High-stress mothers had lower hair cortisol than low-stress mothers, and daughters' cortisol was linked to their stress response.
May 2012 in “Neurotoxicology and Teratology” Hair cortisol can be a reliable way to measure long-term stress.
January 2012 in “CINECA IRIS Institutial Research Information System (University of Genoa)” Hair cortisol reliably indicates stress in rabbits.
April 2011 in “Faculty Opinions – Post-Publication Peer Review of the Biomedical Literature” Hair cortisol is a reliable long-term stress marker during pregnancy.
October 2008 in “Experimental and Clinical Endocrinology & Diabetes” Long-term unemployment leads to higher stress levels.
August 2021 in “Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical and Clinical Research” Plant extracts in shampoo improved hair thickness and density in men with hair loss.
296 citations
,
October 2018 in “General and Comparative Endocrinology” Hair cortisol is a reliable way to measure long-term stress in animals.
157 citations
,
June 2015 in “Psychoneuroendocrinology” Hair cortisol and cortisone levels increase with age, are higher in diabetics, vary by gender, decrease with frequent hair washing, and are lower in winter.
23 citations
,
August 2017 in “Scientific Reports” Darker hair may lead to higher cortisol readings, suggesting a need to adjust for hair color in studies.
22 citations
,
May 2019 in “Animals” High hair cortisol levels indicate stress in cows due to poor shelter conditions and health issues.
11 citations
,
April 2020 in “Animals” Moving horses to new places can increase their stress levels, as shown by higher stress hormone in their hair.
3 citations
,
June 2021 in “Journal of affective disorders” Hair cortisol and cortisone levels may affect how work stress influences depression in Chinese fishermen.
May 2023 in “Animal Reproduction Update” High levels of cortisol in hair show long-term stress which can lower fertility in animals.
38 citations
,
September 2013 in “Therapeutic Drug Monitoring” First Nation individuals had higher hair cortisol levels, indicating more chronic stress.
30 citations
,
July 2016 in “Psychoneuroendocrinology” 24 citations
,
January 2019 in “Hormone Research in Paediatrics” Hair cortisol levels in children are influenced by puberty, age, gender, and body mass index.
21 citations
,
January 2017 in “MethodsX” Methanol is better than isopropanol for washing grizzly bear hair to measure cortisol.
21 citations
,
June 2016 in “Journal of Medical Primatology” Captive management practices affect hair loss and stress in rhesus monkeys, with differences between facilities.
16 citations
,
January 2021 in “Frontiers in veterinary science” Pigs in farrowing crates and loose-housing systems showed no difference in chronic stress levels as measured by hair cortisol.
11 citations
,
February 2005 in “Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics/Clinical pharmacology & therapeutics” Hair cortisol could be a marker for chronic stress in pregnancy, but depression affects cortisol levels differently.
4 citations
,
June 2025 in “JMIR Formative Research” Hair cortisol concentration may reflect some physiological stress but doesn't strongly correlate with perceived stress.
3 citations
,
November 2021 in “Stress” Girls had higher stress hormone levels during school due to social and emotional issues, while boys had higher overall hormone levels with slight changes when school started.
2 citations
,
June 2022 in “Scientific reports” Women with PCOS have higher hair cortisol levels, which are linked to worse metabolic and inflammatory conditions.
1 citations
,
July 2019 in “Psychoneuroendocrinology” 1 citations
,
September 2016 in “Brain Behavior and Immunity” Hair cortisol levels can indicate stress and are affected by washing frequency, not cosmetic treatments.
June 2026 in “Scientific Reports” Open-label placebos can reduce stress and improve exam performance.
April 2026 in “Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology” Hair cortisol levels may be linked to stress, but results are inconsistent.
April 2026 in “Journal of Experimental Psychopathology” Hair cortisol levels may not reliably indicate psychological distress.
Higher cortisol levels might be linked to worsening keratoconus.
March 2026 in “Journal of Pain” Preoperative stress markers alone don't predict chronic post-surgical pain.