A new American study points to the presence of endocrine-disrupting chemicals in household dust. According to the researchers, these substances would promote childhood obesity by contributing to the development of fat cells.
Endocrine disruptors are not only present in cleaning products, food packaging, cosmetics, furniture or pesticides: they are also present in the dust that invades our homes and apartments.
Several studies have already shown that these harmful substances contribute to indoor pollution, as well as the accumulation of triglycerides – a type of fat found in the blood – and an increase in obesity in animal models. A new study by researchers at Duke University in North Carolina, and presented at ENDO 2019, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society, goes further. According to its authors, endocrine disruptors present in the domestic system would promote the development of fat cells in our cellular models. This could contribute to weight gain and adiposity, especially in children.
“This is some of the first research on the links between exposure to mixtures of chemicals found in the indoor environment and the metabolic health of children living in these homes,” says Professor Christopher Kassotis, of the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University, and lead author of the study.
Development of adipocyte cells
To reach this conclusion, Professor Kassotis and his colleagues studied the effect of chemical mixtures isolated from household dust. They collected 194 house dust samples from households in central North Carolina. They then extracted the chemicals from the dust in the laboratory. These extracts were tested for their ability to promote fat cell development in a cell model.
They then discovered that very low concentrations of dust extracts could promote the accumulation of triglycerides and therefore the development of fat cells. This concentration of endocrine disruptors in household dust has direct consequences on the weight and adiposity of children. In fact, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), an independent agency of the United States government, children consume between 60 and 100 milligrams of dust per day.
“We found that two-thirds of the dust extracts were able to promote fat cell development and half of them promoted fat cell proliferation at 100 micrograms, which is about 1,000 times less than what children consume daily”, explains Professor Kassotis.
More than 100 chemicals found in household dust
The researchers then measured over 111 different chemicals in the dust and examined the relationship between their concentrations and the degree of fat cell development. They found that about 70 of these chemicals had a significant positive relationship with dust-induced fat cell development, and about 40 were linked to adipocyte precursor cell development. “This suggests that mixtures of chemicals present in the indoor environment could be the cause of these effects,” says the researcher.
“Interestingly, the more the dust is able to promote the development of adipocytes, the higher the BMI of the people living in these houses. We have demonstrated a relationship between the chemicals present in the indoor environment and the health metabolic,” he said at a news conference.
The scientists also found that some of these chemicals were significantly elevated in the dust from the homes of overweight and obese children. So they’re continuing to work on these chemicals — some of which are found in common household products like laundry detergents, household cleaners, paints and cosmetics — to determine which ones may be linked to obesity.
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