So I haven't done a ton of research in this area (maybe I need to go back to school), but I have strong beliefs there is a connection between Vitamin D deficiency and PCOS. A few months ago I got a comment on my blog mentioning the connection, and I had never given it any thought before that time. I've never had my Vitamin D levels tested, but I do live in Syracuse where winters are long and grey. Here is a good description of our winters I found online:
Worst Winter cities
1. SYRACUSE, NEW YORK “Cold,” “clammy,” “snowy” are three great ways to describe Syracuse weather—from October through April. Winter starts very early and lasts late, with plenty of snow and extremely cold temperatures. Winter daytime temperatures average in the lower 30s, with nighttime lows in the teens, but temperatures as low as minus 25°F have been recorded. Snow also makes winter uncomfortable in Syracuse, averaging almost 120 inches per season. During the winter of 2009–2010, Syracuse was again the winner of the prestigious “Golden Snowball Award,” celebrating the city with most snowfall for the winter in upstate New York, beating out such snowy cities as Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, and Binghamton. Syracuse also made our Farmers’ Almanac “10 Worst” list in 2002. Another reason why this city makes the worst winter weather list — December, January, and February are typically gloomy, with Syracuse receiving only onethird of the sunshine possible, because of considerable cloud cover.
So without ever having my levels tested, it is safe to assume I am deficient from this description, at least in the winter months. In late November I starting taking large doses of Vitamin D (5000 IU's) and in December ovulated and got pregnant. My RE thinks I ovulated as an effect of the Lupron, but would you really be able to see anything on ultrasound 2 weeks after ovulation? I think I ovulated by myself before I started the Lupron and partially due to my increased Vitamin D intake.
My RE doesn't think I ovulate regularly, and I'm not sure what I think about this. In reality, we only "tried" one month and then didn't really try in December and got pregnant. All of the other months since I first starting seeing a RE in August I was on BCP's trying to shrink my cyst. Up until that time we had been preventing pregnancy although I had stopped taking the pill.
My RE ran a progesterone test on day 21 one cycle, but I was on the pill so I wasn't likely to ovulate. My ovaries appear polycystic on ultrasound and under laparoscopy, which means I have had difficulty ovulating in the past and perhaps present. I have been trying to get ahold of my RE this week to get the progesterone test done again this month, but no luck so far. I can't wait until the regular nurse is back in the office, because I am getting frustrated.
If you have PCOS and have difficulty ovulating, you may want to look into Vitamin D. I feel like it has helped me and I continue to take it with high hopes (perhaps too high sometimes).
Here are some articles from PubMed I found:
Both are just summaries, but you can get the full text by clicking in the upper right corner.
and some less academic links:
Anyone else take Vitamin D for PCOS or heard anything about the connection?
