Abstract
Chronic stress and over-activity in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may link breakfast skipping and poor cardiometabolic health. Missing the first major meal of the day in rodents prolongs elevated circulating corticosterone at a time when it's normally decreasing. To extend these findings to humans, we hypothesized that habitual breakfast skippers would display a similar pattern of circulating cortisol and alterations in meal and stress-induced cortisol reactions. Normal weight to obese women aged 18-45. years old who were strictly defined as either breakfast skippers (n. =. 30) or breakfast eaters (n. =. 35) were invited to participate in our study. Normal breakfast habits were maintained for the entire study period and each participant attended 4 lab visits. Over the first 2 lab visits, body composition, fasting clinical chemistries, and self-reports of chronic stress were assessed. On each of 2 additional days (lab visits 3 and 4), salivary free cortisol was measured at home upon waking and at bedtime, and in the lab in response to a standard lunch, ad libitum afternoon snack buffet, and stress and control (relaxation) tasks. The order of the control and stress test visits was randomized. While body weight, body composition, HOMA-IR, total and HDL cholesterol did not statistically differ (p. >. 0.05), both diastolic and systolic blood pressure was elevated (p. <. 0.01) and LDL cholesterol was lower (p. =. 0.04) in the breakfast skipper group. Compared to the breakfast eaters and on the control task visit only, breakfast skippers had higher circulating cortisol from arrival to midafternoon (p. <. 0.01) and during the snack buffet (p. <. 0.05). Furthermore, the lunch-induced cortisol reaction was larger in the 'skippers' (p. =. 0.03). On both stress and control visit days, the diurnal cortisol amplitude was significantly (p. =. 0.02) blunted in breakfast skippers. Self-reports of chronic stress did not differ between the groups. These data indicate that habitually skipping breakfast is associated with stress-independent over-activity in the HPA axis which, if prolonged, may increase risk (e.g., hypertension) for cardiometabolic disease in some people.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 215-221 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Physiology and Behavior |
| Volume | 140 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Mar 1 2015 |
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Keywords
- Blood pressure
- Breakfast skipping
- Cardiometabolic health
- Cortisol
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Philosophy
Cite this
Female breakfast skippers display a disrupted cortisol rhythm and elevated blood pressure. / Witbracht, Megan; Keim, Nancy L.; Forester, Shavawn; Widaman, Adrianne; Laugero, Kevin.
In: Physiology and Behavior, Vol. 140, 01.03.2015, p. 215-221.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Female breakfast skippers display a disrupted cortisol rhythm and elevated blood pressure
AU - Witbracht, Megan
AU - Keim, Nancy L.
AU - Forester, Shavawn
AU - Widaman, Adrianne
AU - Laugero, Kevin
PY - 2015/3/1
Y1 - 2015/3/1
N2 - Chronic stress and over-activity in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may link breakfast skipping and poor cardiometabolic health. Missing the first major meal of the day in rodents prolongs elevated circulating corticosterone at a time when it's normally decreasing. To extend these findings to humans, we hypothesized that habitual breakfast skippers would display a similar pattern of circulating cortisol and alterations in meal and stress-induced cortisol reactions. Normal weight to obese women aged 18-45. years old who were strictly defined as either breakfast skippers (n. =. 30) or breakfast eaters (n. =. 35) were invited to participate in our study. Normal breakfast habits were maintained for the entire study period and each participant attended 4 lab visits. Over the first 2 lab visits, body composition, fasting clinical chemistries, and self-reports of chronic stress were assessed. On each of 2 additional days (lab visits 3 and 4), salivary free cortisol was measured at home upon waking and at bedtime, and in the lab in response to a standard lunch, ad libitum afternoon snack buffet, and stress and control (relaxation) tasks. The order of the control and stress test visits was randomized. While body weight, body composition, HOMA-IR, total and HDL cholesterol did not statistically differ (p. >. 0.05), both diastolic and systolic blood pressure was elevated (p. <. 0.01) and LDL cholesterol was lower (p. =. 0.04) in the breakfast skipper group. Compared to the breakfast eaters and on the control task visit only, breakfast skippers had higher circulating cortisol from arrival to midafternoon (p. <. 0.01) and during the snack buffet (p. <. 0.05). Furthermore, the lunch-induced cortisol reaction was larger in the 'skippers' (p. =. 0.03). On both stress and control visit days, the diurnal cortisol amplitude was significantly (p. =. 0.02) blunted in breakfast skippers. Self-reports of chronic stress did not differ between the groups. These data indicate that habitually skipping breakfast is associated with stress-independent over-activity in the HPA axis which, if prolonged, may increase risk (e.g., hypertension) for cardiometabolic disease in some people.
AB - Chronic stress and over-activity in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may link breakfast skipping and poor cardiometabolic health. Missing the first major meal of the day in rodents prolongs elevated circulating corticosterone at a time when it's normally decreasing. To extend these findings to humans, we hypothesized that habitual breakfast skippers would display a similar pattern of circulating cortisol and alterations in meal and stress-induced cortisol reactions. Normal weight to obese women aged 18-45. years old who were strictly defined as either breakfast skippers (n. =. 30) or breakfast eaters (n. =. 35) were invited to participate in our study. Normal breakfast habits were maintained for the entire study period and each participant attended 4 lab visits. Over the first 2 lab visits, body composition, fasting clinical chemistries, and self-reports of chronic stress were assessed. On each of 2 additional days (lab visits 3 and 4), salivary free cortisol was measured at home upon waking and at bedtime, and in the lab in response to a standard lunch, ad libitum afternoon snack buffet, and stress and control (relaxation) tasks. The order of the control and stress test visits was randomized. While body weight, body composition, HOMA-IR, total and HDL cholesterol did not statistically differ (p. >. 0.05), both diastolic and systolic blood pressure was elevated (p. <. 0.01) and LDL cholesterol was lower (p. =. 0.04) in the breakfast skipper group. Compared to the breakfast eaters and on the control task visit only, breakfast skippers had higher circulating cortisol from arrival to midafternoon (p. <. 0.01) and during the snack buffet (p. <. 0.05). Furthermore, the lunch-induced cortisol reaction was larger in the 'skippers' (p. =. 0.03). On both stress and control visit days, the diurnal cortisol amplitude was significantly (p. =. 0.02) blunted in breakfast skippers. Self-reports of chronic stress did not differ between the groups. These data indicate that habitually skipping breakfast is associated with stress-independent over-activity in the HPA axis which, if prolonged, may increase risk (e.g., hypertension) for cardiometabolic disease in some people.
KW - Blood pressure
KW - Breakfast skipping
KW - Cardiometabolic health
KW - Cortisol
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84920121554&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.physbeh.2014.12.044
DO - 10.1016/j.physbeh.2014.12.044
M3 - Article
C2 - 25545767
AN - SCOPUS:84920121554
VL - 140
SP - 215
EP - 221
JO - Physiology and Behavior
JF - Physiology and Behavior
SN - 0031-9384
ER -