Like many female conditions, PCOS has historically been largely misunderstood by the medical community.

(We don’t mean to be too cynical, but that’s what happens when the men declare themselves in charge of our health! Let’s talk about taking that back later on in this post!)

Once believed to only be a disease of the overweight female with the prototypical facial hair and acne, our medical understanding of the disease has grown exponentially over the last decade or so.

Turns out, PCOS is more common than was previously recognized and there is a wide variety of ways that this disease can manifest.

So if that’s true, what IS the underlying root cause of this this disease? (We’re both all about finding the root cause to heal conditions more naturally and more effectively.)

Unfortunately, we don’t have completely straightforward answers to this question quite yet.  But we have more information now than we ever have had in the past!

The root cause with the most amount of evidence that we have so far is hormonal (read: endocrine) dysregulation due to poor blood sugar regulation, leading to uncontrolled inflammation.

Let’s break that previous sentence down into smaller parts to really understand what’s going on.

Hormonal Imbalance in PCOS

First, let’s talk about the endocrine dysfunction piece.

When we talk about the endocrine system, we’re not only including the ovaries but the entire hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-ovarian axis (and a few other organ systems that interface with this cascade, such as the thyroid).

Any time the endocrine system is disrupted, it’s important to consider how hormones are processed. After all, if you have a bunch of partially inactivated hormones floating around in your bloodstream, the body won’t know that your hormones are actually low…and therefore won’t get the signal to make you the hormones you actually need!

Detoxification in PCOS

At this point, it’s probably easy to see that where we’re going with this hormone-processing piece is effective detoxification.

Regardless of whether our hormones are high or low, it’s important for the body to metabolize, process, and remove hormones we no longer need from the body. (This is especially true given the huge amount and variety of hormone-mimicking compounds we come into contact with daily.)

This means that our liver, lymphatic systems, kidneys, and gut have to be working effectively.

While detoxing is in vogue right now, most programs focus on detoxification without any regard for the natural hormonal cycle that spans 28 days (on average).

Detoxing and Optimizing Inflammation at the Right Time

Turns out, it’s not enough just to support detoxification. You have to support detoxing AT THE RIGHT TIME in the cycle. This seems like a minor point…but has major consequences!

Not super surprisingly, the same is true when it comes to controlling inflammation in the body.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING. Because we’re hoping to work WITH our body instead of AGAINST it.

When we effectively support an optimum inflammatory response in the body, it has huge downstream effects on our gut health and the regulation of blood sugar levels.

(Often, people talk about this as the other way around. While we agree that working on gut health and decreasing cheap sources of sugar in the diet as very important, we also think there’s something to be said for making these changes a lot less of a struggle if you support a healthy inflammatory response at the beginning. After all, we all know that we should eat less sugar…but how many of us are really good at doing that?? This is a “work smarter, not harder” kind of thing. As you feel better, it’s easier to make healthier choices…and a positive spiral appears!)

Using the Cycle to Address PCOS Naturally

If you haven’t already, make sure to read our explanation of the 4 phases of the menstrual cycle and what health aspects are best to focus on at each portion of the month.

Truth be told, what we can cover in this post is just a teeny-tiny tip of the iceberg! There’s a lot more to be discussed.

However, if you’re totally new to this approach of living more in sync with your menstrual cycle as a way to naturally treat PCOS, our free Wild Feminine Cycle Guide is what we created to ease you into this more natural and effective way of approaching your health.

Besides going more in-depth on both detoxing and inflammation, you’ll learn how to move, how to relate to others, and how to treat yourself in a way that’s more in sync with your natural flow.

Remember that taking your power back piece we talked about in the beginning?

This is the time. Live in sync with your cycle and find out how for yourself.

Happy healing!

XOXO,