Measuring stress levels by analyzing cortisol in hair

“In a new study out of Linkoping University in Sweden, a team examined cortisol levels in the hair of patients who had previously suffered an acute myocardial infarction (a heart attack). Cortisol is a molecule in the body often considered a stress marker. Typically involved in regulating many key systems in the body, too much cortisol has been linked to many diseases, including cardiovascular disease. Tracking its hair levels could very well prove an excellent passive way of measuring one’s risk of a heart attack.”   MORE

Image Credit: Linkoping University