Early-life associations between per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and serum lipids in a longitudinal birth cohort
Annelise J Blomberg1, Yu-Hsuan Shih2, Carmen Messerlian3
1Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
Insights
Childhood exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) is linked to higher blood lipid levels, including cholesterol and triglycerides. These findings raise public health concerns for cardiovascular disease risk.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Toxicology
- Pediatric Health
Background:
- Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are environmental contaminants linked to metabolic disruption.
- Longitudinal studies on PFASs and blood lipid concentrations in children are limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between PFAS exposure and lipid profiles in children.
- To examine changes in lipid concentrations from birth through childhood in relation to PFAS exposure.
Main Methods:
- Prospective cohort study of 490 children in the Faroe Islands.
- Measurement of five major PFASs in serum at birth, 18 months, five, and nine years.
- Quantification of total cholesterol, LDL-C, HDL-C, and triglycerides at multiple time points.
Main Results:
- Childhood PFAS serum concentrations (ages five and nine) positively correlated with lipid levels at age nine.
- Specific PFASs (PFDA, PFNA, PFOS) showed associations with increased total cholesterol, HDL-C, and LDL-C.
- Sex-based differences observed: girls showed stronger associations with TC and LDL-C, boys with HDL-C.
Conclusions:
- Childhood exposure to PFASs is associated with elevated serum lipid concentrations.
- This association poses a public health concern due to the risk of hyperlipidemia and cardiovascular disease.
- Exposure timing and sex are significant modifiers of PFAS effects on lipid profiles.
Background:
Exposures to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) may affect metabolic outcomes, including lipid concentrations in the blood. However, few studies have evaluated potential associations between PFASs and lipids longitudinally.
Objectives:
We estimated associations between PFAS and lipid concentrations at birth and at several points in childhood.
Methods:
We measured concentrations of five major PFASs in cord serum and in serum collected at 18 months, five years and nine years in 490 children from a prospective cohort in the Faroe Islands. Total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and triglyceride (TG) concentrations were measured at birth, 18 months and nine years. We estimated associations between PFAS and lipid concentrations and evaluated possible effect modification by sex. We also tested whether PFAS associations with age-nine lipids varied by exposure period.
Results:
Serum PFAS concentrations at ages five and nine were positively associated with lipid concentrations at age nine. Cross-sectional associations between PFASs and lipids at age nine were the strongest, with increases in serum concentrations of perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) associated with increases in TC, HDL-C and LDL-C. We found statistically significant differences in estimated PFAS effects by sex, where girls had stronger positive associations between PFASs and TC and LDL-C and boys had stronger positive associations with HDL-C. In repeated measure models, exposure period was a significant modifier of PFAS effects.
Conclusions:
Our findings suggest that childhood PFAS exposures may be associated with elevated serum lipid concentrations. This is a public health concern, as a detrimental lipid profile in childhood is a risk factor for later development of hyperlipidemia and cardiovascular disease.
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