Research
Hormonal
The age-related decline in DHEA and DHEAS, combined with stable or elevated cortisol, creates a high cortisol-to-DHEA ratio that contributes to immunosenescence, frailty, and increased mortality risk.
Your body's production of DHEA (an anti-aging hormone) drops significantly with age, while cortisol (stress hormone) often stays high. This imbalance weakens your immune system and contributes to frailty. Managing stress and maintaining physical activity are key to keeping this ratio in check.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
The reduction in DHEAS levels with the simultaneous preservation of plasma cortisol, reveal a dissociation of the cortical secretory pattern... The concentration ratio of glucocorticoids to DHEAS is increase... leads to enhanced neurotoxicity and probably contributes to the occurrence of age-related neurodegenerative illnesses.
Why this rating
Supported by multiple citations, though the paper notes some conflicting evidence on cortisol levels in specific subgroups.
Source
Adrenal Aging and Its Implications on Stress Responsiveness in Humans
Andreas Yiallouris et al. · Frontiers in Endocrinology · 2019
DOI 10.3389/fendo.2019.00054
narrative_reviewCited 177×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Normal human aging is characterized by a significant increase in mean daily serum cortisol levels and a decrease in DHEA, leading to an elevated cortisol-to-DHEA ratio that impairs stress recovery and accelerates neurodegeneration.Good
- Chronic elevation of glucocorticoids (cortisol) in the elderly impairs the ability to recover from stressful stimuli and contributes to structural brain changes, including hippocampal atrophy and amygdala dysfunction.Good
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