Department of Human Development, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2010 Sep;35(8):1156-66. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2010.02.001. Epub 2010 Mar 1.
Elevated afternoon levels of cortisol have been found repeatedly in children during child care. However, it is unclear whether these elevations have any consequences. Because physiologic stress systems and the immune system are functionally linked, we examined the relationship between salivary cortisol concentration and antibody secretion across the day at home and in child care, and their relationships with parent-reported illnesses. Salivary antibody provides a critical line of defense against pathogens entering via the mouth, but little is known about its diurnal rhythm in young children or the effect of different environmental contexts. Saliva samples were taken at approximately 10:30 a.m., 3:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. on two child care and two home days in a sample of 65 3-5-year-old children attending very high quality, full time child care centers. Results indicated that (1) a rising cortisol profile at child care, driven by higher afternoon levels, predicted lower antibody levels on the subsequent weekend, (2) higher cortisol on weekend days was related to greater parent-reported illness, and (3) a declining daily pattern in sIgA was evident on weekend and child care days for older preschoolers, but only on weekend days for younger preschoolers. The results suggest that elevated cortisol in children during child care may be related to both lowered antibody levels and greater illness frequency.
在日托期间，研究人员反复发现儿童下午的皮质醇水平升高。然而，目前尚不清楚这些升高是否会产生任何后果。由于生理应激系统和免疫系统在功能上是相关的，因此我们研究了在家中和日托中心，唾液皮质醇浓度和抗体分泌的全天变化及其与父母报告的疾病之间的关系。唾液抗体为抵御通过口腔进入的病原体提供了重要的防线，但对于幼儿的昼夜节律及其在不同环境背景下的作用知之甚少。在参加高质量全日制日托中心的 65 名 3-5 岁儿童中，在两个日托日和两个家庭日的大约上午 10:30、下午 3:30 和晚上 8:00 采集唾液样本。结果表明：（1）日托所呈现的皮质醇升高特征，由下午更高的皮质醇水平驱动，预测随后周末的抗体水平较低；（2）周末的皮质醇较高与父母报告的更多疾病有关；（3）对于年龄较大的学龄前儿童，周末和日托日的 sIgA 呈下降的每日模式，但对于年龄较小的学龄前儿童，仅在周末日出现这种情况。研究结果表明，儿童在日托期间皮质醇升高可能与抗体水平降低和疾病频率增加有关。
