Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 15, 2026
Collecting Saliva and Measuring Salivary Cortisol and Alpha-amylase in Frail Community Residing Older Adults via Family Caregivers
Published on: December 18, 2013
Relation between salivary cortisol as stress biomarker and dietary pattern in children
Nathalie Michels1, Isabelle Sioen, Caroline Braet
1Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 2 Blok A, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Insights
High cortisol levels in children are linked to unhealthy food choices, particularly sweet, fatty, and snack foods. This finding supports the stress-diet connection and the preference for comfort foods during stressful periods.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Endocrinology
- Nutritional Science
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
Background:
- Psychological stress can influence hormonal patterns, such as cortisol, potentially leading to unhealthy food choices.
- Understanding the relationship between stress biomarkers and dietary patterns in children is crucial for public health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between salivary cortisol levels and dietary patterns in children.
- To determine if stress hormones correlate with the consumption of specific food groups in pediatric populations.
Main Methods:
- Salivary cortisol samples were collected from 323 children (aged 5-10) at multiple time points over two weekdays.
- Dietary patterns, including consumption of sweet foods, fatty foods, snacks, fruits, and vegetables, were assessed using a food frequency questionnaire.
- Multilevel time modeling was employed, with adjustments for covariates such as sex, age, BMI, parental education, and wake-up time.
Main Results:
- Higher overall cortisol levels and a significant cortisol awakening response (CAR) were associated with increased sweet food consumption.
- A faster decline in diurnal cortisol levels correlated with higher frequencies of consuming sweet foods, fatty foods, and snacks.
- No significant associations were observed between salivary cortisol levels and the consumption of fruits and vegetables.
Conclusions:
- Elevated cortisol levels in children are associated with less healthy dietary patterns, characterized by higher intake of sweet, fatty, and snack foods.
- These findings support the concept of cortisol-induced comfort food preferences and reinforce the link between psychological stress and dietary habits in children.
Purpose:
Psychological stress has been suggested to result in hormonal effects (e.g. changes in cortisol pattern) that may change food selection in unhealthy ways. This study examines whether children's dietary pattern is indeed related to salivary cortisol levels.
Methods:
In 323 children (5-10 years old) participating in the Belgian ChiBS study, salivary cortisol samples, a biomarker for stress, was sampled when waking up, 30 and 60 min after wake up and in the evening on two consecutive weekdays. Data on the children's dietary pattern (frequency of sweet foods, fatty foods, snacks, fruit and vegetables) was collected with a food frequency questionnaire. Multilevel time modelling was used with adjustments for sex, age, body mass index, parental education and wake up time.
Results:
Higher overall cortisol levels and a large cortisol awakening response (CAR) were associated with more frequent consumption of sweet foods. A steeper diurnal cortisol decline was associated with a higher sweet, fatty and snack food consumption frequency. No associations with fruit and vegetables consumption were found.
Conclusions:
High cortisol levels were linked to an unhealthier dietary pattern (more fatty food, snacks and especially sweet food). This supports the theory of cortisol-induced comfort food preference and strengthens the stress-diet relation.
Related Concept Videos
01:27Introduction to Stress and Lifestyle
01:19Psychoneuroimmunology: Diabetes and Cancer
01:27Psychoneuroimmunology: Cardiovascular Disease
A key area of focus in PNI is the relationship between stress and coronary...