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Glucocorticoids
are
hormones which the body releases in response to stress,
such as danger or threat. In humans and most other mammals,
the principal glucocorticoid is cortisol. Glucocorticoids help
mobilize and replenish energy stores needed for the brain and
body to function during times of stress, for example during
the "fight-or-flight"
response to perceived danger. In the brain, glucocorticoids
promote memory
formation, so that the potentially dangerous situation can be
remembered -- and avoided -- in the future. Thus, in the short
term, glucocorticoids are important and beneficial.
However, if glucocorticoids are overproduced over a long period
of heightened stress, they can have negative consequences. Excessive
glucocorticoids in the body can lead to increased risks of hypertension,
diabetes, and suppression of the immune
system making the body more vulnerable to disease and injury.
In the brain, overaccumulation of glucocorticoids can impair
the ability to form new memories, can suppress the brain's ability
to form new brain cells (neurons),
and can even cause atrophy or death
of existing neurons. Many of these negative effects can be reversed
if glucocorticoids are returned to normal levels (either by
reducing stress or by use of medication such as beta
blockers).
Further reading:
Stress: Friend or Foe?
by Catherine E. Myers. Copyright © 2006 Memory Loss and the Brain |
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