Tag: obesity

House dust can carry hormone-altering chemicals prompting body cells to accumulate fat

Chemicals in household dust may promote fat cell development, 2019

New Orleans, LA – Endocrine-disrupting chemicals present in household dust promote the development of fat cells in a cell model and could contribute to increased growth in children relative to their age, according to research presented Monday, March 25 at ENDO 2019, the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting.

“This is some of the first research investigating links between exposure to chemical mixtures present in the indoor environment and metabolic health of children living in those homes,”

said lead researcher Christopher Kassotis, Ph.D., of Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment in Durham, N.C.

Previous research has shown that chemical exposures can promote accumulation of triglycerides—a type of fat found in the blood—and increased obesity in animal models. Many observational studies have found a link between exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals believed to contribute to obesity and increased weight in humans.

In this study, Kassotis and colleagues investigated the effect of chemical mixtures isolated from house dust. They collected 194 house dust samples from households in central North Carolina. They then extracted the chemicals from the dust in the lab. These extracts were tested for their ability to promote fat cell development in a cell model.

They found that very low concentrations of dust extracts were able to promote precursor fat cell proliferation and fat cell development. According to the EPA, children are estimated to consume between 60 and 100 milligrams of dust each day.

“We found that two-thirds of dust extracts were able to promote fat cell development and half promote precursor fat cell proliferation at 100 micrograms, or approximately 1,000 times lower levels than what children consume on a daily basis,”

Kassotis said.

The researchers then measured more than 100 different chemicals in the dust and looked at the relationship between their concentrations and the extent of fat cell development. They found that approximately 70 of the chemicals had a significant positive relationship with the development of dust-induced fat cells, and approximately 40 were linked with precursor fat cell development.

“This suggests that mixtures of chemicals occurring in the indoor environment might be driving these effects,”

Kassotis said.

The researchers found several chemicals were significantly elevated in the dust of homes of children who were overweight or obese. They are continuing to study these chemicals—some of which are found in common household products such as laundry detergents, household cleaners, paints and cosmetics—to determine which ones may be linked to obesity.

Reference. Image thecaspiantimes.

BPF and BPS linked to obesity in children and teens

Urinary bisphenols and obesity prevalence among US children and adolescents, 2019

Bisphenol S (BPS) and bisphenol F (BPF), used as substitutes for bisphenol A (BPA), may contribute to childhood weight gain and obesity, according to a new study published today in the Journal of the Endocrine Society, the Environmental Health News reports.
Image credit Drouin Secondary College.

“Replacing BPA with similar chemicals does nothing to mitigate the harms chemical exposure has on our health.
It will continue to be an issue given that human exposure to these compounds is likely to continue to increase in the future.”

2019 Study Abstract

Bisphenol A (BPA) has been recognized as an endocrine disrupting chemical and identified as an obesogen. Although once ubiquitous, human exposure to BPA is declining due to its substitution with other bisphenols. Two structurally similar substitutes, bisphenol S (BPS) and bisphenol F (BPF), have raised similar concerns, although fewer studies have been conducted on these newer derivatives. We used data from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys from the years 2013-2016 to evaluate associations between BPA, BPS, and BPF and body mass outcomes among children and adolescents aged 6 to 19 years. Concentrations of BPA, BPS, and BPF were measured in spot urine samples using high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. General obesity was defined as ≥95th percentile of age- and sex-standardized body mass index (BMI) z-scores according to 2000 US norms. Abdominal obesity was defined as ratios of waist circumference to height ≥0.5. BPA, BPS, and BPF were detected in 97.5%, 87.8% and 55.2% of urine samples, respectively. Log-transformed urinary BPS concentrations were associated with an increased prevalence of general obesity (OR=1.16, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.32) and abdominal obesity (OR=1.13, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.27). BPF detection (vs. not detected) was associated with an increased prevalence of abdominal obesity (OR=1.29, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.64) and continuous BMI z-score (β=0.10, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.20). BPA and total bisphenols were not statistically significantly associated with general obesity, abdominal obesity, or any body mass outcome. This study suggests that BPA substitute chemicals are correlated with obesity in contemporary children.

Chemicals, pesticides, microplastics added to supermarket food

The Honest Supermarket – What’s Really in Our Food ?

Can we trust our supermarkets to tell us the truth about what we are buying and how it was produced ?

For every pound we spend on food shopping, 77p goes to the supermarkets, giving them a huge influence over what we eat. Do their profits come first ?

In an experiment to discover the hidden truths about our everyday foods, Horizon has built the first ever truly ‘honest supermarket’. Drawing on the latest scientific research and leading experts from across the UK, the team have built a supermarket where the products are labelled with the real story of how they are produced and their effect on us and the environment. We invite the British public to come in and discover the truth about their favourite foods. And in our on-site lab, new scientific discoveries reveal the food facts the supermarkets aren’t telling you.

Presented by Dr Hannah Fry and dietician Priya Tew, The Honest Supermarket takes a cold hard look at what’s really going on with the food we eat. From new research that reveals you’re likely to be ingesting plastic particles along with your bottled water to the lab tests that uncover the disturbing truth about just how old your ‘fresh’ supermarket fish really is…

You’ll never look at the food on your supermarket shelves in the same way again says BBC2 Horizon, Jul 2019.

60 MiNueTs Toxic

UCSF Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment, 2017

Video published on 18 Apr 2019 by the UCSF Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment.

The University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment (PRHE)’s mission is to create a healthier environment for human reproduction and development through advancing scientific inquiry, clinical care and health policies that prevent exposures to harmful chemicals in our environment.

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Les liens entre les industries agroalimentaire et pharmaceutique

Interview de Vandana Shiva, Brut, Février 2019

Selon Vandana Shiva, des multinationales s’enrichissent en vendant des médicaments pour soigner des maladies qu’elles ont elles-mêmes provoquées.

L’écologiste Vandana Shiva dénonce le “cartel du poison”, Brut, Février 2019.

Childhood obesity before 12 years of age appears to increase the risk of female infertility in later life

Association of childhood obesity with female infertility in adulthood: a 25-year follow-up study

2018 Study Abstract

Objective
To evaluate whether childhood obesity is associated with infertility in women’s reproductive-aged life.

Design
Prospective longitudinal study.

Setting
Not applicable.

Intervention(s)
None.

Patient(s)
A total of 1,544 girls, aged 7–15 years in 1985, and who completed questionnaires at follow-up in 2004-2006 and/or 2009-2011.

Main Outcome Measure(s)
Infertility was defined as having difficulty conceiving (had tried for ≥12 months to become pregnant without succeeding) or having seen a doctor because of trouble becoming pregnant.

Result(s)
At ages from 7–11 years, girls at both the lower and upper end of the body mass index (BMI) z score had increased risk of infertility. Compared with normal weight girls, those with obesity at ages 7–11 years were more likely in adulthood to report infertility (adjusted relative risk [aRR] = 2.94, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.48–5.84), difficulty conceiving (aRR = 3.89, 95% CI 1.95–7.77), or having seen a doctor because of trouble becoming pregnant (aRR = 3.65, 95% CI 1.90–7.02) after adjusting for childhood age, follow-up length, highest parental education, and marital status.

Conclusion(s)
Childhood obesity before 12 years of age appears to increase the risk of female infertility in later life.

UK Government considering banning energy drink sales to children

Many major British retailers already refuse to sell energy drinks to those under 18

In England, 16-year-olds can down a pint in a pub, if having a meal in adult company. But under a new government proposal, it would be illegal for them to buy an energy drink like Red Bull at the corner store, The NY Times reports. This gov.uk consultation closes at 11:59pm on 21 November 2018.

Public asked for views on banning energy drink sales to children

The consultation is part of the government’s plan to reduce childhood obesity and other health problems in children.

The government is seeking views from the public on ending the sale of energy drinks to children and young people in England, the Prime Minister has announced.

The consultation proposes that a ban would apply to drinks that contain more than 150mg of caffeine per litre and prevent all retailers from selling the drinks to children.

It follows the publication of the latest chapter of the government’s childhood obesity plan in June 2018, which outlines a series of measures as well as a commitment to halve childhood obesity by 2030.

Questions in the consultation include:

  • whether the restrictions should apply to children under 16 or under 18
  • whether the law should be changed to prevent children from buying them in any situation

Energy drinks are already banned for sale to children by many major retailers, but children can still buy them from vending machines and many independent convenience stores, for example.

More than two-thirds of 10- to 17-year-olds and a quarter of 6- to 9-year-olds consume energy drinks. A 250ml can of energy drink can contains around 80mg of caffeine – the equivalent of nearly 3 cans of cola. On average, non-diet energy drinks also contain 60% more calories and 65% more sugar than other, regular soft drinks.

Excessive consumption has been linked to a number of health issues in children, including:

  • headaches
  • sleep problems
  • stomach aches
  • hyperactivity

Prime Minister Theresa May said:

“Childhood obesity is one of the greatest health challenges this country faces, and that’s why we are taking significant action to reduce the amounts of sugar consumed by young people and to help families make healthier choices.

Our plans to tackle obesity are already world leading, but we recognise much more needs to be done and as part of our long-term plan for the NHS, we are putting a renewed focus on the prevention of ill-health.

With thousands of young people regularly consuming energy drinks, often because they are sold at cheaper prices than soft drinks, we will consult on banning the sale of energy drinks to children.

It is vital that we do all we can to make sure children have the best start in life and I encourage everyone to put forward their views.”

Public Health Minister Steve Brine said:

“We all have a responsibility to protect children from products that are damaging to their health and education, and we know that drinks packed to the brim with caffeine, and often sugar, are becoming a common fixture of their diet.

Our teenagers already consume 50% more of these drinks than European counterparts, and teachers have made worrying links between energy drinks and poor behaviour in the classroom.

We are asking the public for their views on the matter, to ensure energy drinks are not being excessively consumed by children.”

Behavioral aspects involved in obesogenic actions of EDCs

Perinatal exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds and the control of feeding behavior – An overview

2018 Study Highlights

  • Perinatal exposure to EDC can disrupt energy homeostasis leading to obesity and diabetes.
  • Most perinatal studies only report crude food or energy intake, if at all.
  • Perinatal studies should analyze meal patterns and response to peripheral peptide hormones.
  • These studies should also examine hypothalamic-hindbrain neurocircuitry.

Abstract

Endocrine disrupting compounds (EDC) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants that can interact with steroid and nuclear receptors or alter hormone production. Many studies have reported that perinatal exposure to EDC including bisphenol A, PCB, dioxins, and DDT disrupt energy balance, body weight, adiposity, or glucose homeostasis in rodent offspring. However, little information exists on the effects of perinatal EDC exposure on the control of feeding behaviors and meal pattern (size, frequency, duration), which may contribute to their obesogenic properties. Feeding behaviors are controlled centrally through communication between the hindbrain and hypothalamus with inputs from the emotion and reward centers of the brain and modulated by peripheral hormones like ghrelin and leptin. Discrete hypothalamic nuclei (arcuate nucleus, paraventricular nucleus, lateral and dorsomedial hypothalamus, and ventromedial nucleus) project numerous reciprocal neural connections between each other and to other brain regions including the hindbrain (nucleus tractus solitarius and parabrachial nucleus).

Most studies on the effects of perinatal EDC exposure examine simple crude food intake over the course of the experiment or for a short period in adult models. In addition, these studies do not examine EDC’s impacts on the feeding neurocircuitry of the hypothalamus-hindbrain, the response to peripheral hormones (leptin, ghrelin, cholecystokinin, etc.) after refeeding, or other feeding behavior paradigms. The purpose of this review is to discuss those few studies that report crude food or energy intake after perinatal EDC exposure and to explore the need for deeper investigations in the hypothalamic-hindbrain neurocircuitry and discrete feeding behaviors..

60 MiNueTs : Toxic Bodies

UCSF Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment, 2017

The University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment (PRHE)’s mission is to create a healthier environment for human reproduction and development through advancing scientific inquiry, clinical care and health policies that prevent exposures to harmful chemicals in our environment.

PRHE is housed within the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, in the UCSF School of Medicine, one of the nation’s most prestigious medical schools. The Department is renowned for promoting cutting-edge reproductive science research, extending the frontiers of multidisciplinary women’s health care and professional education, advocating for women’s health at local, state and national levels, and engaging community involvement.

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Mothers need to limit their consumption of added sugars when breastfeeding

From mother to baby: ‘Secondhand sugars’ can pass through breast milk

A new study by researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of USC indicates that a “secondhand sugar” – derived from a mom’s diet – is passed from mother to infant through breast milk.

Even a small amount of fructose – a sweetener linked to health issues ranging from obesity to diabetes – in breast milk is associated with increases in a baby’s body weight.

2017 Study Abstract

Fructose in Breast Milk Is Positively Associated with Infant Body Composition at 6 Months of Age, Nutrients, doi:10.3390/nu9020146, 16 February 2017.

From mother to baby: ‘Secondhand sugars’ can pass through breast milk, news.usc.edu, MARCH 2, 2017.

Cake credit waferboard.

Dietary sugars have been shown to promote excess adiposity among children and adults; however, no study has examined fructose in human milk and its effects on body composition during infancy.

Twenty-five mother–infant dyads attended clinical visits to the Oklahoma Health Sciences Center at 1 and 6 months of infant age. Infants were exclusively breastfed for 6 months and sugars in breast milk (i.e., fructose, glucose, lactose) were measured by Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and glucose oxidase. Infant body composition was assessed using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry at 1 and 6 months. Multiple linear regression was used to examine associations between breast milk sugars and infant body composition at 6 months of age. Fructose, glucose, and lactose were present in breast milk and stable across visits (means = 6.7 μg/mL, 255.2 μg/mL, and 7.6 g/dL, respectively).

Despite its very low concentration, fructose was the only sugar significantly associated with infant body composition. A 1-μg/mL higher breast milk fructose was associated with a 257 g higher body weight (p = 0.02), 170 g higher lean mass (p = 0.01), 131 g higher fat mass (p = 0.05), and 5 g higher bone mineral content (p = 0.03).

Conclusion

Overall, this study suggests a novel mechanism by which infants may be inadvertently exposed to fructose through breast milk, before sugar sweetened beverages and other fructose-containing foods are introduced to the infant diet.

This work also opens the door for interventions aimed towards decreased consumption of added sugars while lactating.

Future work should be performed with larger samples with longer follow-up (>6 months) in order to establish whether the relationships observed between fructose exposure and infant growth meaningfully impact the development of obesity phenotypes in later childhood and to investigative the mechanism of such an effect at very low levels of fructose.

In conclusion, we provide preliminary evidence that fructose is present in breast milk and may be transmitted to the infant, impacting growth and body composition by 6 months of age.