The truth about the internet’s favourite stress hormone
The truth about the internet’s favourite stress hormone
Mar 28, 202342 secs
But chronic stress can elevate our baseline cortisol levels over time, leading to a cascade of consequences.Some mental health conditions, including depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, are associated with cortisol imbalances, said Dr Raza Sagarwala, a resident physician in the department of psychiatry at Vanderbilt University Medical Centre who has studied the effects of non-pharmacological treatments on cortisol levels.But if people are truly worried about their cortisol levels, experts said, they can talk to their primary care doctors about getting tested.Some companies offer at-home cortisol tests, which typically involve finger pricks or saliva swabs.Some small studies have suggested that yoga and mindfulness interventions such as meditation may help lower cortisol levels, Sagarwala said.Those movements prompt your body to mirror your stress response, raising your heart rate and then lowering it once you stop working out.