Exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) during childhood and adiposity measures at age 8 years

Abstract

Background: Animal studies suggest polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) may be obesogens. However, epidemiologic studies investigating childhood exposure to PBDEs and adiposity are limited, with several reporting an inverse association. Objectives: To investigate associations between repeated childhood PBDE concentrations and adiposity measures at age 8 years. Methods: We examined 206 children from the Health Outcomes and Measures of the Environment Study, a birth cohort in Cincinnati, OH (2003–2006). Serum PBDEs were measured at ages 1, 2, 3, 5, and 8 years. We used multiple imputation to estimate missing PBDE concentrations. At 8 years, we measured weight, height, waist circumference, and body fat percentage. We used multiple informant models to estimate age-specific associations between PBDEs and adiposity measures. Results: We observed significant inverse associations between BDE-153 with all adiposity measures that became increasingly stronger with later childhood measurements. A 10-fold increase in BDE-153 at ages 1 and 8 years was associated with 2% (95% CI −3.9, −0.1) and 7% (95% CI −9.1, −4.7) lower body fat, respectively. No statistically significant associations were found with BDE-28, -47, -99, or -100. Child sex modified some associations; inverse associations between BDE-153 and body fat were stronger among boys, while positive and null associations were noted among girls. Conclusions: Childhood BDE-153 concentrations were inversely associated with adiposity measures and these associations became stronger as BDE-153 measurements were more proximal to adiposity measures. Inverse associations could be attributed to reverse causality arising from greater storage of PBDEs in adipose tissue of children with higher adiposity. Keywords: Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), Flame retardants, Endocrine disruptors, Postnatal, Childhood, Weight, Adiposity, Body mass index, Children, Epidemiology