I think I may have beat the overweight portion of PCOS with hCG

by Lyla
(Los Angeles, CA)

I have not always struggled with weight. In high school I weighed 115 pounds and I was in great shape. After high school, the weight gain started gradually.

I figured it was just because I was not longer active and I was no longer in school.

I got married and my weight started to spiral out of control.

I went from 110 pounds to 203 pounds in 2 years. I was diagnosed with PCOS in 2009.

I have lost 40 pounds to date since February of 2010.

I have recently started a new diet/weight loss program. It is called Bio-Matrix Weight Loss. On the short note, the program consists of being injected with hCG (the pregnancy hormone).

When injected with this hormone, hCG does exactly to your body as it does when you are actually pregnant. It feeds off the fat in the body (in Pregnancy this makes sure the baby is getting fed, even if the mother is not eating.)

When you are not pregnant, it is feeding off your fat, causing a weight loss.

So far, I have lost 20 pounds on this program. It works!

My periods are regular again, for the first time ever. I am getting fertile periods, for the first time ever.
And I'm losing weight, for the first time in 2 years!

This program works and is physician-supervised.

However, is it an effective long term weight loss program? Would you recommend it?

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Editor's comments: I've heard about the use of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) but don't know very much about it.

I have an extremely overweight friend (non-PCOS) who was raving about it when she started hCG treatment. After some initial favorable results, she has fallen silent. I can only imagine she has plateaued.

The success of hCG treatment for weight loss appears to be contingent upon the continued use of a rather severe calorie-restricted diet.

hCG is a hormone. A person should always be a little cautious when introducing exogenous hormones into the body. Hormones are powerful, very powerful. All options should be considered before resorting to hormone therapy.

For overweight women with PCOS and insulin resistance, there is the possibility of OHSS (ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome) resulting from hCG injections. This is a potentially serious medical condition you want to avoid. I've seen a couple of reports suggesting that the presence of insulin resistance increases the risk of OHSS when hCG is injected.

Therefore I would recommend a person be evaluated for insulin resistance before proceeding with hCG injection therapy. Personally, I would want to correct the insulin resistance problem before resorting to hCG. Insulin resistance is a prime driver of weight gain and obesity.

Coincidentally, a hCG diet may also reduce insulin resistance. Maybe that is one of the reasons why it works in some people.

But it feels to me that doing hCG before reducing insulin resistance is putting the cart before the horse.

Bear in mind that women with PCOS who are overweight are very likely to have insulin resistance.

Secondly, bear in mind that many women have suboptimal thyroid function. Since your thyroid governs your metabolic rate, it makes sense to evaluate and optimize your thyroid function before resorting to hcG. It is incredibly difficult to lose weight and keep it off if you have hypothyroidism.

And finally, does hCG actually work? I'm sure it does in some cases. In your case, it is obviously working so far.

But the medical research is not compelling.

For example, a medical study in 1995 from Vrije University in the Netherlands said: "We conclude that there is no scientific evidence that HCG is effective in the treatment of obesity; it does not bring about weight-loss or fat-redistribution, nor does it reduce hunger or induce a feeling of well-being."

A double-blind, placebo-controlled study from the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa in 1990 concluded: "Subjects receiving HCG injections showed no advantages over those on placebo in respect of any of the variables recorded. Furthermore, weight loss on our diet was similar to that on severely restricted intake. We conclude that there is no rationale for the use of HCG injections in the treatment of obesity."

There may be some favorable studies out there, but I haven't seen them.