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Exposure to phthalates in children aged 5-7years: Associations with thyroid function and insulin-like growth factors

Wei Wu1, Feng Zhou2, Yue Wang2

  • 1MOE Key Laboratory of Environment & Health, Institute of Environmental Medicine, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China; School of Laboratory Medicine, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, 1 Huangjia Lake West Road, Wuhan 430065, China.

The Science of the Total Environment
|November 26, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Phthalate exposure in preschool children may impact thyroid function and growth hormones. Higher phthalate levels in urban children correlated with altered thyroid hormones and decreased insulin-like growth factor 1 and binding protein 3.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental Health
  • Pediatric Endocrinology
  • Toxicology

Background:

  • Phthalates are common environmental contaminants.
  • Preschool children may be vulnerable to endocrine disruption.
  • Thyroid hormones and growth factors are critical for development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess the relationship between urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations and thyroid function in preschool children.
  • To investigate associations with growth hormone parameters.
  • To compare phthalate exposure levels between urban and rural settings.

Main Methods:

  • Collected demographic data and biological samples from 216 children aged 5-7 years.
  • Measured urinary concentrations of eight mono-phthalate metabolites (mPAEs).
  • Analyzed associations between mPAEs, thyroid hormones (free triiodothyronine, free thyroxine), and growth hormones (IGF-1, IGFBP-3).

Main Results:

  • Urban children exhibited higher mPAE concentrations than rural children.
  • Most mPAEs showed positive associations with free triiodothyronine and free thyroxine.
  • Increased monomethyl phthalate and mono-n-butyl phthalate were linked to decreased IGF-1.
  • Increased monomethyl phthalate and monoethyl phthalate were linked to decreased insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3.

Conclusions:

  • Phthalate exposure in 5-7-year-old children may disrupt thyroid hormone levels.
  • Phthalate exposure may negatively impact growth hormone parameters.
  • Environmental phthalate exposure warrants further investigation for potential health risks in children.

Keywords:
Insulin-like growth factorPhthalate metabolitePreschool childrenThyroid function

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