Understanding ACTH: The What, Why & Health Implications

Workload, relationships, and a constant urge to stay ahead in today’s world lead to a lot of stress. Adults, even children, face the adverse effects of stress these days. Stress leads to a domino effect in your body, with ACTH at the center of it. By releasing cortisol, ACTH aids in managing your body’s stress reactions. When the levels of ACTH do not stay balanced, they can affect both your body and mind in many ways.

This post discusses the what and why of ACTH, along with its health implications, for your easy understanding.

ACTH: The Body’s Stress Signal

The ACTH full form is Adrenocorticotropic Hormone. It is secreted by a small organ in the brain called the anterior pituitary gland. This hormone is part of the larger endocrine system, which guides communication between organs by use of special chemical messengers. ACTH mostly responds to stress by triggering your adrenal glands to release cortisol. The latter plays a part in stress, blood pressure, metabolism, inflammation, and your sleep-wake cycle.

Impact of ACTH on the Body

ACTH can cause many important effects. Because ACTH releases cortisol, it plays a role in the body’s ability to:

·   Deal with mental or physical stress

·   Control the amounts of sugar in the blood

·   Manage the body’s immune responses

·   Controls the metabolism of protein, fats, and carbohydrates

·   Keeping blood pressure stable

In addition to cortisol, ACTH affects the secretion of androgens and neurotransmitters like adrenaline and noradrenaline when people experience intense stress.

When ACTH Levels Are Too High

High ACTH can mean there is a problem in the pituitary or adrenal glands or in both. Several reasons why ACTH levels might be high are as follows:

·   Cushing’s Disease: Too much cortisol is produced due to a pituitary tumor

·   Primary Adrenal Insufficiency (Addison’s Disease): Not enough cortisol is made by the adrenal glands

·   Ectopic ACTH Syndrome: When tumors outside the pituitary produce ACTH.

·   Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH): A genetic disease that impacts https://e-hallpass.blog/ cortisol production

Some other reasons for higher ACTH levels can be pregnancy, periods, serious stress, issues with sleeping, and some medications.

When ACTH Levels Are Too Low

Low ACTH levels can indicate problems with the pituitary gland, such as hypopituitarism. This hormonal imbalance may cause fatigue, weakness, low blood pressure, weight loss, and low blood sugar. It can disrupt your body’s ability to manage stress and maintain essential metabolic functions. Diagnosis requires further testing.

ACTH Testing: What to Expect

Your doctor might do a baseline ACTH test or a stimulation test that uses a variant of ACTH named cosyntropin to assess your ACTH levels. These are the standard steps:

·   On the morning of the test, blood samples are taken, as ACTH levels are naturally raised during this time.

·   A doctor gives cosyntropin to see how your adrenal glands make cortisol.

·   In follow-up, samples are measured at intervals of around half an hour to an hour after injection to measure cortisol.

Doctors usually tell patients to discontinue steroid medication use before testing because it can influence the results.

What the Results Could Mean

Usually, the normal level of ACTH in adults is 10 to 60 pg/mL, but there may be some variation from one lab to another. Changes in cortisol may point to diseases like Cushing’s or Addison’s, and low levels might be associated with hypopituitarism.

Final Thoughts

ACTH is very important for handling your stress and keeping your health in check. If you feel tiredness, sudden weight changes, abnormal skin, or irregular blood pressure, ACTH testing might reveal important things about your hormones. Understanding ACTH helps you notice how it shapes your energy and your body’s immunity. Checking up regularly and using treatment when needed will help you handle your health concerns better.