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Review
. 2024 Nov 7;14(11):1418.
doi: 10.3390/biom14111418.

How Does Physical Activity Modulate Hormone Responses?

Cristina Mennitti  1 , Gabriele Farina  2 , Antonio Imperatore  1 , Giulia De Fonzo  1 , Alessandro Gentile  1 , Evelina La Civita  3 , Gianluigi Carbone  3 , Rosa Redenta De Simone  1   4 , Maria Rosaria Di Iorio  4 , Nadia Tinto  1   4 , Giulia Frisso  1   4 , Valeria D'Argenio  4   5 , Barbara Lombardo  1   4 , Daniela Terracciano  3 , Clara Crescioli  2 , Olga Scudiero  1   4   6
Affiliations
Review

How Does Physical Activity Modulate Hormone Responses?

Cristina Mennitti et al. Biomolecules. .

Abstract

Physical activity highly impacts the neuroendocrine system and hormonal secretion. Numerous variables, both those related to the individual, including genetics, age, sex, biological rhythms, nutritional status, level of training, intake of drugs or supplements, and previous or current pathologies, and those related to the physical activity in terms of type, intensity, and duration of exercise, or environmental conditions can shape the hormonal response to physical exercise. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the effects of physical exercise on hormonal levels in the human body, focusing on changes in concentrations of hormones such as cortisol, testosterone, and insulin in response to different types and intensities of physical activity. Regular monitoring of hormonal responses in athletes could be a potential tool to design individual training programs and prevent overtraining syndrome.

Keywords: athletes; catecholamines; cortisol; growth hormone; insulin; physical activity; testosterone; thyroid.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effects of intense training/OTS on different organ function. The impact of OTS, due to too intense training or insufficient recovery, on some organ functions are summarized. Overtraining syndrome (OTS); cortisol awakening response (CAR); triiodothyronine (T3); thyroxine (T4); insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1); insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3); peptide YY (PYY); bone mineral density (BMD); body mass index (BMI).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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