If we look at our endocrine system and it’s organs, they all are at the very center of our bodies, at the midline. They follow the brain and spinal cord which were the first parts of our body to develop. So if God buried them so deep in our bodies, do you think they are important? You betcha. And yet, I’m not sure about you but I haven’t thought too much in the past about making sure my hormones were balanced. In fact, the only hormones I really knew about were sex hormones.
Here are the essential organs involved in our hormone production:
- Hypothalamus and pituitary gland
- Thyroid
- Thymus
- Adrenals and pancreas
- testes and ovaries
And each one affects the other. They all influence each other and they borrow from one another. The receptors for the hormones they help create, are all over our bodies.
So what hormones do these all create? And what do we even know about these hormones?
Let’s start at the top with the brain. The hypothalamus communicates with the pituatary gland and others through the following hormones:
Thyrotropin‐releasing hormone (TRH)
Gonadotropin‐releasing hormone (GnRH)
Growth hormone‐releasing hormone (GHRH)
Corticotropin‐releasing hormone (CRH)
Somatostatin: inhibits growth hormone (SST)
Oxytocin: Uterine contraction, milk letdown (OT)
Antidiuretic Hormone: increases water retention (ADH)
Then the Pituitary gland makes the following hormones:
Anterior Lobe (Adenohypophysis)
-Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH)
-Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH)
-Luteinizing Hormone (LH)
-Adrenocorticotrophic Hormone (ACTH)
-Prolactin (PRL)
-Growth Hormone (GH)
-Alpha Melanocyte‐Stimulating Hormone (α‐MSH)
Posterior Lobe (Neurohypophysis)
-Antidiuretic Hormone aka Vasopressin (ADH)
-Oxytocin (OT)
Essentially the hypothalamus gets the pituitary glad to do its thing. And then the pituitary gland gets all the other endocrine organs to do their thing. Hormones beget hormones.
Essentially all of these hormones play a huge role in every area of our life and health.
stress response
sleep
metabolism
hunger/satiety
blood sugar regulation
nervous system
cardiovascular system
respiratory system
immune system
detoxification
emotions
reproduction
growth and repair
So what symptoms might we be struggling with if we have hormone imbalance? The possibilities are endless.
This is one of the great reasons we need to take care of our gut. How we absorb nutrients effects our hormones. How enflammed we are, whether or not we have leaky gut and toxicity in our body, all effect this. And so while getting these hormones balanced is essential to health, having good gut health is foundational. This is influenced by our diet, lifestyle, and supplements we take in order to make sure our gut is functioning at optimal levels.
You can start anywhere… but if you don’t first start with diet and gut– the rest will not work as efficiently if at all. And in fact, the rest may not even be needed to treat once the gut has healed.
Mama Guts 