Research outcomes suggest obesity may be tied to the development of PCOS

An estimated 7 percent to 10 percent of all reproductive-age women globally have polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS, which is the most common endocrine disorder in women. Women with PCOS have a hormonal imbalance and metabolism problems that may affect their overall health, appearance and fertility.

While the exact cause for PCOS is unknown, obesity has been considered a driving factor in the high prevalence of PCOS. In an abstract presented at the 2023 Endocrine Society annual meeting, findings from an ongoing study led by the University of Alabama at Birmingham suggest that obesity may increase the risk of developing PCOS.

“With the growing obesity epidemic, we wanted to further evaluate the assumption that obesity was a factor in developing PCOS,” said Ricardo Azziz, M.D., professor in the UAB Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility and principal investigator of the study. “The findings may help clinicians and the general public understand that, while many women with PCOS are not obese, the obesity epidemic may be a factor in driving the rising rate of PCOS.”

The researchers evaluated 6,271 studies and selected a total of 55 studies, including 71,081 adult reproductive-age women, which recorded the prevalence of PCOS globally. They compared the prevalence of PCOS with the prevalence of obesity in individual nations and found a significant association between the obesity prevalence in a population and its PCOS prevalence when high-quality studies were considered.

The study, which began in 2022, is funded by the Foundation for Research and Education Excellence.