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Long-term Behavioral and Reproductive Consequences of Embryonic Exposure to Low-dose Toxicants
Published on: March 6, 2018
Prenatal exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers and BMI Z-scores from 5 to 14 years
Allison Kupsco1, Andreas Sjödin2, Whitney Cowell3
1Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 W 168th St. Room 1105, New York, NY, 10032, USA. Ak4181@cumc.columbia.edu.
Insights
Prenatal exposure to Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) did not impact childhood adiposity in a diverse New York City birth cohort. This study found no association between PBDEs and child BMI trajectories.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Pediatrics
- Endocrinology
Background:
- Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are flame retardants with endocrine-disrupting properties.
- Prenatal PBDE exposure is a potential risk factor for altered childhood adiposity.
- Limited human studies exist on prenatal PBDEs and childhood weight control.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between prenatal PBDE exposure and child BMI trajectories.
- To examine the impact of PBDEs on childhood adiposity in a multiethnic birth cohort.
Main Methods:
- Recruited Dominican and African American mother-child pairs (1998-2006).
- Measured PBDE congeners in cord plasma and categorized exposure levels.
- Assessed child height and weight from age 5 to 14, calculating BMI z-scores (BMIz).
- Utilized mixed-effects models and quantile g-computation, adjusting for covariates.
Main Results:
- Childhood obesity prevalence increased from 24.2% at age 5 to 30% at age 11.
- No significant associations were found between prenatal PBDE levels (individual or mixture) and overall childhood BMIz.
- No differences in BMIz change over time were observed between low and high PBDE exposure groups.
Conclusions:
- Prenatal exposure to PBDEs was not associated with child growth trajectories in this cohort.
- Findings suggest limited impact of prenatal PBDEs on childhood adiposity in the studied population.
Background:
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are flame-retardant compounds widely used in household products until phase out in 2004. PBDEs are endocrine disruptors and are suggested to influence signaling related to weight control. Prenatal exposures to PBDEs may alter childhood adiposity, yet few studies have examined these associations in human populations.
Methods:
Data were collected from a birth cohort of Dominican and African American mother-child pairs from New York City recruited from 1998 to 2006. PBDE congeners BDE-47, - 99, - 100, and - 153 were measured in cord plasma (ng/μL) and dichotomized into low (< 80th percentile) and high (>80th percentile) exposure categories. Height and weight were collected at ages 5, 7, 9, 11, and an ancillary visit from 8 to 14 years (n = 289). Mixed-effects models with random intercepts for participant were used to assess associations between concentrations of individual PBDE congeners or the PBDE sum and child BMI z-scores (BMIz). To assess associations between PBDEs and the change in BMIz over time, models including interactions between PBDE categories and child age and (child age)2 were fit. Quantile g-computation was used to investigate associations between BMIz and the total PBDE mixture. Models were adjusted for baseline maternal covariates: ethnicity, age, education, parity, partnership status, and receipt of public assistance, and child covariates: child sex and cord cholesterol and triglycerides.
Results:
The prevalence of children with obesity at age 5 was 24.2% and increased to 30% at age 11. Neither cord levels of individual PBDEs nor the total PBDE mixture were associated with overall BMIz in childhood. The changes in BMIz across childhood were not different between children with low or high PBDEs. Results were similar when adjusting for postnatal PBDE exposures.
Conclusions:
Prenatal PBDE exposures were not associated with child growth trajectories in a cohort of Dominican and African American children.
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