Not sure if this is helpful, but I came across this article today.
Increasing Protein Intake and Restricting Simple Sugar Is Beneficial in PCOS Diet
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Mar 27 - Increasing protein intake and restricting simple sugar intake can improve a number of physiologic signs of polycystic ovary syndrome, according to a study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
"Insulin resistance, infertility, and hirsutism, common characteristics of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), improve with even modest weight loss," Dr. Sidika E. Kasim-Karakas, of the University of California at Davis, Sacramento, and colleagues write. "Optimal dietary treatment for PCOS is not known."
The researchers examined the effects of acute protein administration versus those of glucose challenges on hormones related to obesity and insulin resistance (i.e., cortisol and insulin), hirsutism (i.e., dehydroepiandosterone [DHEA] and androstenedione), and hunger (i.e., ghrelin). A total of 28 PCOS patients underwent a 5-h oral-glucose-tolerance test (OGGT) and a euvolemic, euenergetic protein challenge. The subjects had a mean age of 26 years and a mean weight of 97.5 kg.
Larger fluctuations in blood glucose and more hyperinsulinemia were observed with glucose ingestion than with protein (p < 0.01, overall treatment-by-time interaction). Serum cortisol and DHEA declined over 5 h during the protein challenge. During OGGT, cortisol declined until the third hour and then increased. Significant divergence from protein was observed from the fourth hour (p < 0.01).
Eighteen subjects had a blood glucose nadir of less than 69 mg/dL during OGGT. These hypoglycemic subjects had elevated cortisol (baseline: 10.1; nadir: 5.9; peak: 12.7 mcg/dL) and DHEA (baseline: 15.6; nadir: 11.2; peak: 24.6 ng/mL) (p < 0.01). There were no increases in adrenal steroids in the 10 patients with a glucose nadir of 76 mg/dL.
Ghrelin was suppressed with both protein (from 935 to 777 pg/mL) and glucose (from 948 to 816 pg/mL). Ghrelin returned to baseline by 4 h after glucose ingestion and increased to 1094 pg/mL at 5 h. Ghrelin remained below baseline (872 pg/mL) after the protein challenge. The overall treatment effect was highly significant (p < 0.0001).
"These acute challenge studies showed that nutrients have significantly different endocrine effects and that protein may be a preferred nutrient over glucose for patients with PCOS," the authors conclude. "The findings of these acute studies need to be validated with the use of natural foods and carbohydrate-enriched rather than protein-enriched diets."
Am J Clin Nutr 2007;85:688-694.