The role of the endocrine system with ADH and stress example

Welcome back to a new blog, this time not about a disease, but a whole dedicated system in our body. Before we dive in into this amazing network of glands working together for our body, let’s clear some doubts you could have. For this, we should understand homeostasis first. Homeostasis is the constant balance of all inner bodily functions, such as chemical processes or heat or water content. For this our body has a special part in the brain called the hypothalamus-pituitary axis. The hypothalamus acts as our personal thermometer and controller. We will come to this fascinating body part in a moment. Secondly, let us clear the exact definition of hormones. Hormones are chemical messengers which act on a specific body part for a quite long time. For example, when growing up, our body sends out hormones such as GHRH to start growth for strong muscles and bones.

Creating a link between these two aspects I have explained, it is possible to notice why I have mentioned the pituitary gland. It acts as a very crucial intermediary for the message that is to be carried out because of the following reason: The hypothalamus collects information from different parts of the body telling it about the body’s situation and if needed, it creates it’s own hormones which stimulate the pituitary gland to send a message to the next gland which will secrete a hormone for the effector. As you can see, this way the hypothalamus receives neural signals and converts them into hormonal signals, which tell the pituitary what exactly to do.

To clear everything, I shall explain you an example, then we shall move on to stress in the endocrine system. You don’t really have to comprehend the hormone I mention perfectly, just a brief idea will suffice. ADH is a hormone which makes the kidney’s collecting duct’s walls slightly more permeable. This way, more water can be absorbed if it needs to be flushed out of the body. If we drink a lot of water, our hypothalamus will detect this and send a releasing message to the pituitary gland, which will send out ADH to make the kidney collect more water to be flushed out. Vice versa, less water will mean inhibited ADH production.

Now let us come to stress. When the body senses stress, adrenaline is released from the adrenal glands, which boosts blood sugar level and gives a sudden shot of energy. Shortly afterwards, cortisol is released which helps keep the body stay alert for longer periods of time. Stress can have bad impacts on the body, which will I explain seperately in another blog, since it is complex to understand.

That was the end for today, and I really hoped you liked it. Goodbye!