Saturday, January 12, 2008

Pee, Sweat & Tears

Question One:

How often do women pee or sweat compared to the men in their lives? I think we all know the answer.

Sweat removes excess salts from the body and cools us down when we are overheated; urine expels waste products that can harm the body. Both sweat and urine lower the level of toxic proteins associated with stress. This speaks to the efficiency of human design. If males had to sit down every time their bladders responded to stress, there would be lines in front of every men's room door and we would see a lot more men peeing their pants.

Tears are body excretions just like sweat and urine. There are three types of tears and they differ completely in function and biochemical composition. Basil tears (also called continuous tears) keep the ocular surface moist; reflex tears (also called irritant tears) are a reaction to onion vapors, smoke or foreign bodies; emotional tears, secreted in moments of intense feelings or total fatigue, lower levels of proteins and hormones that can become toxic when the body experiences emotional stress.

One of the major stress hormones released from tears is prolactin, which is found in higher concentration in women's bodies than in men's, therefore explaining the tendency for females to tear up quicker than males.

If the hormones and proteins associated with stress are not discharged through body excretions, they build up to toxic levels---the outcome being a compromised immune system in both males and females.

So, let's make a deal. We women will continue to pretend we don't notice how often you men suddenly have to pee, and you men will understand that when a woman gets a tear in her eye, it's a similar physiological response designed to protect our health.

Question Two:

Forgive me, but I have to ask this question, too.


Given the information above and in order to be fair, shouldn't both the liberal and conservative press start giving the same amount of coverage to the number of times the presidential hopefuls visit the men's room, as they are giving to one tear that didn't even fall.

I'm Ellen Troyer, and this article is meant to be educational, not a Senator Clinton endorsement.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

As to Hillary and her eyes "welling up", as you noted, stress and fatigue may produce this response without any emotional connection.
As to men wetting their pants, I've learned to wear pants that look the same wet as dry.

Ellen Troyer, MT MA said...

Smart funny man (doctor I suspect) who understands that tears are the female body's natural response to overwheling stress and fatigue.

This stress lowering response allows women to outlive men by about five years.

Anonymous said...

Hey Ellen,

Are you suggesting that if men cried more, they would pee less?

If so, I'm bringing up the five- year-old death of my husband's favorite dog every night. I need some undisturbed sleep.

Love this blog!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh Please!

I really don't really want to know how many times Ron Paul, Mike Huckabee, John McCain or Barack Obama visit the men's room.

And, I've heard more than enough about Hillary's tear. If the gender-biased mainstream press can't find anything more interesting or more important to talk about I will vote for her in protest on January 19, and I'm NOT a Hillary fan.

Anonymous said...

I'm not convinced it's gender bashing as much as just Hillary bashing, which could be one in the same. In any case, it's disrespectful and makes me prefer to watch foreign news channels.

Anonymous said...

Tear chemistry is cool!

I hear there is a new pregnancy test being developed that will use tears instead of urine.

Ellen Troyer, MT MA said...

It's my understanding that hormonal changes associated with pregnancy present in female tears within days of conception.

However, home collection of basil tears is difficult, so I doubt the tear test will ever compete with urine tests.

Anonymous said...

What great science we have within us. A system that can alarm us to remove toxins in the form of sweat, tears, and urine, whether male or female. Thanks Ellen for the information.

As Dr. Henry Maudsley said in 1907, "The sorrow which has no vent in tears may make other organs weep".

Anonymous said...

I love this blog. I never knew that was why women cried more than men. I use the bathroom a lot at work does that mean I'm stressed? Or does going to the bathroom a lot keep my stress level down?

Ellen Troyer, MT MA said...

Hi Haylee,

Are you a male or a female?

Anonymous said...

female

Ellen Troyer, MT MA said...

Hi Haylee,

Most females don't need to pee nearly as often as males.

Hopefully, your constant trips to the bathroom simply mean that you are drinking a lot of water, or that you are bored with your job.

But, do know that excessive peeing can also be an early symptom of type 2 diabetes and pregnancy.

Anonymous said...

Everytime I so much as hear water running...I'm running to the bathroom! Great blog Ellen!

Unknown said...

Not to mention prostate issues!! BPH (enlarged prostate) had me going several times a night. Once that was resolved, now I can sleep! What a relief....

Now, back to tears- we looked at using tear glucose testing for pre-diabetes years ago. Not sure why it never took off but the results looked pretty good. Guess there wasn't enough money in it for Big Pharma to get involved....

Ellen Troyer, MT MA said...

Good point Jeffery!

Tear chemistry is almost magic. It tells us so much about what is happening in the entire body.