The human growth hormone is also called the Growth hormone (GH) or somatotropin. This is a kind of peptide hormone that is responsible for growth, cell reproduction, and cell regeneration in humans and other animals.
Since growth is the primary aspect, it is an extremely important hormone in the body. The growth hormone is a type of amino acid that is stored, synthesized, and secreted by somatotropic cells.
These cells then help them to be placed inside the lateral wings of the anterior pituitary gland. Growth hormones are prominent from childhood to adultery.
It could peak at puberty. These hormones could accelerate protein synthesis including breaking down fats. Which results in a large amount of energy that could be used in tissue growth.
Yet there are a few drawbacks associated with HGH. Due to the concerns regarding aging people tend to use HGH treatment as a means to slow down aging.
However, this synthetic treatment doesn’t go well with everyone’s body. Hence, you may suffer certain side effects.
Here in this article, we will evaluate more about human growth hormones. We will try to associate and dig for information on every aspect related to human growth hormones.
Contents
Functions Of Human Growth Hormones
The basic function of GH is to boost the energy levels in our body of growth tissue.
In addition, HGH could also be helpful in the regulation of body composition, body fluids, muscle and bone growth, sugar and fat metabolism, and may improve heart function too.
Now the other uses of GH could be in people with a lack of GH. GH could be utilized as an alternative therapy.
The outcome could vary from person to person. Some of the advantages consist of less fat mass, lean mass, higher bone density, normal lipid profile, fewer cardiovascular risk factors, and better psychosocial well-being.
Long-acting growth hormone (LAGH) analogs are now in trend for covering hormone deficiency both in children and adults. It comes in the form of injections which are given every week.
A study shows that GH is beneficial for treating short-stature issues. You may not get the result as expected but it may show some change to the condition.
A few scenarios of GH treating problems are Turner syndrome, chronic kidney failure, Prader–Willi syndrome, intrauterine growth restriction, and severe idiopathic short stature.
Normal Range Of HGH
The GH is released in a pulses pattern by the pituitary gland. Since the size and duration of the pulse could be different from each other. The reason could be your gender, age, etc.
Hence, you cannot have perfect HGH measurements. HGH measurement cannot be trusted to diagnose or find out a critical illness.
Moreover, it is most tested that HGH tests are of significant advantage when it is done using a stimulation or suppression test.
The professionals may take multiple blood samples to evaluate the levels of HGH in your body.
A single blood sample is not enough to get precise HGH levels. This test could be done when you have issues with HGH levels or you could get the test done normally too.
Below is the measurement of HGH which is fairly considered the normal range:
- For adult males — 0.4 to 10 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL), or 18 to 44 picomoles per liter (pmol/L)
- For adult females — 1 to 14 ng/mL, or 44 to 616 pmol/L
- For children — 10 to 50 ng/mL, or 440 to 2200 pmol/L
Note that the normal range of HGH could be different from one lab test to another. It is because the lab measurements techniques, specimens, and tests vary from each other.
One may get their doubts cleared by the healthcare professional in case of any red flags of their HGH tests.
Side Effects Of HGH (Human Growth Hormone)
The urge to get HGH treatments looking younger is common. What people don’t realize is HGH treatment or pills could cause hazardous side effects on their health.
Below are some of the possible side effects you may experience:
- Joint, nerve, or muscle pain
- Increased cholesterol level
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Tingling and numbness of the skin
- Edema ( a condition in which fluid in body tissues causes swelling)
- Risk of diabetes
- Cancer growth is possible
It is important to seek professional advice and treatment before undergoing any treatment or HGH pills to avoid consequences further.
Deficiency Of Growth Hormone
One of the most basic examples of GH deficiency is short stature and dwarfism. Since the secretion and synthesis of Human Growth hormone are related to the pituitary gland.
So damage or issue in the pituitary gland results in congenital GH deficiency. Another reason for a GH deficiency could be Mutations.
The synthesis and secretion of GH are affected due to the genes PIT-1 (pituitary-specific transcription factor-1) and POUF-1 (prophet of PIT-1).
In addition, there is some evidence of psychosocial dwarfism in children that have Growth hormone deficiency too.
One may improve the stimulation of growth hormone once they are out of the toxic environment one has faced over the years.
Some children experience isolated GH deficiency which could be not an issue at the time of birth. Although the child shows growth retardation of bones in some radiographs.
The condition could be improved with age, they may have delayed puberty changes. It could be normal or defective; it will all depend on the growth rate.
Now coming to the treatments given for GH deliveries. It is treated by HGH injections. Although, in earlier times it was very limited as the natural hormone was less available from the sources.
Over the years scientists were able to solve this issue with somatrem, this was then used as an alternative to HGH injections.
The supply of this substance was larger than the natural hormones. The response to the injections of GH was well received in children. As with this, the children were able to have a nearly normal height.
While few of the children may respond well to the injections wholly. However, using large doses of injections could solve many things
Lastly, GH deficiencies are visible during the adultery period. But it is normal to experience or see GH deficiency in childhood period. It could be improved with time which is in adulthood.
The causes behind GH deficiencies are mainly adulthood fatigue, decreased energy, depressed mood, decreased muscle strength, decreased muscle mass, thin and dry skin, increased adipose tissue, and decreased bone density.
The treatments for GH deficiencies could vary from childhood and adulthood.
Growth Hormone Excess
While you may get growth hormone deficiency but getting excess growth hormone is also a problem. Yes, you heard it right!
The mild tumor somatotroph cells of the pituitary gland are the root issue of excess growth hormone.
The GHRH could also boost the somatotrophs cell to provide GH in excess. However, somatotroph tumors are not majorly seen in children.
But if they have it then they are exposed to extreme height (gigantism) and acromegaly attributes.
The features of acromegaly mean there is an enlargement of the distal (acral) parts of the body, consisting of the hands, feet, chin, and nose. The suffering patient may have a prominent jaw, a large nose, large hands, and feet.
Plus it also enlarges the other tissues consisting of the tongue, heart, liver, and kidneys. Contrary to this, pituitary tumors are also risky.
They could attack you with severe headaches along with some serious visual defects. Furthermore, acromegaly has several effects on your body.
It includes developing diabetes mellitus, high blood pressure (hypertension), cardiovascular disease, and arthritis, malignant tumors of the large intestine.
Patients with acromegaly could be treated using drugs, medication, or surgeries. In addition, radiation therapy is also effective in improving acromegaly issues.
Conclusion
Human growth hormone is an extremely important factor in the healthy growth of the human body. However, there could be certain issues associated with GH.
The child or an adult human may have HGH deficiency or excess of GH. Also, it is important to notice the symptoms and talk about them to healthcare professionals too.
In both scenarios, the concerned person must be taken to healthcare professionals to seek the best treatments.
In addition, HGH treatments or pills to look young are not a good choice to adopt. Instead, you must adopt a healthy lifestyle choice to be fit and young.
These hormone treatments could go wrong drastically. Hence, it is better to avoid it.