The Claim

Plasma cortisol levels increase only slightly following strenuous anaerobic running in male runners, and the temporal pattern of cortisol response parallels that of estrone, indicating a comparatively weaker or less consistent adrenal hormonal response relative to other measured hormones.

Source: Effect of strenuous anaerobic running exercise on plasma growth hormone, cortisol, luteinizing hormone, testosterone, androstenedione, estrone and estradiol.

What the research says

Supports is higher

Support is ahead, but a single strong opposing study can change this.

Supports
38score
Challenges
0score

These are independent scores, not a percentage. Higher-grade studies count more, so a single strong opposing study can outweigh several weaker ones.

Description
1 study reviewed
In plain English

After intense short-duration running, male runners experience a small rise in cortisol hormone levels, and this change follows a similar pattern to estrone, suggesting the adrenal gland's response is less pronounced compared to other hormones measured.

See the scientific wording

Plasma cortisol increases only slightly after strenuous anaerobic running in male runners, and its response pattern mirrors that of estrone, suggesting a weaker or less consistent adrenal response compared to other hormones measured.

Why this might work

During intense running, the brain sends a weaker signal to the adrenal glands to release cortisol, while the same signals trigger a stronger release of estrone, so cortisol rises only a little and follows the same pattern as estrone.

Supported mechanismbased on 1 study

What the research says

1 study
  1. Study: Effect of strenuous anaerobic running exercise on plasma growth hormone, cortisol, luteinizing hormone, testosterone, androstenedione, estrone and estradiol.

    After intense running, cortisol (a stress hormone) went up a little — much less than other hormones like growth hormone — and behaved similarly to estrone, meaning the body’s stress response wasn’t as strong for cortisol as for some other hormones.

Score breakdown, mechanism chain, raw evidence, ideal studies needed & 1 supporting studies

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