Blood Hormones

This chapter introduces the main hormones commonly measured in routine blood tests and explains their importance in regulating metabolism, stress responses, and reproductive function (Table 4.1). It covers insulin for blood glucose control, cortisol as the body’s primary stress hormone, and the key sex hormones—oestrogen, progesterone, and testosterone—which influence reproduction, sexual development, and bone health. The chapter also discusses prolactin, which plays a role in lactation and reproductive regulation, and DHEA, an adrenal hormone that acts as a precursor for other sex hormones.