Hey everyone. I was wondering if its common to have PCOS and Vitiligo? I have been wondering for a while if perhaps they were connected some how.... I have both and I am watching it spread very fast ( It started a couple of months ago and I now have white patches on my hands, face, legs, and feet and my hair lis loosing color in spots). I know they say if you loose even 10% of your body weight then your pcos will become significantly better, and I was hoping if I did this then it would slow the vitiligo progression. Thanks in advance gals

I've never heard of them to be related, but with a complex syndrome like PCOS, there's always a possibility that they might have the same trigger somewhere up the chain! Was your PCOS diagnosed by an endocrinologist? He would be the best source to ask. If there are any hormonal causes/triggers for the vitiligo, then maybe there could be a relation.

Don't have personal experience. Have you tried googling?

A.

I have googled it. I have seen some ppl who have both, but I was just wondering how often it occurs. Vitiligo is an autoimmune disorder... So I wondered if they were connected/triggered by each other.

Well, given that PCOS is an endocrine disorder affecting hormones in all systems... I could see where it could "domino effect" into other things.

A.

Hiya,
Im 22 and have had PCOS and Vitiligo from the age of 16... I seem to think they may be linked as well...but theyre both really distressing problems because they have an effect physically. Im struggling with excessive facial hair due to PCOS and not being able to do much about it because I risk the spread of vitiligo on my face and I think the stress of dealing with this makes things worse.

Im going to attempt to lose weight to help PCOS symptoms...but Im still looking for a way to solve vitiligo so I know how u feel N1kk1

WHOA!

Wow I am so happy I found this thread. I have had vitiliago since I was 20. It started out as a white patch on my inner wrist, then when I went camping and spent a lot of time in the sun, between my fingers went white. Went to a dermatologyst and found out it was vit.

Since then, thankfully, mine has been slowly progressing. I have white finger tips and toes and between my fingers and toes. No where else.

I just got diagnosed with Polycystic ovaries last month, prior to have my 2 overies operated on for huge cysts. I never would have put 2 and 2 together.

BUT

I started gaining weight and struggling with anxiety/depression around 20. I'm going to be 30 in a few months and my MD put me on Ideal Protein to "break the cycle" as she says, with the weight gain vs the PCOS. I wonder if my vit. will start to re-color? That would be great!

People usually ask what happened to my hands. I tell them a chemical burn if I want them to go away, LOL, or a car fire. I will explain to someone if I know them, but strangers can be so rude, you know?

The connection would make sense in a way. The PCOS makes you fat, wonks out your hormones and can predispose you to so many other things that are chemically related...why not vit? It is, after all, the body attacking a chemical.

Phew, cant wait to read more on this.

Sorry I have not been on a replied to everyone's post. Thank you all. It is devastating for both of these problems to happen to the same person. I really want to dye my facial hair, but like you guys know that is not really an option with vit. I also have vit. on my scalp and its turning my hair white in these patches... I am only 25, but lucky for me I have natural highlights so for right now it is well disguised.
I have a buddy who is med school and she says that their is some types of vit that can be combated with some vitamins. I cannot for the life of me remember which, but as soon as I have the chance to ask her I will post it. I believe it was the B vitamins, but I will need to check into it.

I'm posting today because I'm feeling downright terrible. I'm 26. I've had vitiligo since I was 4 and it has sporadically been spreading throughout. I was diagonosed with PCOS two years back but I'm sure I got it much before that. I can pretty much relate the disturbed menstrual cycle (because of PCOS) with vitiligo. Earlier I had these patches on my knees, feet, hands, elbows. But ever since I developed these obnoxious cysts, the patches have spread prominently (upper arms, on and under breast area, back). I had started an ayurvedic treatment for vitiligo about 3 months ago with a doctor who claimed to challenge great dermatologists. I am very hopeful but have been failing to follow the strict diet regime because I'm also going through a bad breakup (and hence the stress). Today when I noticed a light patch on the front of my neck, I broke for the nth time in my life. And I have promised myself to resume the treatment without any fail anymore.

eeek! now this scares me.. i have vitiligo, but i do not think i have pcos. i am treating my vitiligo (and having success in repigmentation, very very slowly). in addition to my daily mulitvitamin, i am taking 1200mg calcium with vitamin d (because i do not like milk and i do not like sunlight), 2000mg of vitamin c, 1000mcg (micrograms, not milligrams) of b12, 1600 mcg folic acid (a B vitamin), 50 mg zinc (aids in repair of cells) and 3 mg copper (because zinc depletes copper levels). i used to take 120 mg gingko, but i ran out and will be restocking on the end of this month. all this is under doc supervision, i switched to a mostly vegetarian diet recently (i still eat fish, poultry, eggs and cheese but i completely dropped proccessed food, pork, and beef). i know it is a lot of supplements. i used to take st. john's wort as well (it was supposed to increase photosensitivity. i took it during the summer and didn't see any positive effects so i dropped it). i am not sure if any of these supplements will make pcos worse, but ask your doc and see which ones will do you more harm than good. i started getting vitiligo when i turned 18 (started treating it when i was 22, about a year ago). that's about the time i found out that i had tiny tiny (a couple of millimeters, i think) benign cysts on my thyroid.

oh and my supplements are spread throughout the day so that my body can absorb them better. but that is me. as mentioned earlier, check with your doc to see what's up and what a safe dosage is for you.