What is estrogen?
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Estrogen is one of the female hormones that help regulate a woman’s passage through menstruation, fertility, and menopause. Estrogen is one of the most powerful hormones in the human body. Some 300 different tissues are equipped with estrogen receptors- chemical sites that make the tissues responsive to estrogen.
Although we are used to thinking of menarche (the onset of menstruation and fertility) and menopause (the cessation) as the single points in life’s journey, they are actually more like peaks and valleys. They start to rise well before menarche, as early as age eight in some girls. The hypothalamus is the prime mover in this process, signaling the pituitary to release hormones. The pituitary in turn signals the ovaries to produce more estrogen.
For three or four years, estrogen levels continue to rise, and by age eleven or twelve, they are sufficiently high (along with other key hormones) to begin the menstruation process. Estrogen also sets off the development of breasts and the growth of hair under the arms and the public region. The body often responds to this new hormonal activity with confusion- oily hair, acne, budding sexual interest, mood swings, and sometimes, painful menstrual cramps.
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