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Title: Prenatal exposure to mixtures of persistent endocrine disrupting chemicals and postnatal body size in British girls

Journal Article · · Early Human Development
 [1];  [2];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [5];  [5];  [5];  [3]
  1. Emory University, Atlanta, GA (United States); National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA (United States); Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
  2. Emory University, Atlanta, GA (United States)
  3. Emory University, Atlanta, GA (United States); National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA (United States)
  4. Bristol Medical School (United Kingdom)
  5. National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA (United States)
+ Show Author Affiliations

Endocrine disrupting chemical (EDC) exposure is ubiquitous. EDC exposure during critical windows of development may interfere with the body's endocrine system, affecting growth. Previous human studies have examined one EDC at a time in relation to infant growth. By studying mixtures, the human experience can be better approximated. We investigated the association of prenatal exposure to persistent EDCs (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs)) as mixtures with postnatal body size among female offspring. We used a sub-sample of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (N = 425), based in the United Kingdom. We quantified 52 EDCs in maternal serum collected during pregnancy. We used Bayesian kernel machine regression with a random intercept to examine the association of prenatal concentrations of EDC mixtures with longitudinal postnatal body size measures for each EDC class separately (PFAS, PCBs, and OCPs) and for all three classes combined. Weight and height measures at 0, 2, 9, and 19 months were obtained by health professionals as part of routine child health surveillance. The mixture representing all three classes combined (31 chemicals) (n = 301) was inversely associated with postnatal body size. Holding all EDCs in the 31-chemical mixture at the 75th percentile compared to the 50th percentile was associated with 0.15 lower weight-for-age z-score (95% credible interval –0.26, –0.03). Weak inverse associations were also seen for height-for-age and body mass index-for-age scores. Furthermore, these results suggest that prenatal exposure to mixtures of persistent EDCs may affect postnatal body size.

Research Organization:
Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0014664
OSTI ID:
1981593
Journal Information:
Early Human Development, Journal Name: Early Human Development Journal Issue: C Vol. 161; ISSN 0378-3782
Publisher:
ElsevierCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
ALSPAC
Early childhood growth
Obstetrics & gynecology
Organochlorine pesticide
Pediatrics
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance
Polychlorinated biphenyl
Postnatal body size