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. 2018 Jan;7(1):232-238.
doi: 10.1530/EC-17-0344. Epub 2017 Dec 13.

Bisphenol A, phthalate metabolites and glucose homeostasis in healthy normal-weight children

Amalie Carlsson  1   2 , Kaspar Sørensen  1   3 , Anna-Maria Andersson  1   2 , Hanne Frederiksen  1   2 , Anders Juul  4   2
Affiliations

Bisphenol A, phthalate metabolites and glucose homeostasis in healthy normal-weight children

Amalie Carlsson et al. Endocr Connect. 2018 Jan.

Abstract

Introduction: Bisphenol A and several of the most commonly used phthalates have been associated with adverse metabolic health effects such as obesity and diabetes. Therefore, we analyzed these man-made chemicals in first morning urine samples from 107 healthy normal-weight Danish children and adolescents.

Method: This was a cross-sectional study. Participants were recruited as part of the Copenhagen Puberty Study. The subjects were evaluated by an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan, direct oxygen uptake measurement during cycle ergometry and fasting blood samples. First morning urine was collected and phthalate metabolites and BPA were measured by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) with prior enzymatic deconjugation. Individual chemical concentrations were divided into tertiles and analyzed in relation to biological outcome.

Results: Children in the lowest tertile of urinary BPA had significantly higher peak insulin levels during OGTT (P = 0.01), lower insulin sensitivity index (P < 0.01), higher leptin (P = 0.03), triglyceride (P < 0.01) and total cholesterol levels (P = 0.04), lower aerobic fitness (P = 0.02) and a tendency toward higher fat mass index (P = 0.1) compared with children in the highest tertile for uBPA. No significant differences in anthropometrics, body composition or glucose metabolism were associated with any of the phthalate metabolites measured.

Conclusion: This pilot study on healthy normal-weight children suggests an inverse association between BPA and insulin resistance. Our findings contrast other cross-sectional studies showing a positive association for BPA, which may be due to confounding or reverse causation because diet is an important source of both BPA exposure and obesity.

Keywords: OGTT; children; diabetes; endocrine-disrupting chemicals; obesity.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Bisphenol A (BPA) tertiles and the distribution of selected metabolic parameters within BPA tertiles.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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