Taking metformin from the age of 8 may prevent the development of polycystic ovary syndrome and problems with conceiving in the future, according to a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
Although eight-year-old girls do not show external symptoms of this disease, the physiological indicators from which the risk can be determined are already identifiable in the body. Therefore, it may be the perfect time to start preventive measures, explains Dr. Lourdes Ibánez, an endocrinologist at the University of Barcelona.
Metformin is an anti-diabetic medicine that is already used to treat polycystic ovary syndrome in women of childbearing age, but has not yet been tested for its prevention in very young women.
The researchers conducted a study among 38 girls who were at risk of developing polycystic ovary syndrome (very low birth weight and early appearance of pubic hair). Half of them took metformin daily from the age of eight to twelve, and the other half took metformin for just one year, starting at age 12.
It turned out that at the age of 15, girls who started taking the drug earlier and took it longer were eight times less likely to develop polycystic ovary syndrome compared with the second group.
Polycystic ovary syndrome is the most common cause of fertility problems in women. The first symptoms can be overweight, menstrual irregularities, acne and hirsutism caused by disproportionate levels of male hormones.
As in type 2 diabetes, the onset of the disease is associated with overproduction of insulin. A surplus of this hormone leads to an imbalance in the ovaries and excessive androgen activity, which in turn stimulates the development of cysts.
Metformin regulates insulin levels so that the production of hormones by the ovaries returns to normal. As an antidiabetic drug, metformin can be used from the age of 10. It has few side effects and there is no reason to think that taking it by girls at risk of developing polycystic ovary syndrome is risky, says Dr. Ibánez.
– Currently, we are going to monitor patients up to the age of 18 to see if the initial results will persist with age – adds the researcher.
Read more about polycystic ovary syndrome