Sex Hormones Flashcards
Which changes happen to both males and females?
Pubic hair grows
Underarm hair grows
Stronger body smell
Increased sex drive and sexual awareness
Which changes happen to females only?
Breasts develop
Ovaries start to release eggs (and periods start)
Increase in body mass: hips widen
Which changes happen to males only?
Voice breaks, gets deeper Testes and penis get bigger Sperm is produced by testes Hair grows on face and body Increase in body mass: body becomes more muscular
What is the menstrual cycle?
The menstrual cycle in women is a recurring process in which the lining of the uterus (womb) is prepared for pregnancy, and if pregnancy does not happen, the lining is shed atmenstruation (period).
What is menstruation?
Shedding of the lining of the uterus
Menstrual cycle?
Changes that happen in the female body over the course of a month
Order of the menstrual cycle?
- old egg leaves the boy in menstruation (bleeding as uterus lining is shed)
- new egg maturing in the ovary
- egg released
- womb lining thick and spongy ready to receive new egg
- egg not fertilised so womb lining breaks down
- egg leaves body in menstruation
FSH = where produced and effect
Pituitary gland
Causes an egg to mature in an ovary; stimulates the ovaries to release oestrogen
Oestrogen = where produced and effect
Ovaries
Stops FSH being produced (so that only one egg matures in a cycle); repairs, thickens and maintains the uterus lining; stimulates the pituitary gland to release LH
LH = where produced and effect
Pituitary gland Triggers ovulation (the release of a mature egg)
Progesterone = where produced and effect
Ovaries
Maintains the lining of the uterus during the middle part of the menstrual cycle and during pregnancy
How long is one menstrual cycle?
28 days
On which day of the menstrual cycle does your period begin?
1st
On which day of the menstrual cycle is an egg released from the ovary (ovulation)?
14
What happens to the lining of the uterus if an egg is not fertilised?
It breaks down as progesterone concentrations starts to fall
Why does a woman not have periods when pregnant?
Because progesterone concentration do not start to fall and so the uterus lining does not break down
How long does a period usually last in the menstrual cycle?
5 days
If an egg is released from the left ovary on the 2nd March, when would the next egg be released from the right ovary?
30th March
If a woman has a period which begins on the 1st January, when will her period begin?
29th January
