What is the endocrine system?

The endocrine system works with the nervous system to instruct cells and glands to filter the blood and provide needed hormones. Our glands and hormones will collectively monitor and maintain  blood consistency, homeostasis, growth and development, metabolism, tissue function, sexual and reproductive function and development, and mood.

Although every cell in our bodies is capable of producing and receiving hormones (chemical messengers) the endocrine system is commonly summarized with the major organs that make do most of the work. The organs that make up the endocrines system or “glands” are:

Hypothalamus; Located in the brain and it connects the nervous system to the endocrine system and helps maintain homeostasis.

Pituitary; Located in the brain and it receives instructions and hormones from the hypothalamus and will instruct other glands to assist with many bodily functions.

Pineal; Located in the brain, it is responsible for melatonin which regulates sleep cycles.

Thyroid; Located in the neck and assists with metabolism, growth, protein synthesis, and the rate that others systems function.

Liver; Located behind the stomach this organ helps detoxifying the body by filtering the blood, assists in metabolism, and creates bile for digestion.

Pancreas; Located in the lower abdomen, this organ mostly maintains glucose levels in the body and helps moderate other parts of the endocrine system.

Kidneys; Located mid abdomen, they maintain blood concentration and create urine through filtering the blood of extra substances.

Adrenals; Located on top of the kidneys, these glands provide stress induced hormones like adrenaline, and help maintain fluid balances in the body.

Ovaries; Located outside the uterus the ovaries produce ova, or eggs, and release them starting the menstruation cycle. They also produce hormones that help with maintain sexual functions, sexual development, and portions of pregnancy.

Testes; Located near the scrotum, they produce and store sperm. They also create and release testosterone, and hormone responsible for mail sexual development.

Every cell in the body is capable of releasing and receiving hormones, or chemical messengers, but most individual cells have a very limited radius. They can communicate to neighboring cells only, known as paracrine action. They can also produce hormones that affect the same cell that created it called autocrine action. The organs in the endocrine system, or glands, have both the ability to receive messages from the nervous system and monitor blood themselves allowing them to maintain blood consistency as well developmental and maintenance systems like the reproductive systems.

The endocrine system monitors critical levels of chemicals, proteins, and other particles in your blood, such as glucose levels. If glucose drops below a certain point (1mg glucose / 1ml blood) you can eventually go into insulin shock, resulting in coma in death if not corrected. Your pancreas will act quickly and release stored hormones that tell the body to provide more glucose into your blood.

The gland will receive instructions from one part of the body or another and they will respond by sending these chemical messengers to specific, gland, cell, or group of cells which has a chemical receiver ready at all times to get instructions (known as binding) from that hormone specifically, known as endocrine action. There are general types of hormones that either ask a cell to react (Agonists) or block Agonists from binding with the cell. Essentially there are four kinds of hormones that our body will use; peptides and proteins, steroids, amino acid derivatives, and fatty acid derivatives (also known as eicosanoids).