Stress & Cortisol Load Estimator
ANA›Life Services Authority›National Calculator Authority›Stress & Cortisol Load Estimator
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Stress & Cortisol Load Estimator
Estimates your cumulative daily cortisol load and stress burden using validated psychometric and physiological proxies. Outputs a Cortisol Load Index (CLI) and risk tier.
Average nightly sleep (hours, 0–12)
Sleep quality (1 = very poor, 10 = excellent)
Weekly moderate-to-vigorous exercise (hours, 0–20)
Perceived Stress Scale score (0–40)
Daily caffeine intake (mg, 0–1000)
Weekly alcohol units (0–50, 1 unit ≈ 10 g ethanol)
Daily work/obligation hours (0–18)
Social support quality (1 = none, 10 = excellent)
Body Mass Index – BMI (15–50)
Age (18–90)
Calculate Cortisol Load
function scleCalc() { // ── Read & validate inputs ────────────────────────────────────────────── const sleep = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-sleep').value); const sleepQ = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-sleep-quality').value); const exercise= parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-exercise').value); const pss = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-pss').value); const caffeine= parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-caffeine').value); const alcohol = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-alcohol').value); const work = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-work').value); const social = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-social').value); const bmi = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-bmi').value); const age = parseFloat(document.getElementById('scle-age').value);
const errors = []; if (isNaN(sleep) || sleep 12) errors.push("Sleep must be 0–12 h."); if (isNaN(sleepQ) || sleepQ 10) errors.push("Sleep quality must be 1–10."); if (isNaN(exercise) || exercise 20) errors.push("Exercise must be 0–20 h/week."); if (isNaN(pss) || pss 40) errors.push("PSS score must be 0–40."); if (isNaN(caffeine) || caffeine 1000) errors.push("Caffeine must be 0–1000 mg."); if (isNaN(alcohol) || alcohol 50) errors.push("Alcohol must be 0–50 units/week."); if (isNaN(work) || work 18) errors.push("Work hours must be 0–18."); if (isNaN(social) || social 10) errors.push("Social support must be 1–10."); if (isNaN(bmi) || bmi 50) errors.push("BMI must be 15–50."); if (isNaN(age) || age 90) errors.push("Age must be 18–90.");
const el = document.getElementById('scle-result'); if (errors.length) { el.innerHTML = '⚠ ' + errors.join('') + ''; return; }
// ── Component scores (each normalised 0–10, higher = more cortisol load) ─
// 1. Sleep deprivation penalty // Optimal = 8 h → 0 penalty; 9 h raises cortisol // Quadratic: penalty = 2.5 * (sleep - 8)^2 / 4, capped 0–10 const sleepDev = Math.pow(sleep - 8, 2); const sleepScore = Math.min(10, 2.5 * sleepDev / 4);
// 2. Sleep quality penalty (inverted, 1=worst→10, 10=best→0) const sleepQScore = (10 - sleepQ); // 0–9
// 3. Exercise benefit (inverted; 150 min/week = 2.5 h optimal) // Sedentary (10 h/week → overtraining also raises cortisol let exScore; if (exercise 400 mg high // Score = min(10, caffeine / 100) const cafScore = Math.min(10, caffeine / 100);
// 6. Alcohol load // >14 units/week (NIAAA heavy) raises HPA axis activity // Score = min(10, alcohol / 5) const alcScore = Math.min(10, alcohol / 5);
// 7. Work/obligation overload // 8 h = baseline; >10 h raises cortisol const workScore = Math.min(10, Math.max(0, (work - 6) / 12 * 10));
// 8. Social support (protective, inverted) const socialScore = (10 - social); // 0–9
// 9. BMI deviation from 22 (central adiposity ↑ cortisol) // Score = min(10, |BMI - 22| / 2.8) const bmiScore = Math.min(10, Math.abs(bmi - 22) / 2.8);
// 10. Age factor (cortisol reactivity and clearance change with age) // Mild increase after 40; score = max(0, (age - 30) / 60 * 4) const ageScore = Math.max(0, Math.min(4, (age - 30) / 60 * 4));
// ── Weighted Cortisol Load Index (CLI) ───────────────────────────────── // Weights derived from relative effect sizes in HPA-axis literature // Total weight = 1.00 const W = { sleep: 0.15, sleepQ: 0.10, ex: 0.10, pss: 0.25, // PSS is strongest validated predictor caf: 0.07, alc: 0.08, work: 0.10, social: 0.08, bmi: 0.05, age: 0.02 };
const CLI = W.sleep * sleepScore + W.sleepQ * sleepQScore + W.ex * exScore + W.pss * pssScore + W.caf * cafScore + W.alc * alcScore + W.work * workScore + W.social * socialScore + W.bmi * bmiScore + W.age * ageScore;
// CLI is 0–10 (theoretical max ≈ 9.8 given weight caps) const cliRounded = CLI.toFixed(2);
// ── Estimated diurnal cortisol AUC proxy (nmol·h/L) ─────────────────── // Healthy baseline AUC ≈ 100–150 nmol·h/L (Pruessner et al. 2003) // Each CLI unit adds ~15 nmol·h/L above baseline of 100 const aucEstimate = (100 + CLI * 15).toFixed(1);
// ── Risk tier ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── let tier, tierColor, advice; if (CLI { const contrib = (score * weight).toFixed(2); const pct = Math.min(100, score * 10).toFixed(0); rows += ` ${label} ${score.toFixed(1)}/10 ${(weight*100).toFixed(0)}%
${contrib} `; });
el.innerHTML = ` Cortisol Load Index (CLI): ${cliRounded} / 10
Risk Tier: ${tier}
Estimated Diurnal Cortisol AUC: ${aucEstimate} nmol·h/L (healthy range ≈ 100–150)
${advice}
Factor Score Weight Burden CLI contrib.
${rows}
⚠ Screening tool only. Not a medical diagnosis. Consult a clinician for cortisol testing.
`; }
#### Formula
Cortisol Load Index (CLI) — weighted composite (0–10):
CLI = 0.15·S_sleep + 0.10·S_sleepQ + 0.10·S_exercise + 0.25·S_PSS + 0.07·S_caffeine + 0.08·S_alcohol + 0.10·S_work + 0.08·S_social + 0.05·S_BMI + 0.02·S_age
Component scores (each 0–10, higher = more cortisol load):
S_sleep = min(10, 2.5·(sleep_h − 8)² / 4) [quadratic penalty from 8 h optimum] S_sleepQ = 10 − sleepQuality [inverted 1–10 scale] S_exercise = piecewise: 10→4 (0–2.5 h), 4→0 (2.5–7 h), 0→6 (7–20 h overtraining) S_PSS = PSS_score / 40 × 10 [PSS-10, 0–40] S_caffeine = min(10, caffeine_mg / 100) S_alcohol = min(10, weekly_units / 5) S_work = min(10, max(0, (work_h − 6) / 12 × 10)) S_social = 10 − socialSupport [inverted] S_BMI = min(10, |BMI − 22| / 2.8) S_age = max(0, min(4, (age − 30) / 60 × 4))
Estimated AUC (nmol·h/L) = 100 + CLI × 15
#### Assumptions & References
- PSS-10 (Cohen et al., 1983) is the strongest validated self-report predictor of HPA-axis activity (r ≈ 0.40–0.55 with salivary cortisol AUC); hence weight = 0.25.
- Sleep: <6 h/night raises morning cortisol by ~37% (Leproult et al., 1997, Sleep). Optimal window 7–9 h (NSF guidelines).
- Exercise: 150 min/week moderate exercise reduces cortisol reactivity; >10 h/week overtraining raises resting cortisol (Skoluda et al., 2012, Psychoneuroendocrinology).
- Caffeine: 250–600 mg raises cortisol ~30% acutely (Lovallo et al., 2005, Psychosomatic Medicine).
- Alcohol: Chronic use (>14 units/week) dysregulates HPA axis (Adinoff et al., 2005, Alcohol Clin Exp Res).
- Social support: High social support buffers cortisol reactivity (Heinrichs et al., 2003, Biological Psychiatry).
- BMI: Central adiposity increases cortisol production via 11β-HSD1 upregulation (Walker, 2006, Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab).
- Diurnal AUC baseline: 100–150 nmol·h/L (Pruessner et al., 2003, Psychoneuroendocrinology).
- CLI is a screening index, not a clinical measurement. Salivary/urinary cortisol assays are required for diagnosis.
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