Healty Eating Guide while TTC

As you might know, for women with PCOS healthy eating means everything. We don't have the luxury to follow a strict diet and then get back to junk. Once diagnosed with PCOS, we should adopt a diet which suits our lifestyle and also our PCOS.  For most of the women with PCOS, eating Low GI foods instead of Low Carb foods has been the key to success. Learn more about PCOS and Low GI here.

Below is a healthy eating guide for all of us. You can tailor it to suit your lifestyle. This might not help you with loosing weight, but once you had lost weight, food habits below will provide you the necessary nutrients for a sustainable well being. 

1. Try to consume fresh and organically grown foods whenever possible. If you can't get hold of organically grown vegetables try washing the veggies and fruits with diluted vinegar to get rid of chemicals and toxins.
2. Try having 2 serves at least a day. This should come from a primary protein: an animal source, which is a complete protein(that means it contains all the amino-acids) or
3. A combination of secondary proteins, which comes from a plant source and are incomplete proteins (they don not contain all the amino-acids), therefore will need to be combined to make a complete protein. By combining 2 of the food groups below, you will make a complete protein: Nuts, Grains/Seeds, Legumes/Pulses

Below is the list of protein providing foods:

·       Fish - 3 times a week. Low in saturated fats, high in essential fatty acids, especially deep ocean fish, cold water fish such as herrings, mackerel, salmon, trevally, ocean trout, pilchards, luderick, rainbow trout, sardines, blue grenadier, king George whiting, redfish, golden perch. Avoid large fish as they may be high in mercury.

·       Chicken - Free Range or Organic only and avoid all fats

·       Eggs - An excellent source of protein unless you are sensitive/allergic. Buy organic or good quality free range which are fed chemical free food.

·       Dairy - Use low fat; use little as it creates mucus in tubes and mal absorption. Natural low fat organic non-flavoured organic is good or use goats milk or soy.

·       Red Meat in moderation

·       Legumes/Pulses/Grains - Good protein source and good detoxifiers.

·       Nuts/Seeds - Fresh, store in fridge, away from heat and light. Nuts should not taste bitter. Use on breakfast cereals, in stir-fries, salads, pasta dishes or a snack.

4. Fats -Avoid all saturated fats, which can upset your prostaglandin, hormone and mineral balance.
5. Fried Foods - No fried foods except stir-fry. Cook with extra virgin, cold-pressed olive oil.
6. Cold-Pressed oils on Salads - Extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed, safflower, sunflower oils are high in essential fatty acids if not heated.
7. Avoid Margarine - Margarine is a saturated in the processing and contains chemicals. Can use butter sparingly. Try avocado instead of butter.
8. Veggies - Lots of veggies everyday. Should make up to 40% of the food intake.
9. Grains/carbs - Eat in moderate levels and choose low GI cards whenever possible.
10. Sugar - Avoid all sweet things including sugar, sugar substitutes, processed foods with sugar, undiluted fruit juices, cakes, biscuits, soft drinks.
11. Fruits - 2-3 serves a day
12. Drink plenty of purified water

This is just a generic eating guide for anyone and it is especially helpful for women who are trying to conceive. Above eating guide will give you and your baby a healthy environment to grow in, especially because our hormones are messed up due to PCOS.