title: The association between morning cortisol and adiposity in children varies by weight status.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the associations between morning cortisol and adiposity in children at baseline and 9-month follow-up.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants included 649 (301 males, 348 females) children (9.6 +/- 0.9 years) for the cross-sectional analysis and 316 (153 males, 163 females) for the longitudinal analysis. Body mass index (BMI, kg/m2) was calculated from measured height and weight and waist circumference (WC, cm) was measured at the superior border of the iliac crest. Cortisol was assessed via saliva samples collected on a single morning. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between cortisol and adiposity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Approximately 31% were overweight (17.7%) or obese (12.8%). The mean cortisol level was 9.36 +/- 5.64 nmol/L (0.34 +/- 0.20 microg/dL). At baseline, no significant correlations were found between cortisol and BMI or WC (r < 0.07). Baseline cortisol did not correlate with change in BMI z-score (r = -0.03) or WC (r < -0.01) over the follow-up period. When examined by weight status, baseline cortisol was significantly related to changes in WC (r = 0.32) and BMI z-score (r = 0.28) among overweight subjects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A positive relationship was found between morning cortisol and change in WC over 9 months in overweight children. Future studies should examine the association between 24-h cortisol patterns and direct measures of trunk fat.
authors.affiliation: Department of Kinesiology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.
authors.forename: Emily E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: Joey C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Eisenmann
authors.forename: Douglas
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gentile
authors.forename: Megan E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Holmes
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Walsh
mesh_terms: D050154:Adiposity / Q000502:physiology*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / Q000502:physiology; D050152:Intra-Abdominal Fat / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000502:physiology; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone