Prenatal stress and children's cortisol reaction to the first day of school

Gutteling, Barbara M.; Weerth, Carolina de; Buitelaar, Jan K.

doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2005.01.002

Cited by 210 publications

(185 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Four-year-old children of mothers exhibiting higher concentrations of cortisol prenatally at 15-17 weeks of gestation had higher overall concentrations of cortisol (Gutteling et al, 2004). A separate study replicated this finding, observing that children whose mothers had higher levels of morning cortisol during pregnancy had higher circulating levels of cortisol on school days, after returning from an extended summer break (Gutteling et al, 2005). This study was particularly critical, as it demonstrated that offspring levels of cortisol were associated with maternal prenatal cortisol, as well as maternal prenatal stress; however, whether parental cortisol was associated with parental stress is unknown.…”

Section: Neuroendocrinementioning

confidence: 75%

Intergenerational Transmission of Stress in Humans

Bowers

Yehuda

2015

Neuropsychopharmacol

409

269

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The hypothesis that offspring are affected by parental trauma or stress exposure, first noted anecdotally, is now supported empirically by data from Holocaust survivor offspring cohorts and other populations. These findings have been extended to less extreme forms of stress, where differential physical, behavioral, and cognitive outcomes are observed in affected offspring. Parental stress-mediated effects in offspring could be explained by genetics or social learning theory. Alternatively, biological variations stemming from stress exposure in parents could more directly have an impact on offspring, a concept we refer to here as 'intergenerational transmission', via changes to gametes and the gestational uterine environment. We further extend this definition to include the transmission of stress to offspring via early postnatal care, as animal studies demonstrate the importance of early maternal care of pups in affecting offsprings' long-term behavioral changes. Here, we review clinical observations in offspring, noting that offspring of stress-or trauma-exposed parents may be at greater risk for physical, behavioral, and cognitive problems, as well as psychopathology. Furthermore, we review findings concerning offspring biological correlates of parental stress, in particular, offspring neuroendocrine, epigenetic, and neuroanatomical changes, in an attempt to determine the extent of parental stress effects. Although understanding the etiology of effects in offspring is currently impeded by methodological constraints, and limitations in our knowledge, we summarize current information and conclude by presenting hypotheses that have been prompted by recent studies in the field.

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Section: Neuroendocrinementioning

confidence: 75%

Intergenerational Transmission of Stress in Humans

Bowers

Yehuda

2015

Neuropsychopharmacol

409

269

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…10,11 It is suggested that maternal prenatal stress is related to dysregulation of the HPA system via "fetal programing" of the offspring. [12][13][14][15] The most common and convenient method of assessing the activity of the HPA axis is measurement of salivary cortisol levels. Given the short half-life of cortisol in saliva, concentrations of salivary cortisol reveal only momentary stress.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal Influence on Child HPA Axis: A Prospective Study of Cortisol Levels in Hair

Karlén¹,

Frostell²,

Theodorsson³

et al. 2013

Pediatrics

120

112

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WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: Stress affects health of children, potentially persisting as a trajectory into adulthood. Earlier biological markers assess only momentary stress, making it difficult to investigate stress over longer periods of time. Cortisol in hair is a new biomarker of prolonged stress. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:Mother and child hair cortisol association suggests a heritable part or maternal calibration. Cortisol output gradually stabilizes, has a stable trait, and is positively correlated to birth weight. Hair cortisol is a promising noninvasive biomarker of prolonged stress, especially applicable for children. abstract OBJECTIVE: To investigate cortisol concentrations in hair as biomarker of prolonged stress in young children and their mothers and the relation to perinatal and sociodemographic factors.METHODS: Prospective cohort study of 100 All Babies In Southeast Sweden study participants with repeated measures at 1, 3, 5, and 8 years and their mothers during pregnancy. Prolonged stress levels were assessed through cortisol in hair. A questionnaire covered perinatal and sociodemographic factors during the child' s first year of life. RESULTS:Maternal hair cortisol during the second and third trimester and child hair cortisol at year 1 and 3 correlated. Child cortisol in hair levels decreased over time and correlated to each succeeding age, between years 1 and 3 (r = 0.30, P = .002), 3 and 5 (r = 0.39, P , .001), and 5 and 8 (r = 0.44, P , .001). Repeated measures gave a significant linear association over time (P , .001). There was an association between high levels of hair cortisol and birth weight (b = .224, P = .020), nonappropriate size for gestational age (b = .231, P = .017), and living in an apartment compared with a house (b = .200, P = .049). In addition, we found high levels of cortisol in hair related to other factors associated with psychosocial stress exposure. CONCLUSIONS:Correlation between hair cortisol levels in mothers and their children suggests a heritable trait or maternal calibration of the child' s hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis. Cortisol output gradually stabilizes and seems to have a stable trait. Cortisol concentration in hair has the potential to become a biomarker of prolonged stress, especially applicable as a noninvasive method when studying how stress influences children' s health. Pediatrics 2013;132:e1333-e1340

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“…However, the correlative validity of salivary cortisol as a surrogate of free plasma cortisol has been under some debate (Levine et al, 2007). The method suffers from some disadvantages, including lack of compliance (Gutteling et al, 2005). In addition, saliva samples taken after eating or drinking substances with low pH may give falsely high cortisol values (Goodyer et al, 1996).…”

Section: Limitations and Strengths Of The Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Salivary cortisol and suicidal behavior—A follow-up study

Lindqvist

Isaksson

Lil-Träskman-Bendz

et al. 2008

Psychoneuroendocrinology

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IntroductionHyperactivity of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis is a common finding in Major DepressiveDisorder. Similar studies on suicide attempters are less abundant, and the results are divergent. The main aim of the present study was to investigate HPA-axis parameters by the time of a suicide attempt and at follow-up in search for associations between HPA axis function and suicidal behavior. MethodsThirty-five suicide attempters and 16 non-suicidal controls were admitted to a psychiatric ward between the years of 1986 an 1992. Corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) in cerebrospinal fluid and urinary cortisol were obtained for the suicide attempters. The patients were followed up approximately 12 years after the index admission. Cortisol was measured in saliva, and additional suicide attempts and current psychiatric symptoms were registered. ResultsAt follow up, evening salivary cortisol was lower in suicide attempters compared to controls. Low cortisol levels at follow up were associated with severe psychiatric symptoms. Among women, repeated suicide attempts were associated with low morning and lunch salivary cortisol, and in this subgroup we also found significant correlations between salivary cortisol at follow up, and CRH as well as urinary cortisol at index. ConclusionWe found evidence for an association between low HPA axis activity and suicidal behavior. This could be due to long lasting and severe psychiatric morbidity, which in turn has exhausted the HPA axis of these patients. The potential role of hypocortisolism should be given more attention in studies on suicidal patients.

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Prenatal stress and children's cortisol reaction to the first day of school

Cited by 210 publications

References 33 publications

Intergenerational Transmission of Stress in Humans

Intergenerational Transmission of Stress in Humans

Maternal Influence on Child HPA Axis: A Prospective Study of Cortisol Levels in Hair

Salivary cortisol and suicidal behavior—A follow-up study

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