Image by ecstaticist via Flickr
That’s one of my favorite Olympic sports. I remember as a kid trying to balance myself on our “pader”, which is the Tagalog word for wall or a tall fence made of cement basically. It is a delicate balancing act. One wrong step and you’re off to the ground (just like Humpty Dumpy). Anyway, it’s the same balancing act that goes on with our hormones. Factors such as nutritional deficiencies (lack of selenium prevents conversion of T4 to T3), heavy metal toxicity (mercury attacks some hormones), or oxidative stress (excessive free radical formation could affect every cell in the body including our endocrine glands) could influence hormonal balance. Hormones by the way, are chemical messengers (secreted by endocrine glands in our body) that act on different target organs. Our hormonal/endocrine system is intimately connected to the nervous and immune systems (which secrete neurotransmitters and cytokines, respectively). These three systems work together bringing optimal communication among every cell in the body. There is such a strong connection among these systems that it’s difficult to treat one system without messing with the others. That’s the reason why we need to be careful about what we take in (whether it’s food, drugs, supplements, water, and yes, even our thoughts) because it affects everything. We cannot isolate one part of the body from the rest of it. In fact, I’m reminded of one Biblical verse which says that, “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it.” Just thought I’d mention that. Hope everybody’s having a great week!
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Hot Tips, News and Trends for Healthy Aging By Dr. Joel Lopez, M.D. 
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