Funding outcome

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common metabolic-endocrine disorder, affecting 1 in 1 O women, and is associated with menstrual dysfunction, infertility, high levels of the male hormone testosterone, and a 2-4 fold higher incidence of Type II Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD). Despite this, health outcomes and treatments in PCOS remain misunderstood and under-researched, and very little research in Canada is undertaken to understand or treat the risk factors for chronic disease in women with PCOS. PCOS is highly associated with the metabolic syndrome (MetS); obesity, high blood levels of sugar and fats, and elevated testosterone in this condition is implicated in exacerbating these effects. Currently, there is a lack of safe and effective treatments to target both the hormonal and bad fat levels in the blood for young women with PCOS. The drug metformin is standard of care to reduce high blood sugar and risk of transition to Type II Diabetes, but does not improve blood levels of bad fats. Dietary fish oil has been shown to reduce fasting blood fats and it may modulate testosterone levels, but there is a lack of evidence of these effects in high-risk PCOS patients. The primary objective of this project is to determine the effect of dietary fish oil alone, metformin alone and fish oil-metformin combination on blood fats and sugars in highrisk young women with PCOS. The proposed study design is a randomized controlled dietary intervention in which participants will receive 1) fish oil; 2) metformin; or 3) fish oil-metformin for 12 wks. Blood fat and sugar metabolism will be compared in the fasted and fed state following a meal before and after the dietary intervention period, together with other hormonal and metabolic outcomes. The results of this study will be the first in this field and will translate to evidence to improve Canadian and International dietary and therapeutic guidelines in the early management to reduce CVD and Type II Diabetes risk in young women with PCOS.