Prenatal organochlorine compound exposure, rapid weight gain, and overweight in infancy
Michelle A Mendez1, Raquel Garcia-Esteban, Mónica Guxens
1Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology, Barcelona, Spain. mmendez@creal.cat
Insights
Prenatal exposure to DDE, an organochlorine compound, may increase obesity risk in infants. This study found DDE linked to rapid infant growth and higher BMI, especially in children of normal-weight mothers.
Area of Science:
- Environmental health
- Pediatric health
- Toxicology
Background:
- Limited data exist on endocrine-disrupting chemicals and early-life obesity risk.
- The timing of potential effects from fetal chemical exposure remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between prenatal organochlorine compound (OC) exposure and infant growth.
- To examine the link between prenatal OC exposure and body mass index (BMI) later in infancy.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of data from 657 pregnant women in the INMA birth cohort (Spain).
- Defined rapid growth as a change in weight-for-age z-scores > 0.67 in the first 6 months.
- Assessed elevated BMI at 14 months (z-score ≥ 85th percentile) and OC levels (DDE, HCB, beta-HCH, PCBs) in maternal serum using generalized linear models.
Main Results:
- Prenatal exposure to 2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)-1,1-dichloroethylene (DDE) above the first quartile doubled the risk of rapid growth in infants of normal-weight mothers.
- DDE exposure was associated with elevated BMI at 14 months (RR per log DDE increase = 1.50; 95% CI, 1.11-2.03).
- No significant associations were found for other OCs after multivariable adjustment.
Conclusions:
- Prenatal DDE exposure is linked to rapid weight gain in early infancy and elevated BMI later on, particularly in infants born to normal-weight mothers.
- Further research is needed to understand the role of chemical exposures in the development of early-onset obesity.
Background:
Although it has been hypothesized that fetal exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals may increase obesity risk, empirical data are limited, and it is uncertain how early in life any effects may begin.
Objectives:
We explored whether prenatal exposure to several organochlorine compounds (OCs) is associated with rapid growth in the first 6 months of life and body mass index (BMI) later in infancy.
Methods:
Data come from the INMA (Infancia y Medio-Ambiente) Child and Environment birth cohort in Spain, which recruited 657 women in early pregnancy. Rapid growth during the first 6 months was defined as a change in weight-for-age z-scores > 0.67, and elevated BMI at 14 months, as a z-score ≥ the 85th percentile. Generalized linear models were used to estimate the risk of rapid growth or elevated BMI associated with 2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)-1,1-dichloroethylene (DDE), hexachlorobenzene, β-hexachlorohexane, and polychlorinated biphenyls in first-trimester maternal serum.
Results:
After multivariable adjustment including other OCs, DDE exposure above the first quartile was associated with doubling of the risk of rapid growth among children of normal-weight (BMI < 25 kg/m2), but not overweight, mothers. DDE was also associated with elevated BMI at 14 months (relative risk per unit increase in log DDE = 1.50; 95% confidence interval, 1.11-2.03). Other OCs were not associated with rapid growth or elevated BMI after adjustment.
Conclusions:
In this study we found prenatal DDE exposure to be associated with rapid weight gain in the first 6 months and elevated BMI later in infancy, among infants of normal-weight mothers. More research exploring the potential role of chemical exposures in early-onset obesity is needed.
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