Cortisol is the body's primary stress hormone. While we need it for various essential bodily functions (like regulating blood sugar levels and getting up in the morning), too much of it can make life ...

Maybe you’ve heard of “cortisol face,” or “cortisol belly” or read that yoga and meditation can help lower your cortisol levels, but what does that really mean? Cortisol is a hormone made by the ...

What is cortisol, and how is it related to stress? Cortisol is often called the "stress hormone" and is released by the adrenal glands -- part of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, a bodily ...

Cortisol helps regulate stress, sleep and metabolism—but chronic elevation can harm long-term health. Signs of high cortisol include poor sleep, visceral fat gain and feeling mentally alert but ...

Photo-Illustration by Chloe Dowling for TIME (Source Images: Robert Brook—Science Photo Library, Getty Images, Elena Fontana—Getty Images, nito100/Getty Images) Contributor Do you feel overwhelmed by ...

Some changes in cortisol levels are normal, but chronically elevated levels can affect our health. Potatoes, bananas and dark ...

Cortisol is today’s least-loved hormone. In truth, cortisol isn’t actually all bad—it’s essential for helping us stay alert and respond to stress. Of course, if left unchecked, high cortisol levels ...

Let's face it: Americans are stressed. Google searches for "how to reduce stress" are high, and 77% of U.S. adults report that the country's future is a major source of stress, according to a survey ...