Cortisol is a steroid hormone that is involved in many vital processes in the body, like our metabolism and immune function, for example. When it comes to stress, cortisol plays a key role in our body’s “fight or flight” response by triggering the sympathetic nervous system to respond when we feel stressed or threatened.
Chronic stress, the kind many of us experienced in 2020, for example, results in high cortisol levels over periods of months, even years. Neurologists report that this is a relatively new development in human history.
If you’ve been under an overwhelming amount of stress and have experienced hair loss, increased cortisol levels could be to blame. Here, we dive into the complex ways the hormone can impact our bodies and our lives, plus how we can manage and reduce our overall stress levels and what products you should use if you’re noticing hair thinning.
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GRO Hair Serum (3 Pack)
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GRO Revitalizing Shampoo and Conditioner Kit
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Popular Products
Save $101
stress
GRO Hair Serum (3 Pack)
Save $81
stress
GRO Revitalizing Shampoo and Conditioner Kit
stress
Save $68
stress
GRO Scalp Health Kit
What Is Cortisol?
Cortisol is most commonly known as the “stress hormone.” Once our body signals any signs of stress, cortisol is what we get as a response. However, it’s not all bad. Cortisol helps the body transform fat and sugars into energy and it can help the body respond to stress more efficiently when it’s not over-produced.
How Does Cortisol Affect the Body?
Cortisol can affect the body in a number of ways. Some people experience more than one symptom of higher cortisol levels and most symptoms depend on what’s causing a higher production of cortisol throughout the body.
The main trigger that causes our bodies to release cortisol is stress, aka the flight or fight response. In this context, cortisol’s primary purpose is to prepare the body for a conflict so that we can respond quickly in crisis. Our ancestors relied on the effects of cortisol to get to their feet and run for the hills when faced with a saber-tooth cat, for instance.
Cortisol is still valuable in equivalent modern-day situations: being alert and responsive in a fire or other emergency, swerving to miss a pedestrian and so on. But constant elevated stress hormone levels are toxic to our bodies.
When the body has to contend with extra cortisol over the long-term you might start to notice symptoms like weight gain, impaired mental function, irritability, a weakened immune system, high blood pressure, muscle weakness, acne, and, yes, hair loss.
@vegamour Your friendly reminder to check in on your Cortisol levels!
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