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Low dose of some persistent organic pollutants predicts type 2 diabetes: a nested case-control study
Duk-Hee Lee1, Michael W Steffes, Andreas Sjödin
1Department of Preventative Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea.
Environmental Health Perspectives
|May 7, 2010
Summary
Low doses of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) may increase type 2 diabetes risk, particularly in individuals with obesity. These findings suggest POPs could contribute to the diabetes epidemic.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Endocrinology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been inconsistently linked to type 2 diabetes.
- Previous studies show conflicting associations between POP exposure levels and diabetes risk.
Purpose of the Study:
- To prospectively investigate the association between persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and incident type 2 diabetes.
- To analyze POPs in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) cohort.
Main Methods:
- A nested case-control study within the CARDIA cohort.
- Measured organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) in serum from 1987-1988.
- Used logistic regression to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for incident diabetes.
Main Results:
- Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were higher in 1987-1988 than in 2003-2004 NHANES data.
- Nonlinear associations were observed between POPs and diabetes risk, with elevated risk at low-dose exposures.
- The second sextile of summed POPs showed an adjusted OR of 5.3, and 20.1 for individuals with BMI ≥ 30 kg/m².
Conclusions:
- Low-dose exposure to certain persistent organic pollutants (POPs) may elevate type 2 diabetes risk.
- Endocrine disruption is a potential mechanism linking POPs to diabetes.
- POPs may contribute to the current diabetes epidemic, especially in relation to obesity.
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