Boys and girls require more than a just a proper diet to flourish. Critical to normal development, proper hormone levels in children help control many bodily functions including growth, sleep and the secondary sex characteristics associated with puberty. Hormone levels in children are controlled by various factors including genetics and sleep cycles.
Growth Hormone
Somatotropin is a growth hormone in children. According to information provided by Colorado State University, secretion of this hormone reaches the highest level in children soon after the onset of deep sleep. Too much growth hormone starting at a young age causes gigantism, or excessive growth, making the child extremely large in comparison to his peers.
Melatonin
Melatonin, secreted by the pineal gland, plays an essential role in the maintenance of your internal clock. In children, melatonin taken as a dietary supplement may reduce the frequency of epileptic seizures, according to information provided by the University of Maryland Medical Center. Melatonin also plays a part in determining the onset of menstruation in girls.
Puberty
Puberty occurs when secondary sexual characteristics develop, fertility begins and skeletal growth completes. Luteinizing hormone, secreted by the pituitary gland, helps control the onset of this transitional life stage. Before the visual signs of puberty, the pituitary gland raises the level of luteinizing hormone in the body via nocturnal pulses. Luteinizing hormone triggers the release of estrogen in girls and testosterone in boys, according to information provided by MassGeneral Hospital for Children.
Hormone Levels and Family Life
The psychological state of a family can increase levels of stress hormones in children and adolescents, according to the Family Stress Study conducted by Emma Adam Ph. D, a child psychologist with the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University. The results published as part of the Sloan Family Study found adolescents show higher levels of stress hormones when feeling worry or anger. Children in kindergarten exhibit higher stress hormone levels when living with high levels of conflict in the home.
Hormones and Obesity
Increases in the level of stress hormone raised by depression in adolescent girls may lead to obesity, according to a study conducted by Elizabeth J. Susman, professor of biobehavioral health at Penn State University. The study, supported by the National Institutes of Health and reported in the a February 2010 issue of Penn State Live, found boys did not have higher rates of obesity due to increased stress hormone levels.
