Learning Biology

Chelsea Shaffer pd1
What are hormones? Hormones are naturally occuring chemicals that are produced in the bodies of all animals, and humans. They are chemical messages released into the blood by hormone-producing organs that travel to and affect different parts of the body. They control important body functions such as growth, development and reproduction. Hormones can be steroids or proteins. Steroid hormones are active in the body when eating. For example, birth control pills are steroid hormones. On the other hand, protein hormones are broken down in the stomach, then lose their ability to act in the body when eaten. Therefore, protein hormones need to be injected into the body to have an effect. For example, insulin is a protein hormone. Diabetics need to be injected with insulin. Now when hormones are used in food there are some pros to the issue <ref>http://envirocancer.cornell.edu/Factsheet/Diet/fs37.hormones.cfm<ref/> they can make small young animals gain weight faster, and help reduce the waiting time and the amount of feed eaten by an animal before slaughter in meat industries. Hormones that include three which are naturally occurring—Oestradiol, Progesterone and Testosterone—and three which are synthetic—Zeranol, Trenbolone, and Melengestrol. Hormones can be used in dairy cows to increase milk production. Hormones can can then increase the profits made by the meat and dairy industries. <ref>http://www.sustainabletable.org/issues/hormones/<ref/> On the other hand the cons of the hormone enhanced animals and what we don’t realize is what these hormones do to us. There is a concern that because of increased milking in cows, hormone-treated cows may become more prone to infection of the udders. This could lead to more antibiotics being used to treat the cows, in turn leading to more of antibiotics to remain in the milk. Over a long period of time the bacteria in your stomach that help with digestion are exsposed to the antibiotics and become immune to it. Which will cause the bactiria to not react when you take antibiotics when you are sick and will make you get healthy slower. Yet another concern is the cows manure. The hormones are also passed through the cow when it excretes its wastes, then the farms will use the manure to fertilize the fileds of their crops, then the cosumer gets even more of the growth hormones from eatting the crops that are grown with hormone contaminated manure. Children, pregnant women and the unborn are thought to be most at risk to the negative health effects. Hormone residues in beef have been the cause of early puberty in girls, which could put them at greater risk of developing breast and other forms of cancer.

In conclusion I belive that hormones should not be givin to animals, the only people that the hormones give an advantage to are the farmers because they make the animals grow bigger quicker, and get to the slaughter house faster so they eat less food so the farmer can spend less money. In the long run all it does for us is put us at risk for major health problems like breast cancer, and immunity in our bodies to antibiotics and make us more prone to infecctions. So as you can see growth hormones should not be used in animals for it can harm people over a long period of ingesting them. A few ways to avoid eatting to many of these growth hormones are to eat a varied diet rich in fruits, grains and vegatables, eat meats in moderation well cooked, and eat more lean muscle meat rather than fat.

Other site references
<ref>http://www.fda.gov/cvm/hormones.htm<ref/>
<ref>http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/comments/display?contentID=AR2006111300824<ref/>