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. 2013 Aug;37(8):1104-8.
doi: 10.1038/ijo.2012.166. Epub 2012 Dec 18.

Cortisol and ghrelin concentrations following a cold pressor stress test in overweight individuals with and without night eating

A Geliebter  1 , S Carnell, M E Gluck
Affiliations

Cortisol and ghrelin concentrations following a cold pressor stress test in overweight individuals with and without night eating

A Geliebter et al. Int J Obes (Lond). 2013 Aug.

Abstract

Objective: To explore appetite-related hormones following stress in overweight individuals, and their relationship with night eating (NE) status.

Method: We measured plasma cortisol and ghrelin concentrations, and recorded ratings of stress and hunger in response to a physiological laboratory stressor (cold pressor test, CPT), in overweight women with (n=11; NE) and without (n=17; non-NE) NE.

Results: Following the CPT, cortisol (P<0.001) and ghrelin (P<0.05) levels increased, as did stress and hunger ratings (all P<0.001), across all subjects (NE and non-NE). NE exhibited higher baseline cortisol (P<0.05) levels than non-NE. NE also had greater cortisol area under the curve (AUC) than non-NE (P=0.019), but not when controlling for baseline cortisol levels. Ghrelin baseline and AUC did not differ between groups. NE showed higher AUC stress (P<0.05), even when controlling for baseline stress.

Discussion: Overweight individuals showed increased cortisol, ghrelin, stress and hunger following a laboratory stressor, and there was some evidence for greater increases in cortisol and subjective stress among NE. The greater AUC cortisol level in NE was due to higher baseline levels, but the group difference in stress was in direct response to the stressor. Our results support a role for cortisol and stress in NE.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Hormones in relation to Cold Pressor Test in Night Eaters (NE) and non-Night Eaters (non-NE). (a) Cortisol (μg/ml), mean ± SEM, in response to CPT. b) Ghrelin (pg/ml), mean ± SEM, in response to CPT.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Visual Analog Scale (VAS) ratings in relation to Cold Pressor Test in Night Eaters (NE) and non-Night Eaters (non-NE). (a) VAS stress (0 – 100 mm), mean ± SEM, in response to CPT by NE status. (b) VAS hunger (0 – 100 mm), mean ± SEM, in response to CPT by NE status.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Scatterplot showing relationship between peak cortisol and AUC hunger, with regression line (r=0.38, p< .05).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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