 189 to 217 in 6 months!!!! On 1300-1400 calories!! What?!)

What makes me lose weight and get a period back within 7 days like CLOCKWORK?
1. Atkins induction
2. Dukan Diet induction phase

I have not stuck with these diets since I start to feel 'down', lethargic, and get carb cravings. The Paleo Diet had me getting my carbs from vegetables and some fruit, so I felt great. But the WEIGHT GAIN was unbearable. I have no idea what happened. And Paleo made it easy to eat 1300 calories while also working out. With that kind of calorie intake I should have been dropping weight lightning fast.

I've gotten thyroid tests done and the docs say it's normal. So there's got to be something individual going on with me.

My final verdict: Paleo has cured me of so many things that I've battled my whole life, and I truly believe it's an amazing answer to modern human disease. However, I can't explain my weight gain and still absent period... until I cut out vegetables and go Dukan or Atkins. Anyone who has any insight I'd love to hear from you!

Paleo cuts out all junk- breads, packaged foods, sugar, and rancid vegetable oils. I'd say it's definitely worth a try for you. It does heal from the inside out. I just think something major has started going on with me and I need to figure out what it is.

Neither Dukan nor Atkins cuts out vegetables. I won't say specifics about Atkins since that's not the plan I'm on but I know that you eat veggies on it. On Dukan, yes, there is a brief induction period with no veggies on Dukan but after a few days, you add them back - and you can eat plenty of them!

To the OP, I am sorry but I don't know how Paleo affects PCOS, but it does seem like low carb in general is the way to go for that, and if Paleo suits the way you like to eat, then I would go ahead and try it and see. You can always tweak it or try a different low carb plan if it ends up not doing what you hope.

Hi April,

Thanks for the clarification I know that Dukan and Atkins have vegetables, but I avoid them when I do their first phases. That ALWAYS brings a period within 7 days, after not getting a cycle from anything else. It has never, ever failed once. It's just an interesting observation.

I've heard some women with PCOS need to go zero carb... as in NO carbohydrates whatsoever. Not even from vegetables. And then once they lost the weight they slowly add in healthy carbs again (veg + fruit), they are fine.

Hi all

I've been doing Paleo for the past two months and I've already lost 12 kilos, which is the first time I've ever lost that much weight.

I am 28 now. I was diagnosed with PCOS when I was 19, and hypothyroidism when I was 23. Since then my weight has gone higher and higher and higher as the birth control pill made me hemorrage and metformin would cause me to suffer from migraines. My hair would fall out, my nails were brittle, my skin was greasy and acne-prone and I never had any energy.

Since starting Paleo I feel lighter, I'm also training at the gym 5 times a week, three times with a trainer and twice on my own. I feel healthier, fitter, stronger and I have so much energy. My hair has stopped falling out, I look better and I'm losing weight on the scales.

I still haven't had a period, nor have I had one in more than two years. I can feel the ovulation pains, I'm getting PMS and also the cramps during, but no actual period. I'm just waiting for my system to regulate itself so that it starts.

Paleo is working for me, and I'm determined to stick to it since it's the first thing that has worked for me in a long time. Weight Watchers, Slimming World and those types of diets never did any favours for me, in fact I ended up gaining lots of weight.

My suggestion is give Paleo a go, it's not as hard as it seems once you get into it, and just see whether it works for you or not. Good luck!

A great place for conversation on PCOS (read the archives) and Paleo is here: www.paleoforwomen.com

I have been eating Paleo since last summer when I finally started to read more into it. I know it works for me and I am doing a Whole30 for the month of March (which is doing a strict Paleo diet).

When I'm strict, I lose weight and without trying. Once I add grains into my diet, I gain weight and it's not just water weight.

As for my other PCOS symptoms, I've been managing those with diet and exercise for a long time now so eating Paleo I don't think has improved or worsen. But when I eat more wheat products or grains in general, my androgens go crazy.

I think it helps. But like others have said, it's a very individual experiment because it will vary depending on the severity of your symptoms and what is causing them.

I have been following the Ideal protein diet, limited to less than 40g of carbs a day. It's the first diet that has worked for me. hands down. see forums here.