What are hormones and what do they affect?

Every day, more and more often we hear from TV screens, we read in newspapers and the Internet that the cause of many diseases is the violation of the so-called hormonal background. In addition, there is a strong belief that some drugs are harmful, because they are based on hormones. Unfortunately, many do not fully understand what hormones are, and therefore can not make the right decision regarding the taking of a particular drug, or orient themselves in what may be the cause of their illness. In this article, we try to give the most simple and clear idea of hormones and their role in the human body.

So, what are hormones? These are special substances by means of which various processes occurring in the human body are regulated. In general, there are two types of regulation of vital processes: nervous and humoral. Nervous regulation is associated with a reaction to certain stimuli. An excellent example of neural regulation is the narrowing of the pupil when bright light enters the retina-the brain, receiving information about the stimulation through the optic nerve , sends a signal to reduce the amount of light that passes through the eye. Thus, it saves our optic nerve from overwork, keeping us able to see.

Humoral regulation presupposes the control of life processes through liquid media (its name comes from the Latin humor, which in translation means "liquid"). And the instrument of such regulation is hormones, which are biologically active substances, which, getting into the bloodstream of a person, provoke these or other reactions. The importance of hormones is difficult to overestimate: thanks to a hormone such as insulin, glucose breaks down, and disruption of the pancreas and the cessation of its normal secretion leads to a serious disease - diabetes mellitus. Another hormone, epinephrine, in moments of danger or strong excitement is thrown into the blood by the adrenal glands and allows you to increase concentration and attention, though it has a side effect - heart palpitations. Endorphins are considered "hormones of happiness" - it is under their influence that we have positive emotions. Well, hormones such as estrogen and testosterone are responsible for gender: it is thanks to them that men and women have characteristics characteristic of their sexes.

The regulatory role of hormones is closely related to the processes of nervous regulation. Often, the development of a hormone begins just after the nervous system transmits information about any irritation to the brain: irritation of the receptors of the language stimulates the production of insulin, information about the danger causes the brain to stimulate the production of adrenaline, sexual stimulation of testosterone (estrogen) and Endorphins and so on.

Now that our readers understand what hormones are, they will most likely become aware that a violation of the secretion of any of them will lead to the fact that the body's activity will be regulated not in the way that was laid by Mother Nature. Well, taking hormone-based medicines can significantly change the natural state of their production in the body and even lead to the fact that some glands simply stop working. Obviously, taking such unsafe medicines can have deplorable consequences for the body, so we strongly recommend that you consult with your doctor if you are going to take medicines containing any hormones!

We hope that this article has helped our readers to understand what hormones are and how important they are to our health. We wish you good health and complete absence of problems with hormones!