Support a PCOS Diet Study

Do you wonder how you can help advance the understanding and knowledge of how diet can help manage PCOS? Well, I have an opportunity for you!  I recently found out about a new research study being led by a group of researchers from the University of California, San Francisco

This  study will be look at how diet can help manage PCOS.  The researchers will be looking at:

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) Diet  a diet based on whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and fat-free dairy, with limited saturated fat and cholesterol.

vs.

The Paleo Diet  a diet that eliminates foods that would not have been available to our human ancestors, such as grains, dairy products and junk food.

The researchers expect that both the ADA and Paleo diets will reduce insulin resistance and help women with PCOS, but one might work better than the other, and there may be other important differences between them.

I had the opportunity to speak with one of the lead investigators – Dr. Heather Huddleston.  Dr. Heather Huddleston is an expert in reproductive endocrinology and fertility at the UCSF Center for Reproductive Health. She  earned a medical degree at Harvard Medical School and completed an internship and residency in obstetrics and gynecology as well as a fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. She is a member of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and American Society for Reproductive Medicine. She is an adjunct assistant professor in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at UCSF.

Dr. Huddleston explained that it is very difficult to get funding for a pilot study like this.  They are planning to follow 40 women  (20 women with insulin resistance and PCOS and 20 control) over the course of 8 months.  It is their hope that through this pilot study they can secure funding for a larger study.

But in order to get this study off the ground they need $40,000

All $40,000 will go to costs for the study – the study personnel are all volunteering their time! Here is the  approximate budget:

• $20,000: Laboratory tests of insulin resistance and other biological outcomes.
• $12,000: Research supplies and lab space.
• $4000: Payments to participants for providing questionnaires, urine and blood samples, and uterine images.
• $4000: Tracking and staying in touch with participants, data entry and administrative support.

Currently, it’s exceedingly difficult for researchers to land funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to do nutrition-related research in the context of disease treatment or management, particularly if it involves a Paleo Diet. Dr. Huddleston and her team is looking for other ways to fund their work.  This study will give them the early data they need to start large, truly definitive studies of the links between diet and insulin resistance, and you can help make it happen.

Not enough is known about exactly how to treat PCOS.  Our multidisciplinary team wants to conduct first rate research to determine ways to improve quality of life for the many women living with this disorder. – Dr. Heather Huddleston

I am so excited about this study I will be donating 15% of all sales of PCOS Diva Programs  through September 3rd (the end of the campaign)  to this cause.  Please consider making a donation. Here is the link to the crowdfunding site https://crowdfund.ucsf.edu/project/53c5747114bdf74eecbe1cfc  There are some interesting incentives to make a donation – please see the site for more details.

Your donations are a gift to the University of California, San Francisco and are fully tax deductible

The study is currently in the final phase of regulatory approval and the plan  is to start in October, 2014 with reporting by the end of 2015.

If you would like to  participate in this study, you must have PCOS,  not be on medication for PCOS and be able to make several visits to the clinic in San Francisco. If you join the study, you’ll be randomly assigned to a Paleo diet or an ADA diet (50/50 chance), and will be asked to stay on that diet for at least 4 months. If you’re interested, please email and the researchers will get in touch!