Insulin Resistance, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and Sleep Apnea
Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder that affects between 5-10% of women in the Western World. It is a leading cause of infertility, and although the underlying cause is still speculative, it is very heavily associated with insulin resistance.
There was an International Consensus Workshop sponsored by the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology and the American Society of Reproductive Medicine came up with this set of criteria. PCOS is present if a woman has at least two out of three of:
- Oligoovulation and/or anovulation (ovulating only occasionally or not at all)
- Excess androgen (male sex hormone) activity
- Polycystic ovaries (which needs a gynecological ultrasonography) and other causes of PCOS are excluded
There is still a great deal of debate about the precise way to define the syndrome. We are currently preparing a scholarly article on the subject and our literature review has included over three thousand papers.
The combination of an excess of the male (androgenic) hormones and insulin resistance can cause an array of symptoms apart form the menstrual disturbances and infertility, including:
Central obesity
Acne
Hirsutism, while at the same time experiencing alopecia
Skin flaps and dark patches of skin, usually on the neck or in the armpit
Sleep apnea
It is the last of these that I would like to highlight today.
A new study by Dr. Esra Tasali and her colleagues from the University of Chicago has found that in women with PCOS, sleep apnea is, as expected, associated with high fasting insulin levels. Sleep apnea might worsen the metabolic consequences of insulin resistance.
Regular readers may recall that I highlighted the association between insomnia, insulin resistance, weight and diabetes a couple of months ago. Here we have yet more confirmation of this link.
Not getting enough sleep – for any reason – can play havoc with your metabolism. It seems that in women with PCOS, it’s really easy for a vicious circle to become established:
Insulin resistance -> weight gain -> sleep apnea -> insomnia -> more insulin resistance -> more weight gain and so on.
It is important for everyone to know about this association, because chances are that you know someone with PCOS and/or sleep apnea.
