Is too much SUGAR stopping you from falling pregnant?

Polycystic ovarian syndrome is present in up to 21 per cent of Australian women and up to 70 per cent of women with the condition remain undiagnosed. 

The condition can present a number of symptoms - from reduced fertility or absent ovulation to mood changes, obesity and/or acne.

And despite it being increasingly common, doctors are still unsure of the exact cause. 

One Australian nutritionist, Michele Chevalley Hedge, recently shed light on the condition and said that while there are some cases with unknown causes, some are thought to be linked to sugar consumption. 

'I'll tell you what's happening and what we see often in our clinical practices. Women between the ages 27 and maybe 37 and these woman can often be slim women,' Michele told KIIS FM's The Thinkergirls.

'They might be slender and they may have been able to get away with eating lots of junk food and hidden sugars. They're not thinking about their hormones, all they're thinking about is contraception.

'And then all of a sudden they start to think about coming off it and thinking about having a baby.'

Michele said in a lot of cases, these women struggle to fall pregnant and are later given an upsetting PCOS diagnosis from their doctors. 

But, she explained, what a lot of them don't know is that PCOS doesn't mean guaranteed infertility and it's also not always a 'disease of the ovaries'.

'A large per cent of cases can be driven from insulin resistance and are connected to blood sugar dysfunction. There is a small percentage where it is a disease process or pathology of the ovaries,' Michele explained. 

'In the majority of cases we are seeing now in 2017, Polycystic ovarian syndrome can be dampened down and corrected just through the use of food. 

'Sugar is a culprit in many disease processes and conditions, we know that. It's not the natural sugars, it's the hidden sugars in the "healthy foods".'

Michele said blood work done on many women with PCOS also shows abnormal blood glucose - something that can be corrected.

'I'm not saying every woman with PCOS can be cured from food, but what I am saying is people need to be investigating,' she said, adding that she believes at least half of cases could stem from too much sugar and be eased through a diet change.

'Is it being driven from a disease of the ovaries or is it being driven just because your diet is full of lots of hidden sugars?'

According to Better Health Victoria, women with PCOS do 'commonly have high levels of insulin' and/or male hormones known as androgens. 

'The cause of this is unclear, but insulin resistance is thought to be the key problem driving this syndrome,' they explain.

'Lifestyle changes – such as eating a healthy, balanced diet and introducing regular physical activity into your weekly routine – can have a positive effect on your health in so many ways.

'For women who have PCOS, a healthy lifestyle can lead to an improvement in symptoms, particularly if your new lifestyle helps you to lose weight.' 

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