Age, body mass index, race and other determinants of steroid hormone variability: the HERITAGE Family Study
Abstract
OBJECTIVE AND METHODS: To investigate from the HERITAGE Family Study database, 13 steroid hormones (androstane-3alpha, 17beta-diol glucuronide, androsterone glucuronide, cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), DHEA ester (DHEAE), DHEA sulfate (DHEAS), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), estradiol, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, progesterone, pregnenolone ester, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and testosterone in each sex for their relationships with age, body mass index (BMI), race and key lifestyle variables. Sample sizes varied from 676 to 750 per hormone. Incremental regression methods were used to examine the contributions of the variables to steroid hormone variability. RESULTS: Age was a major predictor for most steroid hormones. The greatest contribution of age was a negative relationship with DHEAS (R(2)=0.39). BMI was also associated with the variability of several steroid hormones, being the most important predictor of SHBG (R(2)=0.20) and of testosterone (R(2)=0.12) concentrations. When age and BMI were included, race still contributed significantly to the variations in cortisol (R(2)=0.02 for men and 0.04 for women), DHT (R(2)=0.02 for men and 0.03 for women), and progesterone (R(2)=0.03 for women). Nevertheless, race appeared to be less important than age and BMI. In addition, lifestyle indicators (food and nutrient intakes, smoking and physical activity) influenced steroid hormone variability. Their contributions, however, were minor in most cases once age, BMI and race had been taken into account. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that age was the most important factor, followed by BMI, race and lifestyle factors in explaining steroid hormone variability.
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Age and race are well-established, non-modifiable predictors of sex steroid hormone concentrations in men.
“Age [13, 14] and race [13–15] are well-established, but non-modifiable, predictors of sex steroid hormone concentrations in men.”
From Association of cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, and physical activity with sex steroid hormone levels in US men (2009) · cites this paper as [13]
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Self-citation
- Authors
- Ukkola, O., Gagnon, J., Rankinen, T., Thompson, P., Hong, Y., Leon, A., Rao, D., Skinner, J., Wilmore, J., & Bouchard, C.
- Affiliations
- Pennington Biomedical Research Center (US)
- Centre hospitalier de l'Université Laval (CA)
- Washington University in St. Louis (US)
- Corresponding author
- Ukkola, O
- Venue
- European Journal of Endocrinology
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2001-07-01
- Volume
- 145
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 1-9
- ISSN
- 0804-4643 (ISSN-L)
- 1479-683X
- OpenAlex
- W2116077420
- Cited by
- 138
- References
- 6
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 6 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 6.44
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- de
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- European Journal of Endocrinology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Université Laval
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (R01HL047327, HL 47321, HL 45670, HL47323, R01HL047317, HL 47327, R01HL047323, HL47317, R01HL045670, R01HL047321)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Hormonal and reproductive studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Adrenal Hormones and Disorders
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Sexual Differentiation and Disorders
- Keywords
- steroid hormones, age, body mass index, race, sex differences, cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin, dihydrotestosterone, progesterone, lifestyle factors, smoking, physical activity, HERITAGE Family Study
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Aged, Diet, Female, Hormones, Humans, Life Style, Male, Middle Aged, Sex Factors, Smoking, Steroids, Body Mass Index, Black People, White People
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