💊Daily Pill: Growth Hormone
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The Daily Pill is a series of very short daily posts where I share the definition of a medical term I think we should all know. Read it every morning and build up your medical vocabulary.
💪🏽Growth Hormone
Growth hormone, AKA somatotropin, is a peptide hormone produced and secreted by the anterior pituitary - a small gland located at the base of the brain. Growth hormone plays crucial roles in regulating growth, metabolism, and body composition. Main functions:
Promotion of Growth: GH stimulates the growth of muscle, bones, cartilage, and other tissues during childhood and adolescence.
Regulation of Metabolism: GH promotes the breakdown of fats (lipolysis) and increases the release of fatty acids into the bloodstream, increasing energy availability for various processes (See 💊Daily pill on Triglycerides).
Maintenance of Body Composition: Preserves lean body mass (such as muscle tissue) by promoting protein synthesis in muscle cells while inhibiting protein breakdown, which contributes to muscle growth and maintenance.
🤔Why you need to know:
The relationship between growth hormone and longevity is complex and still not fully understood. Excessive levels of growth hormone, as seen in certain medical conditions or with the use of growth hormone supplements, can have adverse effects and may actually decrease lifespan. Nonetheless, growth hormone's role in longevity is multifaceted:
Growth hormone stimulates autophagy, (See 💊Daily Pill: Autophagy ) contributing to cellular longevity and delay the onset of age-related diseases.
Maintaining a healthy body composition, with adequate muscle mass and reduced fat deposition, is one of the best predictors of longevity (💊Daily Pill: What is Sarcopenia?).
By promoting immune system efficiency and cardiovascular health, growth hormone may contribute to a longer and healthier lifespan.
🧠Trivia:
Growth hormone was first identified and its effects confirmed in a series of experiments in the mid-20th century. In 1944, Dr. Choh Hao Li isolated a substance from the pituitary glands of cattle which he demonstrated to cause growth-promoting effects when injected into rats.