In women, too much testosterone can cause insulin resistance and abdominal weight gain.
That’s why androgen excess is the main driver of weight gain with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), menopause, and some types of birth control.
PCOS
PCOS is defined as a set of symptoms including androgen excess and anovulatory cycles. In simplest terms, PCOS is the condition of androgen excess when all other causes of androgen excess have been ruled out. It’s an umbrella diagnosis which can be caused by different underlying drivers or functional types. The four functional types of PCOS are insulin-resistant PCOS, post-pill PCOS, inflammatory PCOS, and adrenal PCOS.
Is It PCOS or Hypothalamic Amenorrhea (Undereating)?
What is the difference between polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and hypothalamic amenorrhea?
PCOS is the condition of androgen excess when all other causes of androgen excess have been ruled out. It’s often associated with irregular periods or no periods.
Hypothalamic amenorrhea (HA) is irregular periods (or no periods) due to undereating or other stressors. It can also present with mild acne, facial hair, and polycystic ovaries.
Are You Eating Enough to Get a Period?
Lost your period? You might just need to eat more. A lot more. Losing your period to undereating is called hypothalamic amenorrhea and is common, especially in women under thirty.
Unfortunately, hypothalamic amenorrhea can sometimes be misdiagnosed as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) because both hypothalamic amenorrhea and PCOS can have “polycystic ovaries” on a pelvic ultrasound exam.
The Right Way to Test Progesterone with the Menstrual Cycle
The next time your doctor orders a progesterone test, ask yourself: “When is the right day to do this test?”
Forget “day 21 progesterone.” There’s no reason to test progesterone until you are approximately one week before your period. That will depend on how long your cycle actually is.
Here’s what you need to know about progesterone testing.