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Prenatal exposure to phenols and growth in boys

Claire Philippat1, Jérémie Botton, Antonia M Calafat

  • 1From the aInserm, IAB, Team of Environmental Epidemiology applied to Reproduction and Respiratory Health, Grenoble, France; bUniversity of Grenoble Alpes, IAB, Grenoble, France; cInserm, Center for research in Epidemiology and Population Health, U1018, Team Epidemiology of Diabetes, Obesity and Renal Disease: Lifelong Approach, Villejuif, France; dUniversité Paris-Sud, Faculty of Pharmacy, Châtenay-Malabry, France; and eCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA.

Epidemiology (Cambridge, Mass.)
|July 26, 2014
PubMed

Insights

Maternal exposure to phenols like triclosan and parabens during pregnancy may affect male newborn growth. Prenatal paraben exposure showed a positive association with birth weight and continued to be linked to weight gain up to three years.

Area of Science:

  • Endocrinology
  • Environmental Health
  • Pediatrics

Background:

  • Phenols are environmental chemicals known to interact with nuclear receptors controlling growth and adipogenesis.
  • Limited research exists on the impact of phenol exposure on human growth during development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between maternal urinary phenol concentrations during pregnancy and prenatal and postnatal growth in male newborns.
  • To assess the impact of specific phenols, including triclosan and parabens, on fetal development and early childhood growth trajectories.

Main Methods:

  • A cohort study involving 520 mother-son pairs.
  • Quantification of nine phenols in maternal urine samples collected during pregnancy.
  • Assessment of fetal growth via ultrasonography and birth measurements.
  • Modeling of postnatal growth (weight and height) for the first three years of life.

Main Results:

  • Triclosan exposure was linked to reduced growth parameters in late pregnancy but not earlier.
  • A trend of negative association between triclosan and head circumference at birth was observed.
  • Parabens, particularly methylparaben, were positively associated with birth weight and showed sustained positive associations with weight gain up to three years postpartum.

Conclusions:

  • Prenatal exposure to certain phenols, specifically parabens and triclosan, may influence prenatal and early postnatal growth in male infants.
  • The study highlights potential developmental effects of common environmental phenols.
  • Limitations include the use of single spot urine samples for exposure assessment, potentially leading to misclassification.
Abstract

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