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The Production of Hormones during the Reproductive Stage
One may wonder, what the reproductive stage has to do with menopause
- well plenty, as this marks the start of oestrogen and progesterone
production, and makes for better understanding of when, why and how
these hormones fail to be produced after menopause!
At birth, the woman's supply of eggs has already been established,
as the ovaries contain approximately 500,000 immature eggs. At the
onset of puberty, these eggs are stimulated into ripening by the
hypothalamus sending a surge of it's hormone messenger - GRH, to the
pituitary gland, which in turn stimulates the release of FSH
(follicle stimulating hormone), that then travels to the ovary to
stimulate the growth of the follicle and release oestrogen into the
blood stream. Once the egg has reached full maturity, another
message is sent to the pituitary gland for it to release LH (luteinizing
hormone), which would aid in the release of the mature egg from the
follicle - resulting in ovulation.
Following this, cells fill the cavity in the ovary from which the
egg cell has been expelled. This is now known as the corpus luteum,
and in addition to oestrogen, will now also produce progesterone.
Under the influence of these two hormones, the womb prepares itself
for the arrival of a fertilised egg. If the egg is not fertilised,
within 48 hours, it dies, and the corpus luteum eventually
degenerates and stops producing hormones, and as a result, the
lining of the womb is discarded. Once the levels of these hormones
in the blood fall below average, the hypothalamus is then prompted
to restart the whole cycle. In the case of pregnancy, the corpus
luteum will not shrink, but enlarge and go on to produce more
oestrogen and progesterone.
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