I read online that it can but here’s what I’m questioning – while the hCG hormone can cause this, where this actually comes up in the medical literature is in relation to hCG trigger shots used for fertility treatments- it’s typically these are super large doses of hCG introduced into a person’s system that can cause this risk of OHS or OHSS, whereas we are injecting a tiny fraction of that amount.
This article explains what’s going on with this condition and how hCG is a part of it.
I have not been able to find anything yet that says the much tinier dosages of hCG we are taking daily on the diet could cause that – there is no “large” introduction of hCG hormone to our systems in this case.
For instance, while reviewing this medical summary, partway down under preventative measures to reduce risk of OHS OHSS, it states,
“Modification of the ovulation triggering agent: Although good data are lacking, it is not impossible that doses of hCG lower than 5000 or 10,000 IU usually utilized may cause sufficient oocyte maturation while reducing the risk for OHSS.”
This is in relation to fertility treatments. Did you notice how it’s saying that LOWERING the dose to more like 5,000iu or 10,000iu reduces the risk for the condition, while still possibly being an effective fertility treatment?
You/Me/We are taking how much per day? 125iu. Maybe 200iu/250iu tops. Vs. the 5,000iu in one dose they say would already reduce the risk. So we are taking 1/40th of the dosage (or 1/80th of a 10,000iu hcg trigger shot dose) that they say will help with preventing the condition. Which means, who knows how much smaller a dose it is than the dosage that was causing problems with this condition.
There was also this medical article and it basically said that in their finding, heightened levels of hCG alone does not cause ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome but that rather it must be a combination of things together that can cause this risk (although it wasn’t clear what).
DISCLAIMER: I could be reading this info totally wrong, please read it yourself and see what you think. But from what I’m understanding, this seems highly unlikely.
The other reason it seems unlikely is that women actually produce these small amounts of hCG, similar to the dosage we take on hCG, every single month during our menstrual cycle – so our bodies are already used to frequently having this amount of hCG in our systems.
Granted, I understand we are introducing hCG at a time it wouldn’t normally produce it, so who knows what might happen then. But from what I’m gathering the amounts of hCG we are introducing are really too small to be causing something this severe.
Ultimately, you should do what you feel most comfortable with though! Don’t feel pressured by any of this information. We are each the ones who have to live with our decisions, so weigh the pros and cons, the data you’ve collected and decide if you feel safe proceeding or not.
