Abstract
ObjectivesMarkers of prenatal hormone exposure have been associated with the development of eating disorder (ED) behaviors. Our aim was to determine whether 2D:4D ratio, a marker for in utero testosterone exposure, is associated with risk for ED in a large population-based cohort: the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC).MethodsThis is the first study to investigate prenatal testosterone exposure in children at high-risk for ED, using 2D:4D as a marker. We compared children whose mothers reported a lifetime ED (anorexia, bulimia, or both; N = 446) to children whose mothers did not (n = 5,367).ResultsDaughters of women with lifetime bulimia nervosa (BN) had lower 2D:4D ratio (B: −0.01, 95% CI: −0.02 to −0.002, P = 0.02), indicating higher prenatal testosterone exposure, than daughters of mothers unaffected by ED. No differences were observed in the male children of women with an ED.ConclusionsFindings suggest that children at high-risk for BN may be exposed to higher levels of testosterone in utero. Fetal exposure to androgen excess is thought to be causal in the development of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a disorder which is highly comorbid with binge eating and BN. Future research should investigate the potential role of testosterone exposure in utero as a risk factor for BN and binge eating. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 26:176–182, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Highlights
Our aim was to determine whether 2D:4D ratio, a marker for in utero testosterone exposure, is associated with risk for eating disorder (ED) in a large population-based cohort: the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)
Crude regression analysis showed that the children of women with lifetime bulimia nervosa (BN) had a lower 2D:4D ratio on the right hand than the children of unexposed women (B: 20.01, 95% CI: 20.02 to 20.002, p 5 0.02), indicative of higher prenatal testosterone exposure
Our findings relating to children at high-risk contrast with previous research in that we found an association between high prenatal testosterone exposure and risk for ED; we explore possible explanations for this below
Summary
Markers of prenatal hormone exposure have been associated with the development of eating disorder (ED) behaviors. Our aim was to determine whether 2D:4D ratio, a marker for in utero testosterone exposure, is associated with risk for ED in a large population-based cohort: the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)
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