Prenatal Exposure to Phthalates and Neurodevelopment in the CHAMACOS Cohort

Details

• Personal Author:
  Calafat, Antonia M. ; Deardorff J ; Eskenazi B ; Harley K ; Holland N ; Hyland C ; Kogut K ; Mora AM ; Sagiv SK
• Description:
  Background: Previous studies suggest that prenatal exposure to phthalates, ubiquitous synthetic chemicals, may adversely affect neurodevelopment. However, data are limited on how phthalates affect cognition, executive function, and behavioral function into adolescence. Objective: We aimed to investigate associations of prenatal phthalate exposure with neurodevelopment in childhood and adolescence in the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas (CHAMACOS) study. Methods: We examined associations between maternal urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations measured twice during pregnancy and a range of neurodevelopmental outcomes from ages 7 through 16 y in the CHAMACOS birth cohort (n=334). We used age-specific linear regression models and generalized estimating equation models to assess longitudinal effects and examined differences by sex. Results: Phthalate metabolites were detected in 88%-100% of samples, depending on the metabolite. Associations of phthalates with neurodevelopmental outcomes were largely null with some noteworthy patterns. Higher prenatal concentrations of metabolites of low-molecular weight phthalates (SLMW) were associated with more self-reported hyperactivity [beta=0.8, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.1, 1.4 per 2-fold increase in SLMW phthalates], attention problems (beta=1.5, 95% CI: 0.7, 2.2), and anxiety (beta=0.9, 95% CI: 0.0, 1.8) at age 16. We observed sex-specific differences for the sums of high-molecular-weight and di(2-ethylhexyl) metabolites and cognitive outcomes (e.g., beta for Full-Scale IQ for boys=-1.9, 95% CI: -4.1, 0.3 and -1.7, 95% CI: -3.8, 0.3, respectively; beta for girls=1.8, 95% CI: 0.1, 3.4 and 1.6, 95% CI: 0.0, 3.2, respectively; p-int=0.01 for both). Conclusion: We found predominantly null associations of prenatal phthalates with neurodevelopment in CHAMACOS, and weak associations of SLMW phthalates with internalizing and externalizing behaviors in adolescence. No previous studies have examined associations of prenatal phthalate exposure with neurodevelopment into adolescence, an important time for manifestations of effects. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Adolescent Behavior Cohort Studies Occupational Health Plastics Pregnancy Safety Women
• Keywords:
  Adolescents Cohort Studies Neurological System Prenatal Exposure
• ISSN:
  0091-6765
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; Georgia ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  127
• Issue:
  10
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20063112
• Citation:
  Environ Health Perspect 2019 Oct; 127(10):107010
• Contact Point Address:
  Sharon K. Sagiv, Center for Environmental Research and Children's Health (CERCH), School of Public Health, University of California at Berkeley, 1995 University Ave., Suite 265, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2020
• Performing Organization:
  University of California, Berkeley
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Environmental Health Perspectives
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c231f6ff918c5c3b8e8705ba6366661b534ae3a3f75c90c10be038f70bf13ebb680d75673b392e7b6f465601a69a8c2d7e593f49aaea24ebd64e6efb262932e2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/226235/cdc_226235_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 216.98 KB ]