Associations between blood persistent organic pollutants and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 in pregnancy.
Environ Int. 2013 May 4;57-58C:34-41. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2013.03.011.
Morales E, Gascon M, Martinez D, Casas M, Ballester F, Rodríguez-Bernal CL, Ibarluzea J, Marina LS, Espada M, Goñi F, Vizcaino E, Grimalt JO, Sunyer J; on behalf of the INMA Project.
Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology (CREAL), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain; Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Catalonia,Spain; CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Spain. Electronic address: emorales1 at creal.cat.
Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are suggested to contribute to lower vitamin D levels; however, studies in humans are scarce and have never focused on pregnancy, a susceptibility period for vitamin D deficiency. We investigated whether serum levels of POPs were associated with circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 [25(OH)D3] concentration in pregnancy. Cross-sectional associations of serum concentrations of eight POPs with plasma 25(OH)D3 concentration were analyzed in 2031 pregnant women participating in the Spanish population-based cohort INfancia y Medio Ambiente (INMA) Project. Serum concentrations of POPs were measured by gas chromatography and plasma 25(OH)D3 concentration was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography in pregnancy (mean 13.3±1.5weeks of gestation). Multivariable regression models were performed to assess the relationship between blood concentrations of POPs and 25(OH)D3. An inverse linear relationship was found between serum concentration of PCB180 and circulating 25(OH)D3.
Multivariate linear regression models showed higher PCB180 levels to be associated with lower 25(OH)D3 concentration: quartile Q4 vs. quartile Q1, coefficient=-1.59, 95% CI -3.27, 0.08, p trend=0.060.
A non-monotonic inverse relationship was found between the sum of predominant PCB congeners (PCB 180, 153 and 138) and 25(OH)D3 concentration: coefficient (95% CI) for quartile Q2 vs. Q1 [-0.50 (-1.94, 0.94)], quartile Q3 vs. Q1 [-1.56 (-3.11, -0.02)] and quartile Q4 vs. Q1 [-1.21 (-2.80, 0.38)], p trend=0.081.
No significant associations were found between circulating 25(OH)D3 and serum levels of p,p'-DDE, p,p'-DDT, HCB, and ß-HCH.
Our results suggest that the background exposure to PCBs may result in lower 25(OH)D3 concentration in pregnant women.
Copyright © 2013
Fig. 1. (fuzzy, but free)
The relation (and 95% confidence levels) of serum concentration of a) PCB180 and b) ΣPCBs with circulating 25(OH)D3⁎ in pregnant women a) (n = 1541), the INMA Project.⁎Deseasonalized maternal 25(OH)D3 concentrations based on month at blood collection for each subject derived from the sinusoidal model. General additive models adjusted for area of study, country of origin, age, parity, pre-pregnancy body mass index, social class, education level, smoking, alcohol consumption, gestational age at blood sampling and self-reported physical activity.The symbols (+) on the X-axis indicate serum concentrations of PCB180 or ΣPCBs observations (log-transformed).
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Wonder why this study did not find problem with DDT, as did a previous study (below)
See also VitaminDWiki
- DDT and other pesticides decrease vitamin D
Interesting: DDT peak use is when the vitamin D deficiency epidemic started - Plastics, BPA, PCB and Vitamin D deficiency
- Vitamin D and fertility: a systematic review – May 2012
- Vitamin D - roles in women's reproductive health - Nov 2011
- Conception and vitamin D
- Overview Pregnancy and vitamin D
See also web
- Timeline of PCBs in Hudson River from 1865
- PCBs and DDT
- Mercury and PCBs in Fish: A Pregnancy Health Hazard?
- PCBs, other pollutants may play role in pregnancy delay National Institute of Health, Nov 2012
- Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) exposure in mothers and time to pregnancy in daughters. PubMed, April 2011, full text online
Probability of pregnancy fell by 38% (95% CI 17-53%) and infertility was higher (30% not pregnant after 13 cycles versus 11% not pregnant after 13 cycles) among women whose mothers had a higher proportion of PCB congeners associated with longer TTP (75th percentile versus 25th percentile).
This study demonstrates, for the first time, that developmental exposure to PCBs may disrupt pregnancy in humans.
VitaminDWiki suspects that the delay in pregnancy was: PCB ==> lower Vitamin D ==> less fertility