Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi — A Los Angeles obstetrician, gynecologist, and laparoscopic surgeon with 30 years in women's health, host of the She MD podcast, and creator of the OVII self-assessment tools for PCOS and endometriosis.
The gist
Andrew Huberman talks with OB/GYN Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi about why female reproductive conditions go unrecognized for years. They cover PCOS in depth, including its four phenotypes, the role of insulin resistance, inflammation, and the brain-pituitary-ovary axis, and a stepwise treatment plan from lifestyle and supplements to metformin and GLP-1s. They then turn to endometriosis, its self-diagnosis through symptoms, hormonal suppression, and laparoscopic surgery. The conversation closes with fibroids, fertility 'buckets,' perimenopause, and breast-cancer risk, where Aliabadi shares how calculating her own lifetime risk led to a double mastectomy that uncovered an undetected cancer.
Big reveals
- Claims that if every 20-year-old passed through her office once, she could shut down the fertility clinics.
- Says she started using GLP-1s (Trulicity) on PCOS patients back in 2014, years before they were mainstream.
- States her clinic average is 24 pounds of weight loss in four months on properly dosed GLP-1s.
- Offers an unpublished hypothesis that over 50% of her PCOS patients also have endometriosis.
- Claims maybe two surgeons in Los Angeles can remove a watermelon-sized uterus laparoscopically, and she may be the only one doing it outpatient.
- Reveals she had a double mastectomy at 48 despite no family history; pathology then found cancer in the opposite breast they hadn't been investigating.
- Says in 25 years of practice she has never lost a patient under her care to cancer.
- Argues the 'mammograms start at 40' message is misleading and dangerous for higher-risk women.
Things worth remembering
- PCOS affects about 15% of US women (over 20% in some Middle Eastern countries) yet she estimates over 90% go undiagnosed.
- 'Polycystic ovary syndrome' does not mean cysts; it's a 'string of pearls' follicle pattern on ultrasound, and the name itself drives misdiagnosis.
- 70-80% of PCOS patients do not ovulate, even some with seemingly regular cycles.
- A rough rule: every 0.1 of AMH equals about one follicle, so AMH of 1.0 means roughly 10 follicles.
- Wild mulberry leaf taken before a heavy meal can reportedly block carbohydrate absorption by about 40%.
- In the US it takes 9-11 years and seeing 5-10 doctors on average to get an endometriosis diagnosis.
- About 50% of US counties have no OB/GYN, forcing some women to drive 2-4 hours for care.
- The average American woman has roughly a 12.5% lifetime risk of breast cancer; 20%+ qualifies for earlier imaging at 30.
- About 85% of women who get breast cancer have no family history and fewer than 5% carry a genetic mutation.
- PMDD is the brain's extreme reaction to normal hormone shifts, and suicide risk spikes in the premenstrual window.
Recommended in this episode
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Protocols: An Operating Manual for the Human Body
Andrew Huberman
“I have a new book coming out. It's my very first book. It's entitled Protocols: An Operating Manual for the Human Body.” — Andrew Huberman 03:05:26Find it on Amazon
OVII (Ovii hormone/PCOS quiz platform)
Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi
“I actually developed a calculator it's called it's a platform called OV women can go on it... it's my algorithm that I've developed over the past 25 years” — Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi 01:06:31Find it on Amazon
OVII PCOS Supplement
Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi
“the OV supplement I created, I literally did it here. Diagnose yourself and if you're being dismissed, start with the supplement.” — Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi 01:07:34Find it on Amazon
She MD (podcast)
Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi
“That's why I called my um podcast she MD. Strong, healthy, empowered.” — Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi 02:32:17Find it on Amazon