Chronically high Cortisol in Parents?

Hormones
1

If a parent suffers from Early Childhood Stress resulting in chronically high cortisol and they carry this into their adult years.  When they have children can this condition be passed on to their children or at least one of their children? (fater to son, mother to daughter)?

Is there any scientific proof of this if it does in fact occur?

2

very good question i was thinking the same i have high cortisol, when i was expecting my son i lost my mum (you can imagine the stress i went throught) i am now thinking my son has low cortisol i am getting him checked i will let you know the outcome

3

Hi and thanks for your response. Sorry to hear that and yes I can imagine the stress.  Just to confirm, are you getting your son tested for high or low cortisol?  You said you have high cortisol.   

4

low , but i will let you know what the blood tests turns up

5

Thanks Jazzyanne.  

I'm surprised that only one person has answered.  All the health centric people out there and only one person can comment. 

Thanks for caring to reply.  

6

Domonic, it really is quite unlikely that this condition is heritable. In principle, cortisol is pumped into the system from the adrenals in response to or to cope with _physiological_ trauma, not psychological. Unless the psy trauma is prolonged and/or felt to be life-threatening when, like with a high-stress job, there will be a cortisol response as being the best thing that the body has available.

But my get-out clause is this - if someone is genetically predisposed to respond to psy stress with hypercortisol, then there is a 50/50 chance for each child of this predisposition being passed on . But it would only be activated if the child experienced the same sort of psy stress as the parent. I guess it might be advisable for the child when an adult to avoid high stress jobs.