Fascinating messenger substances of life: Image of science dedicates a series of topic to human hormone system. The focus of the March issue is initially the hormones that are responsible for controlling our rhythm of life.
From growth to metabolism, to reproduction and sleeping behavior: hormones are the prominent masterminds of many fundamental functions of our body. But how exactly does this complex regulation system work and to what extent can and should man affect it? In order to do justice to the complexity of the topic, BDW reports on these questions in portions: The current and the following editions are about the different areas of the fascinating world of messenger substances and their research.
The first article in the series is initially about the basics of the topic. In it, the BDW author Sigrid March explains what hormones are actually, where they are produced in the body and what diverse functions they can fulfill. We often only notice how important the messenger substances are for the body when they are missing or the sensitive balance of the substances is disturbed. The author illustrates this using examples. It uses the image of an orchestra to highlight the importance of the finely regulated interaction in the hormone systems. In addition, she reports in the article “The Orchestra of our body” about the current developments in the interesting field of research.
Life in the hormonal clock
In the second article, March deals with a special area of hormonal regulation: certain messenger substances control the so -called circadian rhythm in the body. You determine our activity phases, the need for sleep and feeling of hunger in the course of the day. The author reports what is known about the fine and complex control system and its disorders. The focus is on the hormones melatonin and cortisol. March illustrates how and why a shifted rhythm of life can harm health. In addition, she reports in the article “The clock of life” about the research of opportunities to get the internal clock back on course.
The start of the series about the world of messenger substances is rounded off by an interview with medical historian Birgit Nemec. It deals with an example of how risky it can be to intervene in the fragile hormone system: Nemec reports on her current study “Risky Hormones”, in which she examined the case of the hormonal pregnancy test Duogynon. Its use is suspected of having caused malformations in unborn people. The tenor of the interview is: The topic is “neither completed nor refurbished”.
You can read the articles of the title theme “Hormones as a clock” as part of a BDW+ subscription online, or you will find in the March issue of Image of Science, which is available in stores from February 21.