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Prenatal Ambient Particulate Matter Exposure and Longitudinal Weight Growth Trajectories in Early Childhood

Anna S Rosofsky1, M Patricia Fabian1, Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba2

  • 1Department of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Boston University, Boston, MA 02118, USA.

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
|February 28, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Prenatal exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) affects childhood weight differently by sex. Higher PM2.5 was linked to increased weight in girls but decreased weight in boys, highlighting the need for sex-specific air quality research.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental Health
  • Pediatric Growth and Development
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Air pollution, specifically fine particulate matter (PM2.5), is linked to impaired fetal growth and postnatal weight gain.
  • Limited research exists on the impact of prenatal air pollution on long-term childhood weight growth trajectories.
  • Understanding these effects is crucial for public health interventions targeting child development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between average prenatal exposure to PM2.5 and sex-specific weight trajectories from birth to age six.
  • To analyze how birth weight modifies the relationship between prenatal PM2.5 exposure and childhood weight.
  • To emphasize the importance of sex-stratified analyses in air pollution and child health research.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from the Boston-based Children's HealthWatch cohort (4797 participants).
  • Assessed exposure to PM2.5 using validated 1 km² resolution data averaged over pregnancy.
  • Employed polynomial splines in mixed models to compare sex-specific weight trajectories between high (≥9.5 µg/m³) and low (<9.5 µg/m³) prenatal PM2.5 exposure groups.

Main Results:

  • Females exposed to higher prenatal PM2.5 (≥9.5 µg/m³) showed consistently higher weights compared to those with lower exposure.
  • Males exposed to higher prenatal PM2.5 exhibited significantly lower weights after 24 months, with increasing divergence over time.
  • The association between PM2.5 and weight was more pronounced in low birth weight females but showed no difference by birth weight status in males.

Conclusions:

  • Prenatal PM2.5 exposure has complex, sex-specific effects on childhood weight trajectories.
  • Higher PM2.5 exposure is associated with increased weight in girls and decreased weight in boys.
  • Findings underscore the necessity of sex-stratified approaches in evaluating air pollution's impact on child development.

Keywords:
PM2.5air pollutionchildhoodgrowthin utero exposuresweight trajectories

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