Dataset Information

In-utero co-exposure to toxic metals and micronutrients on childhood risk of overweight or obesity: new insight on micronutrients counteracting toxic metals.

ABSTRACT:

Background/objectives

Low-level, in-utero exposure to toxic metals such as lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg) is widespread in the US and worldwide; and, individually, was found to be obesogenic in children. To address the literature gaps on the health effects of co-exposure to low-level toxic metals and the lack of intervention strategy, we aimed to investigate the association between in-utero co-exposure to Hg, Pb, cadmium (Cd) and childhood overweight or obesity (OWO) and whether adequate maternal micronutrients (selenium (Se) and folate) can be protective.

Subjects/methods

This study included 1442 mother-child pairs from the Boston Birth Cohort, a predominantly urban, low-income, Black, and Hispanic population, who were enrolled at birth and followed prospectively up to age 15 years. Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) was applied to estimate individual and joint effects of exposures to metals and micronutrients on childhood OWO while adjusting for pertinent covariables. Stratified analyses by maternal OWO and micronutrient status were performed to identify sensitive subgroups.

Results

In this sample of understudied US children, low-level in-utero co-exposure to Hg, Pb, and Cd was widespread. Besides individual positive associations of maternal Hg and Pb exposure with offspring OWO, BKMR clearly indicated a positive dose-response association between in-utero co-exposure to the three toxic metals and childhood OWO. Notably, the metal mixture-OWO association was more pronounced in children born to mothers with OWO; and in such a setting, the association was greatly attenuated if mothers had higher Se and folate levels.

Conclusions

In this prospective cohort of US children at high-risk of toxic metal exposure and OWO, we demonstrated that among children born to mothers with OWO, low-level in-utero co-exposure to Hg, Pb, and Cd increased the risk of childhood OWO; and that adequate maternal Se and folate levels mitigated the risk of childhood OWO.

Clinical trial registry number and website where it was obtained

NCT03228875.

SUBMITTER: Huang W

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9329205 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

In-utero co-exposure to toxic metals and micronutrients on childhood risk of overweight or obesity: new insight on micronutrients counteracting toxic metals.

Huang Wanyu W Igusa Tak T Wang Guoying G Buckley Jessie P JP Hong Xiumei X Bind Eric E Steffens Andrew A Mukherjee Jhindan J Haltmeier Douglas D Ji Yuelong Y Xu Richard R Hou Wenpin W Tina Fan Zhihua Z Wang Xiaobin X

International journal of obesity (2005) 20220519 8

<h4>Background/objectives</h4>Low-level, in-utero exposure to toxic metals such as lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg) is widespread in the US and worldwide; and, individually, was found to be obesogenic in children. To address the literature gaps on the health effects of co-exposure to low-level toxic metals and the lack of intervention strategy, we aimed to investigate the association between in-utero co-exposure to Hg, Pb, cadmium (Cd) and childhood overweight or obesity (OWO) and whether adequate mat ...[more]

PMID: 35589962

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundLow-dose mercury (Hg) exposure has been associated with cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and obesity in adults, but it is unknown the metabolic consequence of in utero Hg exposure. This study aimed to investigate the association between in utero Hg exposure and child overweight or obesity (OWO) and to explore if adequate maternal folate can mitigate Hg toxicity.MethodsThis prospective study included 1442 mother-child pairs recruited at birth and followed up to age 15 years. Maternal Hg in red blood cells and plasma folate levels were measured in samples collected 1-3 days after delivery (a proxy for third trimester exposure). Adequate folate was defined as plasma folate ≥ 20.4 nmol/L. Childhood OWO was defined as body mass index ≥ 85% percentile for age and sex.ResultsThe median (interquartile range) of maternal Hg levels were 2.11 (1.04-3.70) μg/L. Geometric mean (95% CI) of maternal folate levels were 31.1 (30.1-32.1) nmol/L. Maternal Hg levels were positively associated with child OWO from age 2-15 years, independent of maternal pre-pregnancy OWO, diabetes, and other covariates. The relative risk (RR = 1.24, 95% CI 1.05-1.47) of child OWO associated with the highest quartile of Hg exposure was 24% higher than those with the lowest quartile. Maternal pre-pregnancy OWO and/or diabetes additively enhanced Hg toxicity. The highest risk of child OWO was found among children of OWO and diabetic mothers in the top Hg quartile (RR = 2.06; 95% CI 1.56-2.71) compared to their counterparts. Furthermore, adequate maternal folate status mitigated Hg toxicity. Given top quartile Hg exposure, adequate maternal folate was associated with a 34% reduction in child OWO risk (RR = 0.66, 95% CI 0.51-0.85) as compared with insufficient maternal folate. There was a suggestive interaction between maternal Hg and folate levels on child OWO risk (p for interaction = 0.086).ConclusionsIn this US urban, multi-ethnic population, elevated in utero Hg exposure was associated with a higher risk of OWO in childhood, and such risk was enhanced by maternal OWO and/or diabetes and reduced by adequate maternal folate. These findings underscore the need to screen for Hg and to optimize maternal folate status, especially among mothers with OWO and/or diabetes.

Project description:BackgroundThe developing fetal brain is sensitive to many environmental exposures. However, the independent and joint effects of prenatal exposure to metals and micronutrients on child cognition are not well understood.ObjectivesOur aim was to evaluate associations of first-trimester (∼10 wk) maternal erythrocyte concentrations of mixtures of nonessential and essential metals and micronutrients with early (∼3 y) and mid-childhood (∼8 y) cognitive test scores in Project Viva, a prebirth cohort in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.MethodsWe measured concentrations of five essential metals (Cu, Mg, Mn, Se, Zn) and two micronutrients (vitamin B12 and folate), together termed the "nutrient mixture," as well as six nonessential metals (As, Ba, Cd, Cs, Hg, Pb), together termed the "neurotoxic mixture," in first-trimester (∼10 wk) maternal erythrocytes (metals) or plasma (micronutrients). We assessed visual-motor function and receptive vocabulary in early childhood (∼3 y), and visual-motor function, visual memory, and fluid and crystallized intelligence in mid-childhood (∼8 y). We employed adjusted quantile g-computation and linear regression to estimate mixture and individual component associations, respectively.ResultsAnalyses included 900 mother-child pairs (74% college graduates; 52% male children). In mixture analyses, a quartile increase in the nutrient mixture was associated with a mean difference in early childhood receptive vocabulary score of 1.58 points [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.06, 3.10], driven by Zn and Se. A quartile increase in the neurotoxic mixture was associated with a mean difference in mid-childhood visual-motor score of -3.01 points (95% CI: -5.55, -0.47), driven by Ba and Cs. Linear regressions supported quantile g-computation findings for mixture component contributions.DiscussionMaternal circulating concentrations of several essential (Zn and Se) and nonessential (Ba and Cs) metals were associated with some domains of child cognition. In this folate-replete cohort, first-trimester circulating concentrations of known neurotoxic metals, such as Pb, were not associated with child cognition. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP12016.

Dataset Information

In-utero co-exposure to toxic metals and micronutrients on childhood risk of overweight or obesity: new insight on micronutrients counteracting toxic metals.

Background/objectives

Subjects/methods

Results

Conclusions

Clinical trial registry number and website where it was obtained

Publications

In-utero co-exposure to toxic metals and micronutrients on childhood risk of overweight or obesity: new insight on micronutrients counteracting toxic metals.

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