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Hormones - The Chemical Messengers
Hormones are produced and released by various organs and
tissues, in response to instructions from the brain. The
principle creator, and most relevant in this case would be the
endocrine glands
Endocrine glands:
There are two types of glands that exist in the body, namely
exocrine glands and endocrine glands. Exocrine glands excrete
their substances directly onto the surface of the skin i.e.
sweat - made in the sweat glands and sebum - made in the
sebaceous glands. Endocrine glands on the other hand exude their
components directly into the blood stream. These substances or
'chemical messengers' are known as hormones.
Hypothalamus:
Situated virtually in the center of the skull, is one of the
most important endocrine glands - the hypothalamus. This gland,
apart from having other vital functions such as regulating body
temperature also produces several hormones such as the
gonadotropin releasing hormone (GRH) which would be the one most
relevant to our discussion.
Pituitary gland
Directly beneath the hypothalamus is a tiny rounded organ, known as
the pituitary gland, which is attached to the base of the brain by a
slender stalk. The pituitary gland is the master endocrine gland of
the body, which also has the ability of producing hormones, many of
which affect the working of the other endocrine glands. The two
hormones most relevant in this case would be the follicle
stimulating hormone (FSH) and the luteinizing hormone (LH), which
combined are known as gonadotropins.
Ovary
The other endocrine gland relevant to this discussion would be the
ovaries. These are oval glands situated on each side of the uterus
in the lower abdomen. These two female sex glands are stimulated by
the pituitary gland, and are responsible for producing egg cells
(ova) and for secreting various hormones. The two most important
hormones in this case and probably the most vital in our whole
discussion on menopause would be that of Oestrogen and Progesterone.
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