Since certain hormone abnormalities can be food-dependent as in some cases of nodular adrenal hyperplasia, as a first step to study other more frequent endocrine disorders, using a standard meal as means of a more physiologic stimulus, we investigated in healthy women whether or not the changes in serum glucose, insulin, cortisol, and androgens are different following a breakfast than after oral glucose alone. Ten women (group 1) ingested a 725 kilocalories (173 kiloJoules) breakfast and ten women (group 2) ingested a 100-g glucose load at 8:00 A.M. Serum glucose, insulin, cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), free testosterone (free-T), and androstenedione (A) were determined every 30 min for the next 2 h. Serum glucose rose higher in group 2 than in group 1 (p < or = 0.05), yet insulin increased similarly in both groups. In group 1 free-T and DHEAS increased at 30 min (p < or = 0.05) while cortisol decreased (p < or = 0.04); A did not change. On the contrary, in group 2 only a decrease in free-T (p < or = 0.01) was detected. In these healthy women, serum androgen changed inversely depending on the type and composition of the oral stimulus used. The simultaneous increase of serum insulin, free-T and DHEAS coinciding with a cortisol decrease may enhance insulin anabolic effects following breakfast, but not after oral glucose alone.