Avaliação da interferência do cortisol em atletas durante competição

Abstract

The practice of sports has a variety of stressors that can physically and psychically destabilize the athlete before and during the competition. Hormonal responses to stressors release hormones such as cortisol, a glucocorticoid that helps the acquisition of energy metabolites considered effective, however, with negative psychological impact during competitions. The purpose of the study is to analyze the impacts of cortisol on athletes during competition. The study was developed according to the PRISMA recommendations, adopting inclusion criteria such as: year of publication from 1990 and translated into English and Portuguese, using the keywords based on the DeCS. In vitro and animal research, as well as observational studies, case studies and case reports were excluded from this article. Thus, 136 articles were pre selected but only 10 articles were used, since the other 126 articles did not fit in the criteria previously mentioned. The study showed that winning athletes with high levels of cortisol could concentrate better and also had higher anticipatory index, however losing athletes evoked symptoms of anger and depression. In addition, cortisol in both athletes (winners and losers) caused fatigue and tiredness due to the hormone that promotes rapid glycolytic mobilization, allowing to achieve their maximum performance. The results indicate that elevations in cortisol levels have beneficial anticipatory effects related to greater attention and metabolic availability for physical demands. However, they can also evoke psychic symptoms such as anger and depression. Therefore, more studies are necessary for a better understanding of the effect of cortisol in these cases.