Puberty
What is often the first visible sign of puberty in girls, usually starting between the ages 8 and 13
breast development
What decade of a woman’s life is associated with the highest fertility rates?
20s
Menopause is defined as the permanent end of this biological function?
menstruation
Estrogen is produced mainly from what organ?
The ovaries
What does the body start doing when it can start conceiving pregnancies?
Have a menstrual cycle
As a woman ages, her ovarian follicles become less responsive to FSH, causing a drop in this hormone level
Estrogen
Before menopause, what stage starts causing periods to become irregular?
Perimenopause
Estrogen changes what inside the uterus in preparation for a pregnancy?
Thinkens the uterine lining.
What hormone shapes fat distribution during puberty, especially around the hips and thighs, to support future fertility?
Estrogen
Aneuploidy causes egg quality to decline in the mid to late 30s. What is occurring in many of these eggs?
too many or too few chromosomes in the eggs (chromosomal abnormality)
During menopause, levels of this hormone rise significantly as the body tries to stimulate the non-responsive ovaries.
FSH (follicle-stimulating hormone)
What are two groups of ages in a woman's life where estrogen production is unsteady and causes cycle irregularity
What hormone begins preparing the uterus lining during puberty before a girl starts her period?
progesterone
During perimenopause, skipped ovulation and the destabilization of the uterine lining are caused by what in the body is declining?
Progesterone levels
What is no longer occurring during Menopause, and what two hormones have direct influence?
Ovaries releasing eggs (controlled by FSH and Estrogen)
Estrogen plays a direct role in FSH, which controls which type of cell?
Ovarian Eggs (scientific name oocytes)
(Critical thinking) During puberty, estrogen and progesterone levels fluctuate, causing hormone instability. What are the two effects that may occur from this?
answers vary
(Critical Thinking) A woman in her late 30s is undergoing IVF to conceive. Given that ovarian reserve and FSH responsiveness decline with age, how does synthetic ovarian stimulation help her conceive? Give two reasons to earn points.
- Increases FSH follicle stimulation to normal levels
- Increases estrogen levels in the body
- Stronger FSH helps mature eggs in ovulation
- Helps retrieve eggs when ovarian reserve is low
- Helps equalize hormonal imbalance; stimulating a more effective cycle
(Critical thinking) What organ system is rapidly changing during menopause?
endocrine system
(Critical thinking) When estrogen levels fluctuate, what aspect of the menstrual cycle changes, making flow, consistency, and amount inconsistent?
How thick the uterine lining is