Abstract
BACKGROUND: Fetal exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as phthalates and bisphenols might lead to fetal cardiovascular developmental adaptations and predispose individuals to cardiovascular disease in later life. OBJECTIVES: We examined the associations of maternal urinary bisphenol and phthalate concentrations in pregnancy with offspring carotid intima-media thickness and distensibility at the age of 10 y. METHODS: In a population-based, prospective cohort study of 935 mother–child pairs, we measured maternal urinary phthalate and bisphenol concentrations at each trimester. Later, we measured child carotid intima-media thickness and distensibility in the children at age 10 y using ultrasound. RESULTS: Maternal urinary average or trimester-specific phthalate concentrations were not associated with child carotid intima-media thickness at age 10 y. Higher maternal average concentrations of total bisphenol, especially bisphenol A, were associated with a lower carotid intima-media thickness [differences −0:15 standard deviation score and 95% confidence interval (CI): −0:24, −0:09 and −0:13 (95% CI: −0:22, −0:04) per interquartile range (IQR) increase in maternal urinary total bisphenol and bisphenol A concentration]. Trimester-specific analysis showed that higher maternal third-trimester total bisphenol and bisphenol A concentrations were associated with lower child carotid intima-media thickness [differences −0:13 (95% CI: −0:22, −0:04) and −0:13 (95% CI: −0:22, −0:05) per IQR increase in maternal urinary bisphenol concentration]. Maternal urinary bisphenol or phthalate concentrations were not associated with child carotid distensibility. DISCUSSION: In this large prospective cohort, higher maternal urinary bisphenols concentrations were associated with smaller childhood carotid intima-media thickness. Further studies are needed to replicate this association and to identify potential underlying mechanisms. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP10293.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 047007 |
| Journal | Environmental Health Perspectives |
| Volume | 130 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Apr 2022 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The Generation R Study is financially supported by the Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Erasmus University Rotterdam, and the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development.
Funding Information:
V.W.V.J. received a European Research Council Consolidator Grant (ERC-2014-CoG-648916). R.G. received funding from the Dutch Heart Foundation (grant number 2017T013), the Dutch Diabetes Foundation (grant number 2017.81.002) and the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development (ZonMW, grant number 543003109). Also, this project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the ERA-NET Cofund action (No. 727565), European Joint Programming Initiative “A Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life” (JPI HDHL), EndObesity, ZonMW Netherlands (No. 529051026), the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement 874583 (ATHLETE Project), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH; grant number R01ES022972 and R01ES029779). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of the NIH.
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