Abstract
(1) Background: In the present pilot study, we examined the response of cortisol to a digital version of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and corresponding eating preferences in non-overweight and overweight adolescents. (2) Methods: The experimental study group included 35 adolescents aged 15.7 ± 0.5 years (16 boys and 19 girls). The participants were split into two groups: non-overweight (N = 24) and overweight (N = 11), according to the Body Mass Index (BMI). We induced acute stress in all participants, using a digital version of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), with three different digital tasks. We measured salivary cortisol before the test (T0), during the stress induction by digital tasks (T5, T10, T15), and 25 min after the stress test (T40). The Health Behavior in School-Aged Children Questionnaire (HBSC) was administered to assess the influence of stress on eating behavior: the consumption of fruit, vegetables, sweets, and soft drinks and the frequency of snacks. (3) Results: Among the entire group of adolescents, we observed a significant difference between the sexes in terms of cortisol response, girls being predominantly hyperreactive (13 girls compared to 5 boys, p = 0.03). In overweight adolescents, the cortisol reactivity was lower in boys and higher in girls (p = 0.05). The overweight hyperreactive adolescents, as compared to the hyporeactive ones, had a higher frequency of daily consumption of sweets (25% vs. 0%) and soft drink (25% vs. 0). (4) Conclusions: The individual patterns of cortisol reactivity to laboratory-induced stress could be associated with an increased risk of unhealthy eating behavior in adolescents.
Highlights
There is a positive association between stress and obesity [1]
The study procedure started at 09:00 h, and the adolescents were exposed to a novel digital version of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST)
Our results indicate that eating habits are related to of salivary cortisol response to the TSST
Summary
There is a positive association between stress and obesity [1]. Obesity has been linked to disturbances of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis and an abnormal cortisol output [2]. An essential aspect of the body’s interconnected set of physiological systems for responding to challenges, the HPA axis is especially sensitive to stressful situations, especially those involving novelty, uncontrollability, or social threat [3]. Stressful events have been associated with both increased and decreased food intake [4,5], and the biological mechanism involves interactions between glucocorticoids, appetite-related hormones (e.g., ghrelin, leptin, insulin), and the brain’s dopaminergic reward system [6]. Thereby, coping strategies to manage stress can lead to, on the one hand, increased food intake with a lot of sugary/fatty food or, on the other hand, avoidance of food in the context of a ’fight-or-flight reaction’ [5]
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