Evidence for disruption of diurnal salivary cortisol rhythm in childhood obesity: relationships with anthropometry, puberty and physical activity

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics of diurnal cortisol rhythm in childhood obesity and its relationships with anthropometry, pubertal stage and physical activity. Methods: Thirty-five children with obesity (median age: 11.80[interquartile range 10.30, 13.30] and median BMI zscore: 3.21[interquartile range 2.69, 3.71]) and 22 children with normal weight (median age: 10.85[interquartile range 8.98, 12.13] and median BMI z-score: − 0.27[interquartile range − 0.88, 0.35]) were recruited. Saliva samples were collected at 08:00, 16:00 and 23:00 h. Cortisol concentrations at 3 time points, corresponding areas under the curve (AUCs) and diurnal cortisol slope (DCS) were compared between the two groups. Anthropometric measures and pubertal stage were evaluated, and behavioural information was obtained via questionnaires. Results: Children with obesity displayed significantly lower cortisol 08:00 (median [interquartile range]: 5.79[3.42,7.73] vs. 8.

Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Blood Pressure and Ethnicity Are Related to Salivary Cortisol Responses after an Exercise Test in Children: The ExAMIN Youth SA Study

“…Obesity was inversely associated with baseline cortisol, but not independent of ethnicity, BP or physical fitness. Similar to our findings, previous research demonstrated a lower morning cortisol accumulation in children with obesity and higher body fat [12,13]. However, others found a positive association of salivary and hair cortisol with obesity in young girls [31].…”

“…Wirix et al found that salivary cortisol is not associated with elevated BP in overweight and/or obese children [12]. A recent study demonstrated a lower morning cortisol level and a higher evening cortisol level in children with obesity compared to children with normal weight [13]. The same study found an inverse association between salivary cortisol level and time spent on moderate to vigorous physical activity.…”

Clinical and biological correlates of morning serum cortisol in children and adolescents with overweight and obesity

“…We could not differentiate obese children and adolescents with high cortisol from those with normal cortisol using clinical or biological characteristics. While in some studies higher morning serum cortisol concentrations have been found in obese children [ 4 – 10 ], normal and lower morning serum and salivary concentrations have been reported by others [ 14 , 21 – 23 ]. As the cortisol secretion is both diurnal and pulsatile, conflicting results concerning the association between cortisol secretion and obesity can be expected by using single-point sampling.…”

The Role of Very Low Calorie Ketogenic Diet in Sympathetic Activation through Cortisol Secretion in Male Obese Population

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