Abstract
BackgroundParabens are added to personal care products as antimicrobial preservatives. They have been suggested to have endocrine disrupting abilities. Prenatal exposure to parabens has been associated with reproductive endpoints including reduced male anogenital distance (AGD, distance from anus to genitals), which is sensitive to prenatal anti-androgenic exposure. ObjectivesTo study the associations between maternal paraben concentrations in second trimester urine and AGD and reproductive hormone concentrations at 3 months of age in offspring. MethodsPregnant women from Odense, Denmark were included in early pregnancy from 2010 to 12, and their children are being followed up. Fasting spot urine samples from 536 pregnant women were analyzed for methylparaben (MeP), ethyl-paraben (EtP), iso-propylparaben (i-PrP), n-propylparaben (n-PrP), n-butylparaben (n-BuP) and benzylparaben (BzP) by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry and thereafter osmolarity adjusted. Three months after expected date of birth, AGD was measured in 452 children, and serum concentrations of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing (LH), testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone-sulphate (DHEAS), androstenedione and 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17-OHP) were measured in 198 children. Maternal paraben exposure was categorized into tertiles or below and above level of detection, and sex-stratified multiple linear regression analyses were performed with AGD or reproductive hormones as outcomes. ResultsMost pregnant women had low concentrations of parabens in urine, but 10% exceeded the threshold for adverse estrogenic effects. Higher maternal paraben exposure was associated with shorter AGD in male offspring and longer AGD in girls, although only significant for MeP in boys. In addition, FSH, LH, DHEAS, 17-OHP concentrations were lower in girls with high prenatal paraben exposure, whereas no consistent pattern was found in boys. DiscussionThe endocrine disrupting abilities of parabens may affect humans at vulnerable time periods during development, which may have long term impact on reproductive function. This is the first study to find these associations in girls and our findings need confirmation.
Highlights
Parabens constitute a group of alkyl esters of p-hydroxybenzoic acid that are commonly added to personal care products, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, beverage and food processed as antimicrobial preservatives (Sanchis et al, 2020)
follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), DHEAS, 17-OHP concentrations were lower in girls with high prenatal paraben exposure, whereas no consistent pattern was found in boys
As prenatal paraben exposure was associated with lower z-score for weight at the three months examination, we performed the analyses without this adjustment, as slow growth may be a mediator of the association between paraben exposure and anogenital distance (AGD)
Summary
Parabens constitute a group of alkyl esters of p-hydroxybenzoic acid that are commonly added to personal care products, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, beverage and food processed as antimicrobial preservatives (Sanchis et al, 2020). Most evident were the effects of butylparaben in a recent study, where prenatal exposure of time-mated Wistar rats led to several adverse effects on endocrine-sensitive endpoints in the offspring; the anogenital distance of newborn male and female offspring was significantly reduced. Parabens are added to personal care products as antimicrobial preservatives. They have been suggested to have endocrine disrupting abilities. Prenatal exposure to parabens has been associated with reproductive endpoints including reduced male anogenital distance (AGD, distance from anus to genitals), which is sensitive to prenatal anti-androgenic exposure. Objectives: To study the associations between maternal paraben concentrations in second trimester urine and AGD and reproductive hormone concentrations at 3 months of age in offspring. Maternal paraben exposure was categorized into tertiles or below and above level
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
