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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 14, 2026

A Chronic High-Intensity Interval Training and Diet-Induced Obesity Model to Maximize Exercise Effort and Induce Physiologic Changes in Rats
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A Chronic High-Intensity Interval Training and Diet-Induced Obesity Model to Maximize Exercise Effort and Induce Physiologic Changes in Rats

Published on: April 28, 2023

Low calorie dieting increases cortisol.

A Janet Tomiyama1, Traci Mann, Danielle Vinas

  • 1Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health and Society Scholars Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94118, USA. tomiyamaj@chc.ucsf.edu

Psychosomatic Medicine
|April 7, 2010
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Dieting behaviors like calorie restriction increase cortisol, while monitoring intake raises perceived stress. These factors may negatively impact weight management and well-being.

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Palatable Western-style Cafeteria Diet as a Reliable Method for Modeling Diet-induced Obesity in Rodents
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Published on: November 1, 2019

Area of Science:

  • Behavioral Science
  • Endocrinology
  • Psychology

Background:

  • Dieting is often recommended for weight management but its effectiveness is debated.
  • Psychological stress and cortisol are implicated in weight gain, yet their relationship with dieting behaviors is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if dieting, specifically caloric restriction, increases psychological stress and cortisol.
  • To determine the independent effects of monitoring caloric intake and restricting caloric intake on stress indicators.

Main Methods:

  • A 3-week controlled experiment with 121 female participants assigned to four groups: monitoring + restricting, monitoring only, restricting only, and control.
  • Interventions involved varying levels of caloric intake monitoring and restriction (1200 kcal/day).
  • Measures included perceived stress questionnaires and diurnal salivary cortisol sampling before and after the intervention.

Main Results:

  • Caloric restriction significantly increased overall cortisol output.
  • Monitoring caloric intake was associated with increased perceived stress.

Conclusions:

  • Dieting behaviors, particularly restriction and monitoring, may adversely affect psychological well-being and biological stress responses.
  • Clinical recommendations for dieting may require re-evaluation in light of these findings.