Stress and Menstrual Health

The goal of this experimental study is to determine how stressors that do not directly impact energy state or energy demands (hereafter called "non-energetic stressors") affect reproductive health in pre-menopausal women. It aims to do this by answering the following main questions: Do non-energetic stressors create a stress response? How does the stress response impact sex hormone concentration and thus menstrual dysfunction? If stress caused by non-energetic stressors does impact sex hormone concentration, does it do so primarily at the level of the brain or the level of the ovary? Participants will be enrolled in this study for 6 months. For two of these months, they will undergo a short stress intervention and provide samples to measure hormone concentration and total energy expenditure.

NCT Number	NCT07566260
Lead Sponsor	Duke University
Conditions	Menstrual Dysfunction
Enrollment	600 participants
Start Date	2026-05-28
Primary Completion	2028-08 (estimated)
Study Completion	2029-08 (estimated)
Updated on ClinicalTrials.gov	2026-06-05