Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Features of Autonomic and Hormonal Reactivity during Mental Activity in Children and Teenagers

  • Published:
Human Physiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The autonomic and hormonal reactivity in the conditions of mental stress was studied in 248 children and adolescents aged 9–10 to 14–16 years. Changes in functional load level were evaluated based on the dynamics of heart rate variability (HRV) and the salivary cortisol level. A centile table was composed using the changes in these parameters during mental arithmetic tasks. Based on the table, six types of autonomic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal reactivity were determined and gradations of deviations in various parts of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) refined. The reactivity of the ANS and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA-axis) was found to depend on the initial functional state and the age of subjects. In early adolescence, an increased level of psychoemotional stress associated with increased activity of the HPA-axis leads to a decrease in the reaction to mental stress. By an age of 14–16 years, the initial functional state of the ANS and HPA-axis tends to improve and, consequently, the reaction to mental stress is normalized.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1.

Similar content being viewed by others

REFERENCES

  1. Bezrukikh, M.M., Son’kin, V.D., and Farber, D.A., Vozrastnaya fiziologiya (fiziologiya razvitiya rebenka) (Age Physiology: Physiology of Child Development), Moscow: Akademiya, 2008.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Deng, X., Feng, X., Li, S., et al., Influence of the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) on heart rate variability (HRV) in rat hearts via electronic lesion, Biomed. Mater. Eng., 2015, vol. 26, no. 1, p. 487.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Evanson, N.K. and Herman, J.P., Role of paraventricular nucleus glutamate signaling in regulation of HPA axis stress responses, Interdiscip. Inf. Sci., 2015, vol. 21, no. 3, p. 253.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  4. Kolesov, D.V. and Selverova, N.B., Fiziologo-pedagogicheskie aspekty polovogo sozrevaniya (Physiological and Pedagogical Aspects of Puberty), Moscow: Pedagogika, 1978.

    Google Scholar 

  5. Semenova, O.A., Machinskaya, R.I., and Lomakin, D.I., The influence of the functional state of brain regulatory systems on the programming, selective regulation and control of cognitive activity in children: I. Neuropsychological and EEG analysis of age-related changes in brain regulatory functions in children aged 9–12 years, Hum. Physiol., 2015, vol. 41, no. 4, p. 345.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Farber, D.A. and Gorev, A.A., The brain functions of adolescents and the possibility of its arbitrary regulation, Nov. Issled., 2017, vol. 53, no. 4, p. 5.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Dimitriev, D.A. and Saperova, E.V., Heart rate variability and blood pressure in mental stress, Ross. Fiziol. Zh. im. I.M. Sechenova, 2015, vol. 101, no. 1, p. 98.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Wang, X., Liu, B., Xie, L., et al., Cerebral and neural regulation of cardiovascular activity during mental stress, Biomed. Eng. Online, 2016, vol. 15, suppl. 2, p. 160.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Atchley, R., Ellingson, R., Klee, D., et al., A cognitive stressor for event-related potential studies: The Portland Arithmetic Stress Task, Stress, 2017, vol. 24, p. 1.

    Google Scholar 

  10. Trico, D., Fanfani, A., Varocchi, F., and Bernini, G., Endocrine and haemodynamic stress responses to an arithmetic cognitive challenge, Neuro Endocrinol. Lett., 2017, vol. 38, no. 3, p. 182.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Yuenyongchaiwat, K., Cardiovascular response to mental stress tests and the prediction of blood pressure, Indian J. Med., 2017, vol. 39, no. 4, p. 413.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Vedyasova, O.A., Pavlenko, S.I., and Kretova, I.G., The influence of mental stress on breathing patterns in students with different circadian typologies, Ul’yanovsk. Med.-Biol. Zh., 2016, no. 4, p. 78.

  13. Monaco, A., Cattaneo, R., Ortu, E., et al., Sensory trigeminal ULF-TENS stimulation reduces HRV response to experimentally induced arithmetic stress: a randomized clinical trial, Physiol. Behav., 2017, vol. 173, p. 209.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Al-Shargie, F., Kiguchi, M., Badruddin, N., et al., Mental stress assessment using simultaneous measurement of EEG and fNIRS, Biomed. Opt. Express, 2016, vol. 7, no. 10, p. 3882.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. Baervskii, R.M. and Berseneva, A.P., Othenka adaptatsionnykh vozmozhnostei organizma i risk razvitiya zabolevanii (Evaluation of Adaptive Capabilities of the Organism and Health Risks), Moscow: Meditisna, 1997.

    Google Scholar 

  16. Heart rate variability standards of measurement, physiological interpretation, and clinical use: Task force of the European Society of Cardiology the North American Society of Pacing Electrophysiology, Circulation, 1996, vol. 93, p. 1043.

  17. Mikhailov, V.M., Variabel’nost’ ritma serdtsa (novyi vzglyad na staruyu paradigmu) (Heart Rate Variability: The New Insight to the Old Paradigm), Ivanovo: Neirosoft, 2017.

    Google Scholar 

  18. Berestneva, O.G., Marukhina, O.V., and Sharopin, K.A., Application of the information-entropy approach for the analysis of students' adaptation to higher education process, Naukovedenie, 2013, vol. 16, no. 3. http://www.naukovedenie.ru.

  19. Chen, Y., Dangardt, F., Osika, W., et al., Age- and sex-related differences in vascular function and vascular response to mental stress. Longitudinal and cross-sectional studies in a cohort of healthy children and adolescents, Atherosclerosis, 2012, vol. 220, no. 1, p. 269.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Lukina, S.F. and Chub, I.S., Temporal and spectral characteristics of cardiac rhythm of 8-years old children in orthostasis and performing cognitive tasks, Nov. Issled., 2014, vol. 39, no. 2, p. 24.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Rozenman, M., Sturm, A., McCracken, G.T., and Piacentini, J., Autonomic arousal in anxious and typically developing youth during a stressor involving error feedback, Eur. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry, 2017, vol. 26, no. 12, p. 1423.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Gordan, R., Gwathmey, J.K., and Xie, L.H., Autonomic and endocrine control of cardiovascular function, World J. Cardiol., 2015, vol. 7, no. 4, p. 204.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  23. Bykov, E.V., Matsenko, S.V., Kashitsina, K.A., and Chipyshev, A.V., Spectral characteristics of the heart rate of the 6th grade schoolchildren in evaluation of adaptation to education loads, Vestn. Yuzhno-Ural. Gos. Univ., Ser. Obraz., Zdravookhr., Fiz. Kul’t., 2013, vol. 13, no. 2, p. 70.

    Google Scholar 

  24. Aubert, A.E., Verheyden, B., d’Ydewalle, C., et al., Effects of mental stress on autonomic cardiac modulation during weightlessness, Am. J. Physiol. Heart Circ. Physiol., 2010, vol. 298, no. 1, p. 202.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Udel’nov, M.G., Fiziologiya serdtsa (Heart Physiology), Moscow: Mosk. Gos. Univ., 1975.

    Google Scholar 

  26. Shaffer, F. and Ginsberg, J.P., An overview of heart rate variability metrics and norms, Front. Public. Health, 2017, vol. 5, p. 258.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  27. Fleishman, A.N., Martynov, I.D., Petrovskii, S.A., and Korablina, T.V., Orthostatic tachycardia: diagnostic and prognostic role of very low frequency of heart rate variability, Byull. Sib. Med., 2014, vol. 13, no. 4, p. 136.

    Google Scholar 

  28. Mashin, V.A., Mental load, mental stress, and functional condition of operators of control systems, Vopr. Psikhol., 2007, no. 6, p. 86.

  29. Ordaz, S. and Luna, B., Sex differences in physiological reactivity to acute psychosocial stress in adolescence, Psychoneuroendocrinology, 2012, vol. 37, no. 8, p. 1135.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  30. van den Bos, E., de Rooij, M., Miers, A.C., et al., Adolescents’ increasing stress response to social evaluation: pubertal effects on cortisol and alpha-amylase during public speaking, Child. Dev., 2014, vol. 85, no. 1, p. 220.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Looser, R.R., Metzenthin, P., Helfricht, S., et al., Cortisol is significantly correlated with cardiovascular responses during high levels of stress in critical care personnel, Psychosom. Med., 2010, vol. 72, no. 3, p. 281.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Parashar, R., Amir, M., Pakhare, A., et al., Age related changes in autonomic functions, J. Clin. Diagn. Res., 2016, vol. 10, no. 3, p. 11.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Dubrovinskaya, N.V., Psychophysiological features of adolescents, Hum. Physiol., 2015, vol. 41, no. 2, p. 209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project № 15-06-10893a).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Developmental Physiology, Russian Academy of Education, Moscow, Russia

    O. N. Adamovskaya, I. V. Ermakova & N. B. Selverova

Authors
  1. O. N. Adamovskaya
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. I. V. Ermakova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. N. B. Selverova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to O. N. Adamovskaya.

Additional information

Translated by T. Tkacheva

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Adamovskaya, O.N., Ermakova, I.V. & Selverova, N.B. Features of Autonomic and Hormonal Reactivity during Mental Activity in Children and Teenagers. Hum Physiol 44, 503–509 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1134/S036211971805002X

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S036211971805002X

Keywords:

Search

Navigation