Physical and Hormonal Changes of the Body - Essay Example

? As a person grows, many physical and hormonal changes take place in his or her body. These changes have a profound effect on the physiology of the body. Many of these changes occur during puberty, allowing the body to become sexually mature. One such important change is the growth of mammary glands in females and the production of milk, which is known as lactation. As mentioned above, the term lactation refers to the production of milk and its secretion form the mammary glands to provide nutrients to the newborn child. Usually, the breasts develop during puberty; however, lactation occurs mostly in women postpartum, that is after childbirth. Sometimes lactation can also occur in females without pregnancy, and the details of this will be discussed later in the paper. Progesterone and estrogen are two hormones that play a very important role in the female sexual cycles, including ovulation, conception, pregnancy, and childbirth. Along with progesterone and estrogen, there are many other hormones whose fluctuation maintains the whole lactation cycle (Lauwers, 2010). During the second and the third trimester of pregnancy, a woman’s body produces increased level of progesterone, estrogen, prolactin, oxytocin, human placental lactogen, and growth hormone. Along with maintaining pregnancy, progesterone helps in increasing the size of alveoli and lobes. During pregnancy, the high level of progesterone prevents the production and secretion of milk. However, just before birth, the levels of progesterone reduce considerably, allowing great amount of milk to be accumulated in the breasts. Like progesterone, estrogen influences the size of the system. It stimulates the growth of the milk duct system, allowing it to grow and differentiate to do its required functions. The second female hormone, estrogen, also plays a role in the lactation cycle. Both progesterone and estrogen levels in a female’s body decrease in order to induce lactation in the mammary glands (Riordan & Wambach, 2009). The maintenance of milk production in females is called Galactopoiesis and is brought about by two key hormones called prolactin and oxytocin. After the birth, when progesterone and estrogen levels decrease, prolactin and oxytocin levels begin to increase. Prolactin stimulates the growth and differentiation of alveoli along with the differentiation in ductal structures. Prolactin plays the most important role in maintaining milk production through various mechanisms. While milk production is mostly controlled by Prolactin, milk secretion comes under the domain of oxytocin along with its many other sex-related functions. Oxytocin induces the smooth muscle layer around the alveoli to contract and release the newly-produced milk in the duct. Oxytocin is also responsible for secreting the milk out of the nipples. The above hormones all play an important role in the lactation cycle of a woman who is pregnant or who has recently given birth to a baby. However, as mentioned in the starting paragraphs, lactation can also occur without pregnancy. This may occur due to a lot of different reasons. Naturally, this occurs due to hormonal imbalances which cause the milk to be produced without conception or childbirth. However, lactation can also be induced by physical or psychological means, which often happens when nursing needs to be done by a woman other than a biological mother (Lauwers, 2010). Since female breasts are very closely linked to the sexuality of a female, the partner may induce lactation for sexual pleasure. The first milk that a baby drinks from his or her mother’s breasts is known as colostrum. This milk is actually not mature and is a thick yellowy fluid that contains a greater concentration of Sodium, Potassium, and Chloride. In addition to these ions, colostrum also contains a high quantity of materials including antibodies that help in developing the child’s immune system (“The Reproductive Years”, n.d.). This is necessary, since after birth the immune system of a child is not properly developed, and, therefore, he or she is prone to a lot of infectious diseases. The mature milk contains a lot of substances including water. On average, human milk provides about 0.65Kcal/ml. During the lactation cycle, a woman is producing a lot of milk, which contains a collection of nutrients needed for the nourishment of the baby. As such, during the nursing period, a mother has to feed not only herself but also her baby, which puts greater demand on her nutritional qualities. Extra intake of food is hence necessary for the production of milk and its enrichment with the required nutrients. Since the mother has to alter her particular lifestyle, she is faced with a number of nutritional challenges. The daily intake requirement for a mother is different for everyone, depending on a person’s physique and age. The requirements of a 25 year old athlete would differ considerably from that of a 35 year old housewife. In this paper, we shall look upon the needs of a mother which falls into the category of average weight and size. The most important challenge that mothers face is the fluid intake. During milk production as well as milk secretion, mothers are actually losing fluids from a source other than urination and perspiration. If the mothers need to maintain their health, the fluid loss is large and as such needs to be replenished. Therefore, it is recommended that nursing mothers should drink a lot of water. Excessive intake of fluids, however, does not mean that milk production will increase. In order to meet the body requirements, mother should take fluids every time she begins to feed her baby and also to be on the lookout for any signs of dehydration, which may be evident from constipation and dark-colored urine. The best practice is to drink at least eight to ten cups of water. Also, the mother needs calories, proteins, and calcium for both herself and her child (Brown, n.d.). Moreover, there are certain chemicals which need to be avoided, since they may pass into the blood stream. Therefore, it is important to devise a nutritional plan for a nursing mother. A breastfeeding woman requires at least 1800 extra calories; if there are twins, this number is much larger. It is important to keep check on the weight, and if weight loss is more than four pounds per week, it is an indication of undernourishment. Along with the calories, Proteins are an essential part of diet, since they are vital in development of our body systems. A regular intake of protein is necessary, which is ensured by eating twice a day, and diet that should contain meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, or beans. Dairy products are also a great source of protein, which should be taken by breastfeeding mothers. Calcium needs are also very high and, therefore, foods enriched with calcium should be eaten four to five times a day (NutritionMD, n.d.). Calcium-rich foods include almonds, dairy products, and leafy vegetables. Following a diet plan is important; however, it is equally necessary to avoid certain chemicals that can pass in the milk and may harm the child. Caffeine, alcohol, and cigarette smoking should be avoided during the nursing period. Also, care should be taken while taking medicines, and nothing including over-the-counter drugs should be taken without a doctor’s prescription (“The Reproductive Years”, n.d.). If all of these things are kept in mind, the risk of degradation of health of both the mother and the child is considerably reduced. Lactation cycle is an important cycle in a woman’s life. Since it is accompanied by a lot of body changes, it is appropriate to respond to it accordingly and follow the diet plans that are needed for the wellbeing of the lactating woman. References Brown, J. (n.d.). Nutrition through the life cycle. Cengage Learning. Lauwers, J. (2010). Counseling the nursing mother: A lactation consultant's guide, fifth edition. Jones & Bartlett Publishers. NutritionMD. (n.d.). Nutritional requirements throughout the life cycle: Pregnancy and lactation. Retrieved Jun 15, 2012, from Health Care Provider's Section: http://www.nutritionmd.org/health_care_providers/general_nutrition/lifetime_pregnancy.html Riordan, J., & Wambach, K. (2009). Breastfeeding and Human Lactation. (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Publishers. The Reproductive Years. (n.d.). Retrieved Jun 14, 2012, from Nutrition for you: http://www.storknet.com/ip/reproductive_years/delivery/breastfeeding.html Read More