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Published on: March 6, 2018
Maternal prenatal urinary bisphenol A level and child cardio-metabolic risk factors: A prospective cohort study
Fengxiu Ouyang1, Guang-Hui Zhang2, Kun Du2
1Ministry of Education and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Insights
Maternal prenatal exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) may increase children's blood pressure and glucose levels. These effects were observed in a sex-specific manner, with higher risks noted in girls for blood pressure and in boys for glucose.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Endocrinology
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals during early development can lead to long-term health issues.
- Bisphenol A (BPA) is an endocrine disrupting chemical with widespread human exposure.
- The first 1000 days of life represent a critical window for development and susceptibility to environmental exposures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between maternal prenatal Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure and cardio-metabolic risk factors in children at age 2.
- To explore potential sex-specific effects of prenatal BPA exposure on child health outcomes.
Main Methods:
- Prospective cohort study of 218 pregnant women in Shanghai, China (2012-2013).
- Measurement of urinary BPA concentrations in mothers during pregnancy and in children at age 2.
- Assessment of child cardio-metabolic risk factors including adiposity, plasma glucose, insulin, lipids, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP).
- Linear regression analysis adjusted for relevant covariates to examine associations between prenatal BPA and child outcomes.
Main Results:
- High prenatal BPA exposure was associated with significantly higher SBP (7.0 mmHg) and DBP (4.4 mmHg) in girls compared to low exposure, but not in boys.
- Medium prenatal BPA exposure was linked to higher plasma glucose (0.36 mmol/L) in boys.
- No significant associations were found between prenatal BPA and child BMI, skinfold thickness, serum lipids, or insulin in either sex.
- Concurrent BPA exposure in children at age 2 showed no association with cardio-metabolic risk factors.
Conclusions:
- Prenatal BPA exposure may be associated with increased blood pressure in girls and elevated plasma glucose in boys at age 2.
- These findings suggest sex-specific effects of BPA on early-life cardio-metabolic development.
- Further research in independent cohorts is warranted to confirm these sex-specific associations.
Abstract:
Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals during the first 1000 days of life may have long-lasting adverse effects on cardio-metabolic risk in later life. This study aimed to examine the associations between maternal prenatal Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure and child cardio-metabolic risk factors at age 2 years in a prospective cohort. During 2012-2013, 218 pregnant women were enrolled at late pregnancy from Shanghai, China. Urinary BPA concentration was measured in prenatal and child 2-year spot urine samples, and classified into high, medium and low tertiles. Child adiposity anthropometric measurements, random morning plasma glucose, serum insulin, and lipids (high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, cholesterol, triglyceride), systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were measured. Linear regression was used to evaluate the associations between prenatal BPA and each of the cardio-metabolic risk factors in boys and girls, respectively, adjusting for pertinent prenatal, perinatal and postnatal factors. BPA was detectable (>0.1 μg/L) in 98.2% of mothers prenatally and 99.4% of children at age 2 years. Compared to those with low prenatal BPA, mean SBP was 7.0 (95%CI: 2.9-11.2) mmHg higher, and DBP was 4.4 (95%CI: 1.2-7.5) mmHg higher in girls with high prenatal BPA levels, but these associations were not found in boys. In boys, medium maternal prenatal BPA level was associated with 0.36 (95% CI: 0.04-0.68) mmol/L higher plasma glucose. No associations were found between prenatal BPA and child BMI, skinfold thicknesses, serum lipids, or insulin in either girls or boys. There were no associations between concurrent child urinary BPA and cardio-metabolic risk factors. These results support that BPA exposure during prenatal period, susceptible time for fetal development, may be associated with increase in child BP and plasma glucose in a sex-specific manner. Further independent cohort studies are needed to confirm the findings.
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