Cortisol awakening response in pregnant women.
In this study, basal saliva cortisol was determined in women at 32 weeks of pregnancy and again at 9 months post-partum. During pregnancy, the cortisol levels of the 119 subjects were found to be elevated, with noon and evening levels more than twice as high as during the non-pregnant state. Despite the hypercortisolism, the cortisol awakening response was still present during pregnancy. Although the absolute mean increase in cortisol at 30 min post-awakening was larger during pregnancy, the relative mean increase was around 40% of the awakening level in both cases. The cortisol awakening response was not correlated between pregnancy and the post-partum, showing a lack of stability over the 11-month period. Finally, both in the pregnant and non-pregnant states, the magnitude of the cortisol awakening response was not related to time of awakening, nor to anticipation of a working vs. non-working day. In conclusion, the free cortisol awakening response is present during pregnancy, and is potentially a useful marker to study the association between prenatal psychosocial stress and offspring development.
de Weerth
Carolina
C
Department of Developmental Psychology, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands. c.deweerth@psych.ru.nl
Buitelaar
Jan K
JK
D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D011247:Pregnancy; D011263:Pregnancy Trimester, Third / Q000378:metabolism*; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000378:metabolism*; D014851:Wakefulness / Q000502:physiology*
D006854:Hydrocortisone