What is adrenaline? And how it works?
What is adrenaline? And how it works?
Adrenaline triggers the body's fight-or-flight response. This reaction causes air passages to dilate to provide the muscles with the oxygen they need to either fight danger or flee. Adrenalinealso triggers the blood vessels to contract to re-direct blood toward major muscle groups, including the heart and lungs. Where does adrenaline come from? Adrenaline is a creation of the nervous system.
The human nervous system is divided into two sections:
- central nervous system
- peripheral nervous system
The peripheral nervous system has two sub systems:
- somatic nervous system (our voluntary movements).
- autonomic nervous system(unconscious operation of heart, digestion and breathing).
The autonomic nervous system has three components:(
Sympathetic stimulates ‘fight or flight’).
- parasympathetic (“breed and feed” or ‘rest and digest’).
- Enteric (“second brain”).
Sympathetic Nervous System (Fight or Flight) Our sympathetic nervous system is the center of our ‘fight or flight’ response, that ancient reaction to danger which enabled our ancestors to outrun, outmaneuver and outsmart predators.
The sympathetic nervous system is always mildly activated, ready. It manages stress, and returns the body to homeostatis, through the activation (or inactivation) of the adrenal gland.
Adrenal Gland Adrenaline is manufactured within our adrenal glands. There are two.
Each adrenal gland sits atop a kidney. (The word adrenal literally means at (ad) the kidney (renal).
The adrenal gland has two sections.
- Adrenal cortex (outer portion)
- Adrenal medulla (inner portion)
The adrenal cortex produces cortisol (another stress hormone), which regulates metabolism. Aldosterone, which helps control blood pressure, is also secreted here.
The adrenal medulla. It’s here that adrenaline (a catecholamine:) is generated to help you fight tigers, or meet that deadline. Unlike the adrenal cortex, the adrenal medulla is not essential to human life. The adrenal medulla connects to the sympathetic nervous system via a sympathoadrenal system that regulates the stress response.
Adrenaline is a creation of the nervous system.
The human nervous system is divided into two sections:
- central nervous system
- peripheral nervous system
The peripheral nervous system has two sub systems:
- somatic nervous system (our voluntary movements).
- autonomic nervous system(unconscious operation of heart, digestion and breathing).
The autonomic nervous system has three components:(
Sympathetic stimulates ‘fight or flight’).
- parasympathetic (“breed and feed” or ‘rest and digest’).
- Enteric (“second brain”).
Our sympathetic nervous system is the center of our ‘fight or flight’ response, that ancient reaction to danger which enabled our ancestors to outrun, outmaneuver and outsmart predators.
The sympathetic nervous system is always mildly activated, ready. It manages stress, and returns the body to homeostatis, through the activation (or inactivation) of the adrenal gland.
Adrenal GlandAdrenaline is manufactured within our adrenal glands. There are two.
Each adrenal gland sits atop a kidney. (The word adrenal literally means at (ad) the kidney (renal).
The adrenal gland has two sections.
- Adrenal cortex (outer portion)
- Adrenal medulla (inner portion)
The adrenal cortex produces cortisol (another stress hormone), which regulates metabolism. Aldosterone, which helps control blood pressure, is also secreted here.
The adrenal medulla. It’s here that adrenaline (a catecholamine:) is generated to help you fight tigers, or meet that deadline. Unlike the adrenal cortex, the adrenal medulla is not essential to human life. The adrenal medulla connects to the sympathetic nervous system via a sympathoadrenal system that regulates the stress response.
