Phthalate exposure associated with self-reported diabetes among Mexican women

Abstract

Background Phthalates are ubiquitous industrial chemicals used as plasticizers in plastics made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to confer flexibility and durability. They are also present in products used for personal-care, industry and in medical devices. Phthalates have been associated with several adverse health effects, and recently it has been proposed that exposure to phthalates, could have an effect on metabolic homeostasis. This exploratory cross-sectional study evaluated the possible association between phthalate exposure and self-reported diabetes among adult Mexican women. Methods As part of an on-going case-control study for breast cancer, only controls were selected, which constituted 221 healthy women matched by age (±5 years) and place of residence with the cases. Women with diabetes were identified by self-report. Urinary concentrations of nine phthalate metabolites were measured by online solid phase extraction coupled to high performance liquid chromatography-isotope-dilution tandem mass spectrometry. Results Participants with diabetes had significantly higher concentrations of di(2-ethylhexyl) pththalate (DEHP) metabolites: mono(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP), mono(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP) and mono(2-ethyl-5-carboxypentyl) phthalate (MECPP) but lower levels of monobenzyl phthalate (MBzP) a metabolite of benzylbutyl phthalate, compared to participants without diabetes. A marginally significant positive associations with diabetes status were observed over tertiles with MEHHP (ORT3 vs. T1 = 2.66; 95% CI: 0.97–7.33; p for trend = 0.063) and MEOHP (ORT3 vs. T1 = 2.27; 95% CI; 0.90–5.75; P for trend = 0.079) even after adjusting for important confounders. Conclusions The results suggest that levels of some phthalates may play a role in the genesis of diabetes.

Exposure to phthalates, bisphenol A and metals in pregnancy and the association with impaired glucose tolerance and gestational diabetes mellitus: The MIREC study

“…Moreover, BPA has been shown to be associated with altered insulin release in human tissue samples (Soriano et al, 2012). Positive associations between phthalates and type 2 diabetes were found in the NHSII (Sun et al, 2014) and NHANES (James-Todd et al, 2012) cohorts, as well as in cross-sectional studies from Mexico (Svensson et al, 2011) and Sweden (Lind et al, 2012). Biological evidence supports a possible role for phthalates in the development of diabetes, principally through activation of PPARs, which in turn affect adipogenesis, lipid storage and the control of insulin sensitivity (Casals-Casas and Desvergne, 2011;Hurst and Waxman, 2003).…”

Prenatal Exposure to Phthalic Acid Induces Increased Blood Pressure, Oxidative Stress, and Markers of Endothelial Dysfunction in Rat Offspring

“…Despite concerns about the toxicity of PhE for humans, the cytotoxic properties of these materials have not been clearly characterized [3,4]. The application of these substances is widespread globally, and their metabolites are therefore widely detectable in body's fluids such as serum and urine among populations of different societies [5][6][7]. PhE can be absorbed to human body through inhalation, oral ingestion, skin absorption, and via the parenteral routes [8][9][10].…”

Phthalate exposure in utero causes epigenetic changes and impairs insulin signalling

“…In this study, we observed a decrease in insulin and elevated fasting blood glucose level along with impaired glucose and insulin tolerances and reduced glycogen concentrations at PND60 of F 1 offspring exposed to DEHP. Results from previous studies have indicated that DEHP impairs blood glucose regulation (Gayathri et al 2004, Stahlhut et al 2007, Srinivasan et al 2011, Svensson et al 2011 in rats and humans. In addition, we found significantly lower lean body weight with higher fat mass at PND60.…”