22
Jan 16

Lifetime exposure to traumatic and other stressful life events and hair cortisol in a multi-racial sample of pregnant women

Background Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis activity is known to be altered following events such as childhood abuse. However, despite potential adverse consequences for the offspring of women who have experienced abuse, very little is known about altered HPA axis activity during pregnancy. Methods During pregnancy, 180 women from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds reported on their exposure
to emotional, physical and/or sexual abuse before the age of 11, and general post-traumatic stress symptoms (ie, not limited to childhood years or abuse experiences). Around delivery, they provided hair samples for the assessment of cortisol levels during pregnancy. Hair cortisol was assessed for each pregnancy trimester. The effect of childhood abuse on hair cortisol was assessed using mixed-effects analyses of covariance models allowing for within-subject correlated observations, and were first performed in the entire sample and subsequently stratified by race/ethnicity. Results Controlling for post-traumatic stress symptoms, hair cortisol levels varied by history of child abuse, F(2,166)=3.66, p=0.028. Childhood physical and/or sexual abuse was associated with greater hair cortisol levels, t(166)=2.65, p=0.009, compared with no history of abuse. Because childhood rates of abuse and hair cortisol levels varied by race/ethnicity, analyses were stratified by race/ethnicity. The associations between history of abuse and cortisol levels were only significant among black women, F(2,23)=5.37, p=0.012. Conclusions Childhood abuse, especially physical and/ or sexual abuse, is associated with differences in cortisol production during pregnancy, particularly among black women. Future research should investigate how these differences impact physical and mental health outcomes among offspring of affected women.

CITATION: Schreier, H. M. C., Bosquet Enlow, M., Ritz, T., Coull, B. A., Wright, R. O., & Wright, R. J. (2016). Lifetime exposure to traumatic and other stressful life events and hair cortisol in a multi-racial sample of pregnant women. Stress, 19(1), 45-52.


15
Sep 15

Mercury and psychosocial stress exposure interact to predict maternal ambulatory cortisol during pregnancy

Background: Disrupted maternal prenatal cortisol production influences offspring development. Factors influencing the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis include social (e.g., stressful life events) and physical/chemical (e.g., toxic metals) pollutants. Mercury (Hg) is a common contaminant of fish and exposure is widespread in the US. No prior study has examined the joint associations of stress and mercury with maternal cortisol profiles in pregnancy. Objectives: To investigate potential synergistic influences of prenatal stress and Hg exposures on diurnal cortisol in pregnant women. Methods: Analyses included 732 women (aged 27.4 ± 5.6 years) from a Mexico City pregnancy cohort. Participants collected saliva samples on two consecutive days (mean 19.52 ± 3.00 weeks gestation) and reported life stressors over the past 6 months. Hg was assessed in toe nail clippings collected during pregnancy. Results: There were no main effects of Hg or psychosocial stress exposure on diurnal cortisol (ps > .20) but strong evidence of interaction effects on cortisol slope (interaction B = .006, SE = .003, p = .034) and cortisol at times 1 and 2 (interaction B = -.071, SE = .028, p = .013; B = -.078, SE = .032, p  = .014). Women above the median for Hg and psychosocial stress exposure experienced a blunted morning cortisol response compared to women exposed to higher stress but lower Hg levels. Conclusions: Social and physical environmental factors interact to alter aspects of maternal diurnal cortisol during pregnancy. Research focusing solely on either domain may miss synergistic influences with potentially important consequences to the offspring.

CITATION: Schreier, H. M. C., Hsu, H.-H., Amarasiriwardena, C., Coull, B. A., Schnaas, L., Tellez-Rojo, M. M., Tamayo y Ortiz, M., Wright, R. J., & Wright, R. O. (2015). Mercury and psychosocial stress exposure interact to predict maternal ambulatory cortisol during pregnancy. Environmental Health, 14(28).


15
Sep 15

Childhood abuse is associated with increased hair cortisol levels among urban pregnant women

Background Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis activity is known to be altered following events such as childhood abuse. However, despite potential adverse consequences for the offspring of women who have experienced abuse, very little is known about altered HPA axis activity during pregnancy. Methods During pregnancy, 180 women from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds reported on their exposure to emotional, physical and/or sexual abuse before the age of 11, and general post-traumatic stress symptoms (ie, not limited to childhood years or abuse experiences). Around delivery, they provided hair samples for the assessment of cortisol levels during pregnancy. Hair cortisol was assessed for each pregnancy trimester. The effect of childhood abuse on hair cortisol was assessed using mixed-effects analyses of covariance models allowing for within-subject correlated observations, and were first performed in the entire sample and subsequently stratified by race/ethnicity. Results Controlling for post-traumatic stress symptoms, hair cortisol levels varied by history of child abuse, F(2,166)=3.66, p=0.028. Childhood physical and/or sexual abuse was associated with greater hair cortisol levels, t(166)=2.65, p=0.009, compared with no history of abuse. Because childhood rates of abuse and hair cortisol levels varied by race/ethnicity, analyses were stratified by race/ethnicity. The associations between history of abuse and cortisol levels were only significant among black women, F(2,23)=5.37, p=0.012. Conclusions Childhood abuse, especially physical and/ or sexual abuse, is associated with differences in cortisol production during pregnancy, particularly among black women. Future research should investigate how these differences impact physical and mental health outcomes among offspring of affected women.

CITATION: Schreier, H. M. C., Bosquet Enlow, M., Ritz, T., Gennings, C., & Wright, R. J. (2015). Childhood abuse is associated with increased hair cortisol levels among urban pregnant women. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 69(12), 1169-1174.


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