This reaction enables you to face any threat with heightened alertness and energy.

Also, while narrowing your arteries, your body produces another hormone called epinephrine (adrenaline), which increases your heart rate. You release cortisol in stressful situations, hence why it's called 'the stress hormone.' As the adrenal glands release cortisol into your bloodstream, your body automatically produces a surge of glucose into your larger muscles enabling you to jump into action.

Like many other hormones, cortisol affects the circadian rhythm (sleep and wake cycle), with the highest levels in the morning and the lowest around midnight. This hormone helps control your body's blood sugar levels and metabolism and influences water and salt balance, blood pressure, memory, and the ability to fight infection. Most cells have receptors for this hormone, which works in your body in several ways.

Article Contents What does Cortisol do? What if Your Body Produces too Much Cortisol? What Causes High Cortisol Levels? Stress Physiological (or physical) stressors Psychological Stressors Cushing's Syndrome Cortisol, Testosterone, and Erectile Dysfunction Study: Stress Affects Hormone Levels in Soldiers Study: Men With High Cortisol are More Likely to Get ED What if Your Body Produces too Little Cortisol? Other Causes of Addison's Disease Cortisol and Addinsonian Crisis How Can You Maintain Healthy Cortisol Levels? Testosterone Therapy and CortisolĬortisol is a steroid hormone made in the adrenal glands and released into the blood.

Treatment for overactive adrenal glands