Pre- and postnatal exposure to phthalates and child growth

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K19453
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 58030:Hygiene and public health-related: excluding laboratory approach
• Research Institution: Hokkaido University
• Principal Investigator: Minatoya Machiko 北海道大学, 環境健康科学研究教育センター, 客員研究員 (50733367)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: フタル酸エステル類 / 肥満傾向

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of exposure to phthalates on obesity in children. Obesity and growth curves were assessed from school health examination records for children in the Hokkaido Study. Only for the sixth grade of elementary school, a higher maternal blood MiBP concentration was significantly associated with a lower obesity tendency, while a higher maternal blood MEHP concentration were significantly associated with a higher obesity tendency. However, there was no association between phthalate metabolite concentrations and obesity tendencies among children in other grades. Moreover, there was no association between obesity tendencies and lipid metabolites at age 7. No associations excluding the sixth grade of elementary school were observed, and the inconsistency in direction for obesity tendencies suggests that phthalate metabolite exposure was not strongly associated with childhood obesity.

Free Research Field

環境疫学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

化学物質曝露に脆弱な妊婦や子どもを含むヒトに関して、フタル酸エステル類曝露と肥満、脂肪量の関係について十分な検討がされていない。子どもの肥満は成人肥満のリスクとなるため、経時的に子どもを追跡し、胎児期、生後のフタル酸エステル類曝露が子どもの発育や肥満と関係するかを明らかにすることが重要である。