Hair cortisol concentrations predict change in girls’ depressive symptoms

Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis activity is related to negative mental health outcomes, including depression. Most developmental research uses salivary cortisol to index HPA activity; however, hair cortisol concentrations (HCCs) reflect cortisol production over extended periods of time. While HCCs have been linked to adult depression, their relationship to the development of children’s depressive symptoms is unclear. We assessed HCCs...