Alkaline Water May Help PCOS Symptoms and Fertility Issues
- Authors
- Jesmin Ara, Selikem Abla Nowormegbe, Ma Easter Joy Sajo, Soo-Ki Kim, Kwang-Yong Shim, Kyu-Jae Lee
- Journal
- Medical Hypotheses
- Year
- 2017
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.mehy.2017.05.017
- Study Type
- clinical
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- South Korea
- Health Condition
- Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
- Body System
- Endocrine
TL;DR
Researchers found that a special type of water called alkaline reduced water might help women with PCOS (a condition that causes irregular periods and makes it hard to get pregnant) by helping them lose weight and balance their hormones. This matters because there's currently no really good treatment for PCOS, so this could be a new way to help women with this problem.
Key Finding
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Summary
Scientists published a hypothesis suggesting alkaline reduced water (ARW) could help treat polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). PCOS affects women's hormones, causing weight gain, insulin resistance, and fertility problems. The researchers noted that previous studies showed alkaline water reduces obesity and inflammation. They theorize that since weight loss helps PCOS symptoms, alkaline water's obesity-reducing effects could improve hormone balance, reduce insulin resistance, and restore ovulation in PCOS patients. This is a theoretical study proposing a new treatment approach, not clinical trial results.
Abstract
Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine-metabolic disorder characterized by hormonal disturbances including hyperandrogenemia, insulin resistance, and hyperinsulinemia culminating into obesity, multiple ovarian cysts and anovulatory infertility in women. There has been no effective medication against PCOS and its complication. However, weight loss can reduce insulin resistance, which in turn helps to restore hormonal balance and ovulation resulting to improved fertility. Previously, we reported that alkaline reduced water (ARW) could significantly reduce obesity by alleviating adiposity, regulating the levels of adipokines/pro-inflammatory cytokines and by inducing cholesterol homeostasis. Herein, we hypothesize that ARW might ameliorate the pathophysiological (hormonal, metabolic, and immunological) imbalances incurred by PCOS, thereby improving the infertility of PCOS patients.