Hormone Handbook , If you’re wondering what that “A” hormone was doing … or what it was called, take a look here. We have compiled a short list of hormones that are important to know. This will help you navigate better in our in-depth articles related to sports, diet and healthy living.
If you have forgotten what hormones are and what they are for, you can recall from the article: Hormones – a mechanism of action and regulation.
Hormones of direct importance for sports development
- Epinephrine (epinephrine) and norepinephrine (norepinephrine) are hormones that are formed in the core of the adrenal glands. They have an action similar to the sympathetic part of the autonomic nervous system – they accelerate heart rate, increase blood pressure, suppress the movement of the stomach and intestines. Epinephrine and norepinephrine accelerate metabolism and promote the conversion of glycogen in the liver into glucose and thus increase the concentration in the blood. In a state of tension or stress, the secretion of adrenaline and noradrenaline increases.
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Antidiuretic hormone – increases the reabsorption of water in the renal tubules, which leads to a decrease in water excreted in the urine. As a result, water is retained in the body and blood pressure rises.
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Glucagon – it has the opposite effect to insulin, stimulates the breakdown of glycogen to glucose and starts gluconeogenesis in the liver. As a result, the concentration of glucose in the blood increases.
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Dopamine – a hormone and neurotransmitter, it takes care of various processes taking place in the brain, including: motor activity, ability to learn (including movement), controls attention, is responsible for mood and motivation. Dopamine is the hormone that is released when we experience emotional pleasure.
- Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA / dhea) – participates in the process of formation of sexual scars and has an anabolic effect.
- Insulin – Insulin is a hormone that is produced in the endocrine part of the pancreas. It lowers the concentration of glucose in the blood by binding to it. It also transports and facilitates the entry of glucose into cells.
- Cortisol – known as a stress hormone. It is part of the group of glucocorticoid hormones. As a result of its release in the body, a number of processes take place to prepare it for a stressful situation: blood pressure increases, blood glucose increases, the action of insulin and the immune system is suppressed
- Leptin – this is a key hormone that regulates the storage and expenditure of energy in the body. Including: suppresses appetite and increases the volume of metabolism. In the body, this is expressed by lowering the volume of fat.
- Luteinizing hormone – in women it starts ovulation. In men, it is responsible for the production of testosterone, influencing the process of spermatogenesis.
- Growth hormone (somatotropic hormone, somatotropin) – growth hormone is produced by the anterior pituitary gland and directly affects metabolism. It stimulates cell growth and division, protein synthesis in cells, bone and cartilage growth and muscle mass accumulation.
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Somatostatin – also known as stop hormone or blocking. It suppresses the secretion of a large number of hormones acting in the human body and directly blocks the secretion of others (growth hormone, for example).
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Thyroxine – Thyroxine is the main hormone of the thyroid gland. The main functions of thyroid hormones are: increasing the excitability of the nervous system and speeding up the heart, increasing metabolism and increasing the amount of heat generated by the body.
- Testosterone – in addition to shaping the sexual development characteristic of men during adolescence, testosterone has a direct effect on increasing muscle mass and strength and increasing bone density. Other characteristic features of testosterone are increased libido and aggression.
Basic classes of hormones
Hormones are divided into classes and groups according to their chemical composition.
- Amines – they are composed of one or two amino acids, most of which are isomers of the amino acid tyrosine. More popular hormones in the class are: adrenaline, noradrenaline, dopamine.
- Peptides and proteins – these are substances with a peptide character (small protein molecules), assembled for the most part from 3 to 200 amino acids. This class includes hormones such as insulin and leptin.
- Steroids – these are substances based on cholesterol. Depending on what receptors they bind to, human steroid hormones are grouped into five groups:
Important groups of hormones from the class of steroids
- Androgens – this group of hormones includes all steroids that act on the body in the direction of masculinization (masculine shaping). The group includes primarily testosterone and related substances: dihydrotestosterone, DHEA, androstenedione, androstenediol, androsterone and others.
- Estrogens are a group of sex hormones that are key to metabolism in the female body.
- Progestogens are a group of chemical derivatives of the only natural progestogen, progesterone. The latter has a number of effects and effects on many body systems, and in most reactions it participates through interactions with estrogens. In the reproductive system it participates in some stages of spermogenesis, in the regulation of menstruation and in the suppression of lactation during pregnancy.
- Glucocorticoids – hormones that are formed in the cortex of the adrenal glands. They regulate the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and fats and suppress inflammatory processes and allergic reactions in the body.
- Mineralcorticoids – also hormones that are formed in the cortex of the adrenal glands. They maintain the normal content of some mineral salts in the body.
Hormone Handbook
