Growth hormone – Better Health Channel

The pituitary gland is a structure in our brain that produces different types of specialised hormones, including growth hormone (also referred to as human growth hormone or HGH). The roles of growth hormone include influencing our height, and helping build our bones and muscles. Natural levels of growth hormone fluctuate during the day, seemingly influenced by physical activity. For example, levels rise when we exercise.

Growth hormone levels increase during childhood and peak during puberty. In this phase of development, growth hormone promotes the growth of bone and cartilage. Throughout life, growth hormone regulates the fat, muscle, tissue and bone in our bodies, and other aspects of our metabolism such as insulin action and blood sugar levels. Growth hormone levels naturally reduce from middle age onwards.

Most commonly, doctors prescribe synthetic growth hormone to help children who have impaired hormone levels to reach their full height.

However, there is a black-market trade in synthetic growth hormone, particularly among athletes, bodybuilders and those whose positive body image depends on looking muscular. These people may take growth hormone (in combination with other muscle-building substances) in the mistaken belief that it will boost their muscle strength. However, any improvement in muscle strength is actually due to other muscle-building substances, such as steroids.

Our bones need enough growth hormone during our childhood and adolescence in order to lengthen to adult proportions. Growth hormone prompts our liver to make a substance called insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1). This and other similar compounds are involved in bone growth.

Some children lack sufficient natural growth hormone to grow to their full height. Taking synthesised growth hormone can help them reach their full height. For example, children may be prescribed human growth hormone in cases of poor growth due to growth hormone deficiency, Turners syndrome, and kidney failure.However, research suggests that a child with normal levels of growth hormone, who takes the synthesised version, will not grow any taller than they would have naturally, unless they take very large amounts.Children who are experiencing stunted or slowed growth should have their natural growth hormone levels checked by medical professionals before they are prescribed any medication for their condition.

Adults with growth hormone deficiency (which may result from problems with the pituitary gland or hypothalamus) may have symptoms including:

They can benefit from treatment with growth hormone injections, which can help:

Approximately one third of people who use synthetic growth hormone will experience side effects. These may include:

Acromegaly is a disorder caused by excess levels of growth hormone, most commonly as a result of a tumour in that person's pituitary gland. It causes an irreversible overgrowth of bones, particularly those of the face, hands and feet. The person's skin is also affected and becomes thick, coarse and hairy. Other side effects include high blood pressure and heart disease. If the tumour occurs in childhood, then increased height may occur leading to gigantism.

Long-term use of synthetic growth hormone can also cause acromegaly, but not gigantism. This is because it is impossible for an adult to grow taller using synthetic growth hormone. The ends of the long bones (epiphyses) in the mature skeleton are fused in adults. High doses of growth hormone can only thicken the person's bones rather than lengthen them.

Any increase in muscle size due to use of synthetic growth hormone is actually the result of an increase in connective tissue, which does not contribute to muscle strength. For this reason, use of synthetic growth hormone does not lead to increase muscle strength. In fact, in the long term, muscle weakness (including weakness of the heart) can be a result.

In the past, growth hormone used to treat people was extracted, at autopsy, from the pituitary glands of people who had died. In some countries (not including Australia), it was discovered that a progressive and incurable disease of the brain called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), which results in dementia and death, was in rare cases transmitted by this method.

Nowadays synthetic growth hormone is used, and there is no risk of CJD.

Some athletes or bodybuilders who abuse growth hormone in an attempt to gain muscle size and strength also use other medications or illicit drugs to speed up their physical transformation. The dangers of mixing these different chemicals are not fully known.

Some of the substances people may use include:

Giving up synthetic growth hormone can be extremely difficult for adults whose positive body image depends on looking large and muscular. Some users continue to take the hormone, even though it is affecting their health and wellbeing.

Counselling may help you to stop using synthetic growth hormone. See your doctor for information and referral, or contact an alcohol and other drug service in your area.

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Growth hormone - Better Health Channel

Growth Hormone Tests: Protocol, Costs, Results, and More – Healthline

Growth hormone (GH) is one of several hormones produced by the pituitary gland in your brain. Its also known as human growth hormone (HGH) or somatotropin.

GH plays a crucial role in human growth and development, especially in children and adolescents. GH levels that are higher or lower than they should be can lead to health problems in both children and adults.

If your doctor suspects that your body may be producing too much or too little GH, theyll typically start by ordering tests to measure the levels of GH in your blood. Identifying any issues related to GH will help your doctor make a diagnosis and determine the best course of treatment for you.

There are several different types of GH tests, and the specific testing protocol varies depending on which test your doctor orders.

As with all medical tests, its important to follow all of the preparation instructions from your healthcare team. In general, for GH tests, your doctor will ask you to:

For some tests, your doctor may provide additional preparation instructions.

Its uncommon for people to have GH levels outside the typical range, so GH tests arent performed routinely. If your doctor thinks the levels of GH in your body may be abnormal, theyll likely order one or more of the following tests.

A GH serum test can measure the amount of GH in your blood. For this test, a healthcare professional will use a needle to collect a sample of your blood in short, its much the same as any other blood test.

The blood sample will be sent to a lab for analysis. The results of a GH serum test let your care team know the level of GH in your blood at the time when your blood sample was taken.

But this may not offer enough information to help your doctor make a diagnosis since levels of GH in your body naturally rise and fall throughout the day.

Your doctor may order an insulin-like growth factor-1 test (IGF-1 test) at the same time as a GH serum test. If you have an excess or a deficiency of GH, youll also have higher- or lower-than-normal levels of IGF-1.

The key advantage of examining IGF is that, unlike GH, its levels remain stable. Youll only need to give one blood sample for both tests.

The GH serum and IGF-1 tests dont usually provide your doctor with enough information to make a diagnosis. These tests generally serve more of a screening purpose. In other words, they help your care team determine whether you need further tests.

If your doctor suspects that your body is producing too much or too little GH, theyll most likely order either a GH suppression test or a GH stimulation test.

A GH suppression test helps your doctor confirm if your body produces too much GH.

For this test, a healthcare professional will use a needle or IV to take a blood sample. Next, theyll ask you to drink a sweet solution containing glucose, a type of sugar.

Youll then give a few more samples of blood at timed intervals during the 2 hours after you drink the solution. These samples will be sent to a lab for analysis.

In most people, glucose lowers GH production. The lab will check your hormone levels against expected levels at each testing interval.

A GH stimulation test helps your doctor diagnose an excess or deficiency in GH production.

For this test, a healthcare professional will generally use an IV to take an initial blood sample. Theyll then give you a medication that triggers your body to release GH. The healthcare professional will monitor you and take several more blood samples at timed intervals over 2 hours.

The samples will be sent to a lab and compared with the expected GH levels at each interval after taking the medication.

The cost of GH tests varies based on your insurance coverage, the facility where you have the tests done, and the lab used to perform the analysis.

The simplest tests are the GH serum and IGF-1 tests, which only require a blood draw. The typical cost for each of these tests is about $70 if ordered directly from a lab. Your actual costs may vary depending on how much your healthcare team charges for services, like drawing your blood and sending it to the lab.

Your doctor will receive your lab results and interpret them. In general, the results of a GH serum test and an IGF-1 test dont provide enough information to diagnose a disorder related to GH. If your test results indicate that you may have a GH-related condition or need further testing, your doctors office will usually:

If your suppression test reveals a high GH level, this could mean:

If your GH stimulation test results indicate low hormone levels, this could mean:

The range for normal results may vary depending on the lab or your healthcare professional. Generally, normal GH test results are:

Results above this range could suggest your body produces too much growth hormone. That said, some guidelines favor a peak concentration above 10 ng/mL in children to completely rule out GH deficiency using stimulation tests.

Jennifer Osipoff, MD, a pediatric endocrinologist with Stony Brook Childrens Hospital, says that growth hormone is secreted from the pituitary gland mainly during sleep. Still, this secretion also occurs in small spurts throughout the day.

As such, a random GH level is not a clinically relevant value if assessing for growth hormone deficiency or excess, Osipoff said. Instead, endocrinologists will measure insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), a protein that is made in response to GH secretion.

Providers break passing levels down into two groups: pediatric patients under 18 and adult patients 18 and over.

Both adults and children can undergo growth hormone testing. Yet healthcare professionals may recommend this testing for different reasons, depending on age.

GHD is rare, and it doesnt usually explain a childs short stature or slow growth. A child may have below-average height for many reasons, including simple genetics.

Slow growth is also common for children, especially right before puberty. Children with a GH deficiency often grow under 2 inches per year.

A healthcare professional may also recommend GH testing if they notice signs a childs body is producing too much GH. For example, this can happen with a rare condition known as gigantism, which causes the long bones, muscles, and organs to grow excessively in childhood.

Adult bodies rely on GH to maintain muscle mass and bone density and regulate metabolism.

If you make too little GH, you may have reduced bone density and muscle mass. A routine blood test called a lipid profile may show changes in the levels of fat in your blood. But GH deficiency is rare.

Extra GH in adults can cause a rare condition called acromegaly, which makes the bones thicken. If left untreated, acromegaly can cause a number of complications, including a higher risk of arthritis and heart problems.

GH levels that are too high or too low can indicate serious health concerns, including delayed growth and reduced bone density. Keep in mind, though, that GH-related conditions are rare.

A healthcare professional may order testing to check your GH levels using a GH suppression or stimulation test. If your test results show unusual GH levels, your care team will most likely order further testing.

If youre diagnosed with a GH-related condition, a doctor or other healthcare professional can offer more guidance on the best course of treatment. They may, for example, prescribe synthetic GH to treat GH deficiencies. Early detection can increase your chances of a good outcome for both adults and children.

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Growth Hormone Tests: Protocol, Costs, Results, and More - Healthline

The role of pituitary gland in human body – Telangana Today

Published: Published Date - 11:12 PM, Sat - 15 October 22

Hyderabad: The article is in continuation to the last article about chemical coordination and integration in the human body. Today, lets continue discussion on the functions of the pituitary gland. The information can be handy for the upcoming exams.

Pituitary gland

The pars distalis region of pituitary, commonly called anterior pituitary, produces growth hormone (GH), prolactin (PRL), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), luteinising hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). Pars intermedia secretes only one hormone called melanocyte stimulating hormone (MSH). However, in humans, the pars intermedia is almost merged with pars distalis. Neurohypophysis (pars nervosa) also known as posterior pituitary, stores and releases two hormones called oxytocin and vasopressin, which are actually synthesised by the hypothalamus and are transported axonally to neurohypophysis. Over-secretion of GH stimulates abnormal growth of the body leading to gigantism and low secretion of GH results in stunted growth resulting in pituitary dwarfism. Excess secretion of growth hormone in adults, especially in middle age, can result in severe disfigurement (especially of the face) called Acromegaly, which may lead to serious complications, and premature death if unchecked. The disease is hard to diagnose in the early stages and often goes undetected for many years, until changes in external features become noticeable.

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Megan Thee Stallion Puts Health Admin Degree To The Test In Hot Girl Hospital On SNL – HollywoodLife

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Megan Thee Stallion put her nursing degree to the test onSaturday Night Live! The Houston native, 27, has an actual undergraduate in Health Administration from Texas Southern University technically meaning she can work in a hospital which she earned in Oct. 2021. During her hosting gig onSNL, however, the Hot Girl Summer rapper spoofed her education in a different kind of hospital dubbed Hot Girl Hospital.

The faux drama allegedly produced by Shonda Rhimes and a hit onThe Shade Room starred Megan and her fellow nurses as they assisted patients with health emergenciesthe beauty kind. At HGH, the scrubs arent blue or green but rather the on-trend shade of hot pink dominating the current fashion scene. The first patient making the to the clinic? None other than Heidi Gardner, who was in need of some beauty amplification.

46, female neat as hell, Megan declared, rocking blue hair. Meanwhile, Heidi appeared in distress as a second nurse quipped about her fit, which included a pair of beige chinos. Trash, garbage, Megan replied, as her co-worker announced the woman needed a BBL and whatever Fashion Nova we got.

A BBL is an acronym for a Brazilian Butt Lift, and a surgery well known in popular culture per celebrities who have allegedly had their derrieres enhanced via the procedure. Fashion Nova is also known in popular culture as the go-to fast fashion brand in the hip-hop community, worn by Megan and also her WAP collaborator Cardi B (on She Bad, Cardi even raps: I could buy designer but this Fashion Nova fit).

Calm down, you gonna be a bad b- real soon! Megan assured Heidi as she was wheeled away for her makeover. While she underwent her supposed surgeries, a confused doctor wandered into the space with a pointed question: So, what kind of hospital is this then? he inquired. We do weaves, butts and clothes, he was informed.

Heidi then emerged with her new look, showing off her larger behind while wearing a hot pink mini dress. Its giving, thank you, she said to Megan and her two colleagues, as the rapper declared, Yeah!

Related:Megan Thee Stallion Set To Pull Double Duty As Host & Musical Guest On SNL This Week

Megan has been open about her decision to pursue school while also gaining success as a musician. The Texas-born star was already studying towards her Health Administration Degree when her rapping career blew up, but has said it was important for her to see through the commitment for her late mom Holly Thomas, who died in 2019.

After revealing that she was pursuing her degree part-time and online in June 2020, Stallion has steadily been working towards her goal of graduating with a Bachelors in Health Administration. Despite her prowess already as a three-time Grammy winner, the singer told People that she was furthering her education as a tribute to her late mother, Holly Thomas, who passed away in March 2019 from brain cancer.

I want to get my degree because I really want my mom to be proud, she said to PEOPLE magazine after graduating from Texas Southern University in 2021. She saw me going to school before she passed, the beauty added.

I want my big mama to be proud, she also said. She saw me going to school before she passed. My grandmother thats still alive used to be a teacher, so shes on my butt about finishing school. Im doing it for me, but Im also doing it for the women in my family who made me who I am today.

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Megan Thee Stallion Puts Health Admin Degree To The Test In Hot Girl Hospital On SNL - HollywoodLife

Growth Hormone -Types, Regulation & Growth Hormone Function – BYJUS

Growth Hormone Definition

Growth hormone is a peptide hormone produced by the pituitary gland, that stimulates development, growth, and regeneration.

The growth hormone is produced by the anterior pituitary. It is made up of 191 amino acids that make a long single-chain polypeptide. It is synthesized in somatotropic cells found in the anterior pituitary gland. These cells also store and release the hormone.

The growth hormone is responsible for the regulation of several physiological processes such as growth and metabolism. It is also used as a drug in animals and plants.

Let us have a detailed look at the growth hormone function and its types.

Also Read:Hormones

Growth hormones are of two types:

Somatotropin growth hormones are otherwise referred by this name and is formed in animals

Somatropin these are growth hormones that are in the synthetic form produced utilizing recombinant DNA technologies.

The growth hormone has the following effects:

There are two different types of physiological effects of growth hormones:

These are observed when the growth hormone binds with the receptor on the target cells. For eg., fat cells have growth hormone receptors which are stimulated by these hormones to break the triglycerides and suppress their ability to accumulate circulating fats.

These are mediated by the insulin-like growth factor. Several growth-promoting effects of the hormone are due to the insulin-like growth factoracting on its target cells.

The growth hormone has essential effects on proteins, carbohydrates and lipid metabolism.

The metabolic effect reflects increased protein synthesis and decreased protein oxidation.

Growth hormone stimulates triglyceride breakdown and adipocytes oxidation.

Growth hormone maintains blood glucose levels and it is believed to have anti-insulin activity, which suppresses the ability of insulin to take up glucose.

Also read:Metabolism

Following are the important growth hormone function:

The formation of growth hormone is regulated by the releasing hormone called somatocrinin along with inhibiting hormone called somatostatin, which is released by the neurosecretory nuclei of the hypothalamus.

These regulating hormones are liberated in the hypophysial portal blood that surmounts the pituitary gland. The release of a hormone in the pituitary is monitored by these two hormones that are affected by many external inhibitory factors.

Various factors stimulate the release of growth hormone, which includes:

Also Read:Mechanism of Hormone Action

To know more about growth hormone, types of growth hormone, growth hormone function, or any other related topics, explore @ BYJUS Biology.

Growth hormone is a protein of about 190 amino acids that are synthesised and secreted by cells called somatotrophs in the anterior pituitary gland. It regulates several physiological processes such as metabolism and growth.

The growth hormone is released by the pituitary gland and affects the growth, bone density, muscles and lipid metabolism in children.

Somatropin and somatotropin are two different types of growth hormone. Somatotropin is formed naturally in animals whereas, somatropin is synthesized by recombinant DNA technology.

What are the effects of hypersecretion of growth hormone?

Hypersecretion of growth hormone causes gigantism in children and acromegaly in adults. Pituitary tumours are also caused due to hypersecretion of growth hormone in adults.

What is the effect of hyposecretion of growth hormone?

Hyposecretion of growth hormone causes dwarfism in children and changes the cholesterol levels, muscle mass and bone strength in adults.

How is the secretion of the growth hormone-regulated?

The secretion of the growth hormone is regulated by the hypothalamus and mediators of growth hormone actions. Other factors include- growth hormone-releasing hormone, somatostatin (SRIF), growth hormone-releasing peptide (ghrerin), and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I).

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Growth Hormone -Types, Regulation & Growth Hormone Function - BYJUS

7 amazing things that happen to your body while you sleep

Sleeping is important for our physical and mental health.

Theres a lot we dont know about sleep. Questions like why we have sleep cycles, why we dream and why humans even need sleep in the first place are ones scientists are still finding exact answers to.

But one things for certain: when we sleep, and sleep well, we feel better physically and mentally, and perform better during the day. Read on to find out some of the things we do know about sleep and why its so important for our bodies and minds.

Dont be fooled into thinking that when youre asleep your brain has shut off too. Your brain is actually quite busy while you sleep, sorting and storing information from the day. This process is particularly important for creating long term memories, as your brain consolidates all the information its picked up during the day and files it away for later use.

There are a number of different hormones released during sleep, all with different purposes. Melatonin, released by the pineal gland, controls your sleep patterns. Levels increase at night time, making you feel sleepy. While youre sleeping, your pituitary gland releases growth hormone, which helps your body to grow and repair itself.

During sleep, your sympathetic nervous system which controls your fight or flight response gets a chance to relax. Studies have shown that when were deprived of sleep, sympathetic nervous system activity increases, which is also mirrored by an increase in blood pressure. Scientists studying coronary disease are investigating whether theres a relationship between decreased sleep duration and increased risk of heart disease.

Levels of cortisol, often called the stress hormone, decreases during the first few hours of sleep before rising to peak soon after you wake up. This helps makes you feel perky when you wake up and switches on your appetite.

While asleep, you cycle through periods of non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREM) and rapid eye movement sleep (REM). Its during REM sleep that we have the most vivid dreams.

During this stage, your muscles are temporarily paralysed, meaning you cant move. Some scientists think this might be so that you dont physically act out your dreams.

Ever wondered why you have to go to the toilet to pee every couple of hours during the day, but can sleep a whole eight without heading to the loo? Thank ADH, an anti-diuretic hormone released by the brain under a circadian rhythm which switches off the need to urinate so often overnight.

While youre sleeping, your immune system releases a type of small proteins called cytokines. If youre sick or injured, these cytokines help your body fight inflammation, infection and trauma. Without enough sleep, your immune system might not be able to function at its best.

Your body does a lot of important work while youre asleep. Good sleep is vital for your physical and mental health, so if youre having trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, not feeling rested when you wake up or feeling tired during the day, talk to your doctor about what you can do to improve your sleep or whether theres an underlying health issue or sleep disorder causing your lack of Zs.

Insomnia: what is it and when should you get help?

You wont believe what triggered by sleepwalking

Sleep Health Foundation Australia

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7 amazing things that happen to your body while you sleep

Bigg Boss 16’s Abdu Rozik suffers from Growth Hormone deficiency, all you need to know – DNA India

Ever since Abdu Rozik the worlds smallest singer and social media sensation premiered on Bigg Boss, he is winning the hearts of the audience. The cutest contestant of Bigg Boss 16 looks like an 8 or a 9-year-old child who is actually 19 years old and 94 cm tall.

Abdu Rozik is from a small village in Tajikistan, and is suffering from dwarfism or Growth Hormone deficiency, he was also diagnosed with rickets but his family did not have financial resources for his treatment.

According to Rozik, as a young teen, he was bullied and mocked for his size as a result of which he could only get 3 years of formal education.

What is Growth Hormone Deficiency?As the name says, growth hormone deficiency happens when the pituitary gland doesn't generate enough of the hormone, which causes youngsters to be short in stature. The growth hormones are secreted by the pituitary gland. When there is a decrease in the secretion of growth hormones leads to short stature or growth deficiency, it causes certain symptoms in the child.

SymptomsSlow growth growthShort stature (below the fifth percentile compared to other children of the same age and sex)Absent or delayed sexual development during pubertyHeadaches

TreatmentIn some cases, Growth Hormone Deficiency can be treated with the use of synthetic growth hormone under the supervision of a pediatric endocrinologist. Synthetic growth hormone can be given in addition to other hormones if there are other hormone shortages.

(The article contains general information only and should not be taken as expert medical advice.)

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Bigg Boss 16's Abdu Rozik suffers from Growth Hormone deficiency, all you need to know - DNA India

Hormone Changes: The Star of Every Stage in Women’s Sleep – Medscape

MADRID Because of the hormone changes that occur throughout their lives, women experience sleep problems that differ significantly from those experienced by men. Indeed, 75% to 84% of pregnant women don't sleep well during the third trimester, and up to 80% of women in menopause have symptoms that prevent them from getting a good night's rest. For those seeking to a precision medicine approach, the challenge is to identify the relationship between the different sex-related phenotypes and the sleep conditions.

Irene Cano, MD, PhD, is the coordinator of the sleep department at the Spanish Society of Pulmonology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR). She spoke with Medscape Spanish Edition about the significant impact of hormones on sleep disorders in women.

"Reproductive hormones like estrogen and progesterone play a meaningful role in brain functions not only those linked to the regulation of reproduction but also other physiological processes related to the regulation of circadian rhythms, cognitive performance, mood, and sleep. In addition, other hormones for example, prolactin, growth hormone, cortisol, and melatonin have sex-dependent effects on sleep," Cano said.

Girls start puberty at a younger age than boys. As girls enter adolescence, they go to bed later and waking up earlier. So, girls are getting less than the 10 hours of sleep that they should be getting at this stage of life. The result is sleep debt, which gives rise to various problems: poor academic performance, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, obesity, and metabolic problems, to name a few. As Ariadna Farr, RN, a sleep unit nurse, noted at SEPAR's Joint Winter Meeting, "Schools would have to start morning classes later to get adolescents to perform well academically. As the situation is now, half of the kids are falling asleep at their desks."

Cano explained the issue as follows: "In adolescence, along with changes in young women's hormone levels, we begin to see differences between the sexes. The changes in levels of estrogens and progesterone are what's responsible for the changes that, to some extent, cause those disturbances in the quality of our sleep and in the stages of our sleep."

Thus, sleep can be affected by the changes in hormone level that occur during a menstrual cycle. Estrogens, which increase during the follicular phase, are associated with rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, while progesterone, which increases during the luteal phase, increases non-REM sleep. "In the 3 to 6 days prior to menstruation, it's quite common for a woman to report difficulties falling asleep and staying asleep, in connection with a decline in the percentage of time she spends in REM sleep, in the context of premenstrual syndrome. In addition," Cano pointed out, "menstrual bleeding, that loss of blood, is associated with a drop in iron levels, making it more likely that the woman will experience restless legs syndrome."

Medscape Spanish Edition also spoke with Milagros Merino, MD, PhD, president of the Spanish Sleep Society. "The consequences that lack of sleep have on the cardiovascular system we're essentially talking about certain arrhythmias, high blood pressure, thrombosis in some cases, stroke, and heart attack. Lack of sleep also gives rise to endocrine and metabolic issues, like overweight and being at a greater risk of developing diabetes. And as for mental health, we see, among other things, attention and memory problems, emotional lability, and irascibility. Numerous studies have confirmed all of this."

Sleep apnea also deserves mention, Merino added. "Although this disorder is more common in men, we're seeing it more and more now in women, along with the cardiovascular issues that it brings about."

Another cardiovascular risk factor is insomnia, said Merino. "This sleep disorder is more prevalent in women. As hormones constantly change, the ways women sleep constantly change, from one stage of life to the next. They sleep one way in childhood, another way in adolescence, and yet another way in menopause."

During pregnancy, hormone changes are much more pronounced. During the first trimester, progesterone levels increase, making the woman drowsy. On top of that, her sleep is interrupted by more frequent visits to the bathroom as well as greater general discomfort.

In the second trimester, sleep interruptions persist but are not as bad as they were during the first 3 months. In the third trimester, 75% to 84% of pregnant women find it difficult to sleep because of aches and pains, the need to urinate during the night, cramps, and heartburn.

"Major physical changes are happening. When the bladder gets compressed, the woman has to get up and go to the bathroom. There's an interruption in her sleep," Farr explained. In addition, as the pregnancy progresses, the woman gains weight and her body mass index (BMI) increases, which can bring on obstructive sleep apnea, high blood pressure, preeclampsia, and diabetes, if not closely monitored.

Other factors include concomitant treatments, such as contraceptives, and the stages of life, such as pregnancy and lactation. "When a woman of childbearing age has restless legs syndrome, more often than not, this means that she has an iron deficiency that needs to be treated with oral iron supplements," said Merino. "However, there are few medications that can be given to a pregnant woman and RLS is relatively common during pregnancy. So, we have to turn to oral or intravenous iron supplements. Yet another matter is narcolepsy. In these cases, all medications have to be stopped during pregnancy and lactation, as they can be harmful to the baby."

While 1 in 5 menopausal women are asymptomatic, the others experience mild to severe symptoms of apnea that frequently interrupt their sleep. In this stage of life, which begins around age 50 years, the hormones that had provided protection against sleep disruptions start to decrease. As a result, there is a rise in sleep problems, especially insomnia, breathing-related sleep disorders (eg, apnea), and restless legs syndrome.

The prevalence of breathing-related sleep disorders during menopause is attributable to weight gain, the drop in levels of estrogens, and the redistribution of adipose tissue in the body. Other factors also increase a woman's risk of experiencing apnea. They range from stress, depression, and other psychological and psychiatric conditions to health status, medication use, and simply the fact of getting older. "Sleep apnea is more common in men than in premenopausal women. The numbers even out, though, when we compare men against menopausal women," Cano noted.

In women, symptoms of sleep apnea are frequently attributed to menopause. There is some overlap: insomnia, headache, irritability, low mood, decreased libido, fatigue during the day, and feeling sleepy. Only much later is the woman's condition correctly diagnosed as sleep apnea. So, even though presenting with the same complaints, a man will be diagnosed with sleep apnea sooner than a woman will in some cases, around 10 years sooner.

"On the other hand, we'd always thought that, in menopause, insomnia was characterized by awakenings occurring throughout the second half of the night. But perhaps what happens more often is that women are regularly waking up repeatedly over the course of the entire night, as opposed to experiencing a wakefulness that starts early and lasts throughout the night or having a problem falling asleep to begin with," said Merino. "The good news is that hormone replacement therapy can get things back to the way they were. And getting better sleep will help to overcome insomnia."

Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder. It affects 10% to 20% of people, mostly women. "The fact that sleep problems are more prevalent in women can be explained by the fact that among women, there is a higher incidence of conditions that disrupt sleep, such as depression," said Cano.

"Insomnia is much more common in adult women than adult men. And at menopause, women find that the insomnia only gets worse," Merino added. "But around that same age, 50 years old, what we start to see more frequently in men is REM sleep behavior disorder, a type of parasomnia that's a risk marker of degenerative nerve diseases."

Cano emphasized one finding that, though basic, is not well known. "After adjusting for socioeconomic characteristics, the difference between the sexes in reporting sleep problems is cut in half. This suggests that an important factor that explains why there are differences in sleep problems between the sexes is that women's socioeconomic status is generally lower than men's.

"As for sleep apnea in particular," Cano continued, "the kinds of symptoms that women have can be different from the classic ones seen in men snoring, pauses in breathing, and daytime sleepiness; women are being underdiagnosed, and when they are diagnosed, that's happening at a later age and at a higher BMI."

So, it's alarming that, as reported by SEPAR, 90% of women with obstructive sleep apnea are not being diagnosed.

"The majority of research studies on sleep apnea have focused on men given the prevalence of cases and the results have been extrapolated to women. This is why there's still a lot of work to be done in terms of better defining the characteristics specific to each sleep disorder and how they relate to each sex," said Cano. "Being able to identify the relationship between the different sex-related phenotypes and each condition will allow us to take a precision medicine approach tailored to a patient's particular characteristics."

As Merino put it, "The approach to sleep disorders is always personalized. The patient's sex, in and of itself, doesn't have that great of an impact on this approach. What does have a great impact are women's life stages. There are some subtle differences here and there, such as types of continuous positive airway pressure machines. The ones that are designed for women have masks that are better suited to their facial features, which differ from men's."

A precision medicine approach can be taken to treat any sleep disorder. For insomnia, the approach allows healthcare professionals to employ an appropriate cognitive-behavioral therapy plan or to determine which drugs would be more effective all on the basis of symptoms and the characteristics of the particular case. Regarding sleep apnea, Cano explained, "Taking into account the different anatomical characteristics or the higher prevalence of positional apnea will also allow us to offer different therapeutic alternatives to continuous positive airway pressure, such as mandibular advancement devices or positional therapy devices."

Women should be encouraged to develop good sleep habits. These include taking circadian rhythms into account and aligning lifestyles accordingly. It also means going to bed earlier than the men in the household. For menopausal women, recommended sleep habits range from keeping their bedroom at an ideal temperature, following a diet rich in vegetables to avoid becoming overweight, and exercising daily. While this advice may be more applicable to teenagers, adults can benefit from it as well: electronic devices should be turned off well before bedtime. Whether from a phone screen, a tablet screen, or a TV screen, the light emitted can keep one awake, which can be harmful to one's health.

Cano and Merino have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.

This article was translated from the Medscape Spanish edition.

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"Henry Cejudo is finished" Fans hilariously react to internet celebrity Hasbulla Magomedov signing a deal with the UFC – Sportskeeda

Fans react to Hasbulla Magomedov signing with the UFC

MMA fans cant stop making jokes about Hasbulla Magomedov signing with the UFC.

Hasbulla is a social media superstar who suffers from Growth Hormone Deficiency (dwarfism). At 20, Mini Khabib is 3 foot 4 inches and started to get famous when he was seen hanging out with Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Hasbulla has since evolved into somewhat of a household name. He is often jestingly pit against Abdu Rozik, a 19-year old singer from Tajikistan who also suffers from dwarfism.

Hasbulla's massive online presence, with over 2 million instagram followers, has now led to a UFC contract. Although the details have not yet been revealed, the newest UFC signee made the announcement on Twitter by saying:

The announcement of Mini Khabib signing with the UFC shocked MMA fans. One fan made a humorous allusion to the outcome of a fight between Henry Cejudo and Hasbulla:

Check out Hasbulla Magomedov making the official announcement below:

MMA fans jestingly matched up Hasbulla Magomedov with former flyweight (125lbs) champion Henry Cejudo. Triple C joined the fun by posting a video of him calling out the newest UFC signee:

Its not clear what Hasbulla will be doing with the UFC. Mini Khabib will likely make frequent appearances at events for publicity.

Watch Henry Cejudo jokingly call out Hasbulla for a fight in the UFC below:

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"Henry Cejudo is finished" Fans hilariously react to internet celebrity Hasbulla Magomedov signing a deal with the UFC - Sportskeeda

Down and Out in Paradise review a disservice to Anthony Bourdain – The Guardian

On the first page of the first chapter of his unauthorised and unflinching new biography of Anthony Bourdain, Charles Leerhsen paraphrases George Orwells remark that saints should be considered guilty until proven innocent. Later, Leerhsen makes a more explicit case for pursuing an unvarnished portrait of the beloved chef, writer, and television host. [W]hen we try to pick and choose the lessons to take from a life, he argues, we begin to construct a lie in this case, a lie about a man singularly devoted to truth and opposed to pretension and public relations.

If Leerhsen sounds a bit defensive, its not out of nowhere. Down and Out in Paradise which contains unflattering details about Bourdain and quotes private communications from the final days, and hours, before his suicide in 2018 has been the subject of a nasty controversy that started before it even came out. Bourdains younger brother, Christopher Bourdain, has accused the book of being defamatory, and many of Bourdains friends and colleagues declined to speak to Leerhsen.

Enough did speak, however, to provide the material for an engrossing, penetrating, but often bleak book whose candour crosses the line into something uncomfortable. For example, Leerhsen uses Bourdains final messages with Asia Argento, the Italian actor with whom he had an unhappy and increasingly one-sided romance at the time of his death, as an epigraph, which feels tasteless.

The title Down and Out in Paradise is, of course, a nod to Orwells Down and Out in Paris and London, a favourite book of Bourdains and the model for his bestselling memoir Kitchen Confidential, but also an encapsulation of the question that has haunted his legacy from the time the news first broke of his death in a French hotel room. How could someone loved and admired by millions, and who had what has often been described as the best job on earth (I travel around the world, eat a lot of shit, and basically do whatever the fuck I want, Bourdain once said), be so unhappy as to take his own life?

Leerhsen deftly sketches Bourdains childhood as a would-be rebel in suburban New Jersey, his unhappy period at Vassar College before switching to cooking school and falling in love with the pirate-crew atmosphere of professional kitchens, and his early career as a very average chef who came to realise that he enjoyed writing about food as much as cooking it. After he published the New Yorker essay that became Kitchen Confidential, Bourdain was transformed from a slightly dorky recovering addict whose finances were so bad that he couldnt qualify for a credit card to an iconoclastic, world-traveling television celebrity.

Along the way, however, things began to fall apart. Armed with research drawn from confidential interviews and, apparently Bourdains phone and laptop, Leerhsen describes a man who, at the end of his life, was on difficult terms with his mother and brother and not particularly present in the life of his 11-year-old daughter; had become a boss-from-hell whose increasing obnoxiousness had alienated the few longtime friends he hadnt already unceremoniously ditched; and who, although he had quit heroin and other drugs years earlier, was a very active alcoholic. Bourdain was meeting prostitutes, we are told, and leaning heavily on Viagra, steroids, and human growth hormone to impress the two-decades-younger Argento.

Leerhsen speculates that Bourdain was grappling with a sense that hed materially achieved everything a younger him craved but had become a person rich, prickly, lonely, in need of constant validation he despised.

Leerhsen, who has a background in magazine writing, approaches biography not as a dry accumulation of facts but as something ruminative, chatty, and essayistic. Hes a stylist with a knack for winding sentences, and a nice eye, or ear, for the vivid: Bourdains face was a big, beautifully cragged-out Easter Island mask through which he somehow both eagerly and warily surveilled the world.

For all its perceptiveness, Down and Out in Paradise is marred by its tendency to constantly tie Bourdains life to the circumstances of his death: the book returns frequently to the subject, constantly foreshadows it, and closes, somewhat abruptly, with his funeral. That short-changes Bourdain. His suicide may have been the final act of his life, but it was hardly, by a long shot, the most interesting.

Down and Out in Paradise: The Life of Anthony Bourdain is published by Simon & Schuster.

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Down and Out in Paradise review a disservice to Anthony Bourdain - The Guardian