
Originally Posted by
im83931
Your endo system is finding its baseline for the rest of your life. If you damage it during this time it has a harder time recovering
Both in humans and in animals, endocrine signalling is involved in reproduction and embryo development, growth and maturation, energy production, use and energy storage, electrolyte balance and maintenance and behaviour. Hormones trigger such complex functions by interacting with their receptors that are present, at a nuclear and/or cellular level, in various organs and tissues as part of a complex biological feedback system. Any disruption of this balance can cause impairment in the physiological status of the whole organism, especially during the more susceptible developmental stages. If the regulatory role of the endocrine system is impaired, abnormal function and/or development of the reproductive, the nervous and the immune systems may occur. It has been recently postulated that predisposition for certain types of tumours is caused by an altered development during prenatal growth (intrauterine) and in the first years of life (Sharpe and Sakkebaek, 1993). It is noteworthy that the available data overall support the public health concerns for endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs).