Association between empirically derived dietary patterns and polycystic ovary syndrome: A case-control study

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common metabolic and endocrine abnormality in reproductive-aged women. The aim of this study was to investigate the relevance between major dietary patterns and PCOS.

This was a case-control study with 108 women newly diagnosed with PCOS and 108 age-, and body mass index-matched women without PCOS, as a control group, in Yazd, Iran. PCOS was diagnosed based on Rotterdam criteria. Subsequently, the validated 168-item food frequency questionnaire was used to evaluate the usual dietary intake. Moreover, principal component analysis was used for driving dietary patterns, and logistic regression assessed the relationship between dietary patterns and PCOS.

Three major dietary patterns were identified: a high glycemic index (GI; high fat), a low GI (low fat), and an anti-inflammatory dietary pattern. After adjustment for potential confounders, the high GI (high fat) dietary pattern significantly increased the odds for PCOS (odds ratio [OR] for the highest and. lowest quartile, 3.94; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.65-9.38), and demonstrated a significant increase in BMI, waist circumference, fasting blood sugar, and visceral fat. Having adjusted the potential confounders, the moderate adherence to the anti-inflammatory dietary pattern had a protective effect on the odds of PCOS (OR, 0.38; 95% CI, 0.15-0.95). However, no significant relation was found between the low GI (low fat) dietary pattern and the odds of PCOS.

The results indicated that the high-GI (high-fat) dietary pattern had an incremental effect on the odds of PCOS. Moreover, the anti-inflammatory dietary pattern had a reduction effect on the risk for PCOS. It's worth noting that more prospective studies are required to confirm the findings of this study.