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Associations Between Different Cortisol Measures and Adiposity in Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Lu Ma1, Xi Liu2,3, Na Yan1

  • 1School of Public Health, Global Health Institute, Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center, Xi'an, China.

Frontiers in Nutrition
|July 11, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Hair cortisol levels in children are linked to higher body fat, suggesting chronic stress may contribute to pediatric obesity. This association was observed across different age groups and countries.

Area of Science:

  • Endocrinology and Metabolism
  • Pediatric Health
  • Stress Physiology

Background:

  • Chronic stress is implicated in pediatric obesity, but the physiological markers require further elucidation.
  • Cortisol, a key stress hormone, is measurable in various biological samples, including hair, saliva, serum, and urine.

Approach:

  • Systematic literature search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase for studies on cortisol levels and pediatric adiposity.
  • Meta-analyses of cross-sectional and cohort studies were conducted to assess associations between different cortisol measures and adiposity indicators.
  • Exploration of potential effect modification by age, sex, measurement method, and country developmental context.

Key Points:

  • Hair cortisol concentration showed a significant association with fat mass index (FMI) and BMI z-scores in children.
  • These associations were consistent across different age groups (≤12 and >12 years) and country developmental contexts (developed and developing).
  • LC-MS/MS measurement of hair cortisol yielded stronger associations with adiposity than ELISA, while salivary and serum cortisol showed no significant links to BMI.

Conclusions:

  • Hair cortisol concentration serves as a reliable indicator of chronic stress and its association with increased adiposity in children.
  • The findings support the role of physiological stress responses in the development of pediatric obesity.
  • Further research is needed to analyze urinary cortisol and adiposity due to data limitations.

Keywords:
childrenhair cortisol concentrationobesitysalivary cortisolserum cortisolurinary cortisol

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