Physical activity and cortisol regulation: A meta-analysis

Susette A Moyers; Martin S Hagger

doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108548

Physical activity and cortisol regulation: A meta-analysis

Biol Psychol. 2023 Apr:179:108548. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108548. Epub 2023 Mar 29.

Authors

Susette A Moyers¹, Martin S Hagger²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychological Sciences, University of California, Merced, USA; Center for Rural Health, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA.
² Department of Psychological Sciences, University of California, Merced, USA; Health Sciences Research Institute, University of California, Merced, USA; Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Finland; School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Australia.

PMID: 37001634
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108548

Abstract

Physical activity participation is associated with effective stress coping, indicated by decreases in both physiological stress reactivity and perceived stress. Quantifying the effect of physical activity on the diurnal regulation of one key physiological stress indicator, the stress hormone, cortisol, across studies may demonstrate the extent to which physical activity participation is associated with diurnal HPA axis regulation. We meta-analyzed studies examining relations between physical activity participation and indices of HPA axis regulation: the diurnal cortisol slope and the cortisol awakening response. We also examined moderators of the relation. The analysis revealed a small, non-zero negative averaged correlation between physical activity and the diurnal cortisol slope (r = -0.043, 95% CI [-0.080, -0.004]). Examination of sample sociodemographic differences, study design characteristics, cortisol measurement methods, and physical activity variables as moderators revealed few effects on the relation between physical activity and diurnal cortisol slope. We did not observe lower levels of variability in the mean cortisol awakening response at higher levels of physical activity participation, and moderator analyses showed little evidence of reductions in heterogeneity for this effect. We found some evidence of systematic publication bias. Findings suggest higher physical activity is associated with a steeper diurnal cortisol slope. However, the cortisol awakening response did not differ by physical activity level. Future studies testing the physical activity and cortisol regulation association should use standardized physical activity measures, follow guidelines for better quality cortisol sampling collection and analysis, and test relations in large-scale empirical studies to confirm the direction and causality of the effect.

Keywords: Cortisol awakening response; Diurnal cortisol slope; Exercise; HPA axis regulation; Health behavior; Physical activity.

Publication types

Meta-Analysis
Review

MeSH terms

Circadian Rhythm / physiology
Humans
Hydrocortisone* / analysis
Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System* / physiology
Pituitary-Adrenal System / physiology
Saliva / chemistry

Substances

Hydrocortisone