15: THE ENDOCRINE SYSTEM – Glands, Minerals, Weight Distribution, Blood Sugar

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 52:57 — 74.4MB)

Subscribe via: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | RSS | Android

Welcome to The Nutritional Pearls Podcast! Focusing on topics that include digestion, adrenal fatigue, leaky gut, supplementation, electrolytes, stomach acid, and so much more, “The Nutritional Pearls Podcast” features Christine Moore, NTP and is hosted by Jimmy Moore, host of the longest running nutritional podcast on the Internet. Sharing nuggets of wisdom from Christine’s training as a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and Jimmy’s years of podcasting and authoring international bestselling health and nutrition books, they will feature a new topic of interest and fascination in the world of nutritional health each Monday. Listen in today as Christine and Jimmy talk all about the endocrine system in Episode 15.

Here’s what Christine and Jimmy talked about in Episode 15:

1. What is the Endocrine System? The collection of glands that produce hormones that regulate
metabolism, growth and development, tissue function, sexual function, reproduction, sleep, and
mood, among other things.

2. Definition of hormones: Regulatory substances produced in an organism and transported in tissue
fluids such as blood to stimulate specific cells or tissues into action.

3. Glands of the endocrine system and the minerals they depend on:

A. Hypothalamus: Located in the brain, this is the part of the brain that controls the endocrine
system. Think of it as a control center. It links the nervous system to the endocrine system
through the Pituitary Gland. It releases at least 7 to 8 hormones that control the Pituitary Gland.
The hypothalamus needs chromium for good health.

1. Thyrotropin-releasing Hormone (TRH)-a releasing hormone produced by the hypothalamus
that stimulates the release of thyrotropin (thyroid-stimulating hormone or TSH) and prolactin
from the pituitary gland.
2. Gonadotropin-releasing Hormone (GnRH)-signals the pituitary gland to create two hormones
called leutenizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH)
3. Growth Hormone-releasing Hormone (GHRH)-stimulates the pituitary gland to produce and
release growth hormone into the bloodstream. Once growth hormone is releases into the
blood, it has an affect on just about every tissue of the body to control metabolism and
growth.
4. Corticotropin-releasing Hormone (CRH)-Its main function is to stimulate the pituitary gland to
produce Adrenocorticotropic Hormone (ACTH)
5. Somatostatin – it regulates the secretion of hormones coming from the pituitary gland,
including growth hormone and thyroid stimulating hormone. It also inhibits the secretion of
pancreatic hormones which include Glucagon and Insulin
6. Dopamine – this functions as a neurotransmitter which is a chemical released by neurons or
nerve cells to send signals to other nerve cells. The brain has many distinct dopamine
pathways and one of these pathways plays a big role in reward-motivated behavior.

B. The Pituitary Gland: Located in the brain, it has also been described as the “master gland”
because it secretes hormones that control other endocrine glands. It needs manganese for good
health

1. Oxytocin-controls key aspects of the reproductive system and some aspects of human
behavior
2. Prolactin-hormone that helps women produce milk after childbirth and it’s important to both
male and female reproductive health
3. Leutenizing Hormone-triggers ovulation and stimulates the production of testosterone
4. Anti-diuretic Hormone (ADH)-tells your kidneys how much water to conserve; it also constantly
regulates and balances the amount of water in your blood
5. Human Growth Hormone (HGH)-encourages growth in children and adolescents, helps to
regulate body composition as well as bodily fluids and muscle and bone growth, helps regulate
sugar and fat metabolism, and it possibly helps with heart function

C. The Pineal Gland also known as the Third Eye: This gland is also in the brain and it produces
melatonin which helps with circadian rhythm. It is also known as the Third Eye because the
Third Eye chakra in the Hindu system is located in the center of the forehead which is near the
pineal gland. It depends on iodine and boron for good health.

D. The Thyroid Gland: It depends on iodine and tyrosine. It is located in the front of the neck just
below the Adams apple and is considered to be one of the major glands in the regulation of
metabolism. It produces:

1. thyroxine (T4) which gets converted to its active form, triiodothyronine (T3) with the help of
selenium. T3 controls basil metabolic rate
2. Calcitonin-responsible for the uptake of calcium to the bone

E. The Parathyroid Gland: It’s located in the neck behind the thyroid and produces parathormone
or PTH which is associated with the growth of muscle and bone and distribution of calcium and
phosphate in the body. It depends on calcium for good health.

F. The thymus: The thymus lays across the trachea and bronchi in the upper thorax. It produces
thymosin which triggers the immune system by activating the T-Cells and T-Lymphocytes which
are white blood cells associated with antibody production. The thymus needs zinc for good
health.

G. The pancreas: It lies behind the stomach and needs chromium for good health. The pancreas
produces:

1. Insulin by the Beta Cells which is responsible for the conversion of glucose to glycogen,
shuttling glucose into the cells, and the conversion of excess glucose to fat
2. Glucagon by the Alpha Cells which is responsible for the conversion of glycogen to glucose

H. The adrenal glands: They are on top of the kidneys and they rely on copper for good health.
They produce:

1. Adrenalin which prepares the body for fight or flight
2. noradrenalin-which has similar effects to adrenalin
3. corticosteroids that include cortisol, cortisone, and corticosterone

I. The ovaries: They are located in the lower abdomen and they rely on selenium for good health.
They produce:

1. Estrogen which is responsible for the break-down of the uterus wall
2. progesterone which builds up and maintains the uterus wall for embedding of fertilized egg
and is also associated with body hair, breast enlargement, and physical changes in the body

J. The testes: They’re located outside the pelvic cavity and produce testosterone which is
responsible for the development and function of male sex organs and is associated with body
hair, muscle development, and voice change. They rely heavily on selenium for good health.

K. The prostate: It’s about the size of a walnut located between the bladder and the penis. It
produces prostate-specific antigen (PSA) which help keep the sperm in liquid form. The
prostate relies on zinc for good health.

4. People with different endocrine issues carry weight on specific parts of the body

A. If someone has adrenal gland problems through prolonged stress, cortisol is released and stores
fat around the most vital organs which are in your midsection. Thus, a person with adrenal issues
will carry more weight around their midsection.
B. People with thyroid issues tend to carry weight all over since the thyroid controls the metabolism
in all of your cells.
C. For people with problems with their ovaries, they will tend to carry extra weight around their hips
and lower stomach area.
D. If a person has liver problems, they will tend to carry extra weight around their body but have
thin legs

5. Blood sugar imbalances mess up the entire endocrine system because not only are the pancreas,
liver, and adrenal glands all necessary for blood sugar regulation but they are also heavily involved
in the endocrine system.

Nutritional Pearl for Episode 15:
It is very important to make sure blood sugar levels are normalized and under control before addressing any endocrine problem you have because blood sugar imbalances disrupt the entire endocrine system.

BECOME A NUTRITIONAL THERAPY PRACTITIONER