Diurnal cortisol pattern, eating behaviors and overweight in low-income preschool-aged children

This study examined, among children, the associations among chaos in the home, diurnal cortisol patterns, eating behaviors and being overweight. Participants included 331 low-income children aged 3-4 years. Mean salivary cortisol-intercept (representing morning peak, 60 min since waking) and cortisol-slope (representing diurnal decline after peak) were calculated using mixed models from samples obtained across 3 days. Parents reported chaos in the home by questionnaire and responded to the Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire, generating subscales Food Responsiveness (FR), Emotional Overeating (EO), Enjoyment of Food (EF), and Satiety Responsiveness (SR). Body mass index was categorized as overweight vs. not. Path analysis evaluated associations among chaos, cortisol patterns, eating behaviors, and weight status. Children living in more chaotic homes had lower morning cortisol levels, consistent with “hypocortisolism” reported among individuals who have experienced significant allostatic load as a result of substantial early life chronic stress. Among girls, the hypocortisolism pattern predicted a higher likelihood of being overweight both directly and mediated through reduced Satiety Responsiveness; in boys, the association of the hypocortisolism pattern with being overweight was mediated entirely through Emotional Overeating. In summary, our results provide support for the conceptual model that psychosocial stress contributes to hypocortisolism, which contributes directly to a higher likelihood of being overweight in girls, and indirectly through reduced Satiety Responsiveness in girls and through increased Emotional Overeating in boys.