After having observed in animals, with toxicological studies that endocrine disruptors could interact with hormonal systems involved in the normal development of the central nervous system and promote endocrine disorders on neurodevelopment, Inserm researchers conducted a study with 529 little boys from the EDEN mother-child cohort.
Pregnant women participating in this cohort were recruited between 2003 and 2006 in the CHUs of Nancy and Poitiers. On these dates, the bisphenol A was present in food containers. On the child’s third and fifth birthdays, these mothers filled out a questionnaire to analyze their child’s behavioral disorders such ashyperactivity, emotional disturbances and relationship disturbances.
The findings of this study also revealed an association between triclosan and an increase in emotional disturbances at ages 3 and 5. “This is the first study evaluating the effects of this compound on behavior, for which the Grenoble environmental epidemiology team had already demonstrated a reduction in head circumference at birth, in this same population. At the molecular level, triclosan is able to interact with the thyroid axis which, during pregnancy, is involved in the development of the fetal brain, ”the researchers point out.
New studies put in place to confirm the results
In order to validate these initial conclusions, the researchers will set up new research with the SEPAGES mother-child cohort coordinated by Inserm and supported by the European Research Council. They will collect urine samples from participants during the pregnancyand the first years of the child’s life.
“This approach will make it possible to limit exposure measurement errors and identify potential periods of sensitivity to phenols and phthalates on various health events such as growth, behavior or respiratory health. This will also make it possible to study the possible effect of these substances on young girls, which could not be considered here. Their sensitivity to endocrine disruptors may differ from that of boys, ”the researchers explain.
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