Prenatal phthalate exposures and child temperament at 12 and 24 months

• Published in: Neurotoxicology (Park Forest South) Vol. 62; pp. 248 - 257
• Main Authors: Singer, Alison B., Wolff, Mary S., Silva, Manori J., Calafat, Antonia M., Engel, Stephanie M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01-09-2017; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: Biomarkers; Child Behavior Disorders - diagnosis; Child Behavior Disorders - etiology; Child, Preschool; Children; Cohort Studies; Environmental exposure; Environmental Exposure - adverse effects; Environmental health; Environmental Pollutants - adverse effects; Environmental Pollutants - urine; Exposure; Female; Human exposure; Humans; Infant; Laughing; Linear Models; Male; Metabolites; Mother-Child Relations; Motor activity; Motor Activity - drug effects; Motor Activity - physiology; Personality Inventory; Phthalate; Phthalates; Phthalic Acids - adverse effects; Phthalic Acids - metabolism; Phthalic Acids - urine; Pregnancy; Prenatal experience; Prenatal exposure; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects - chemically induced; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects - psychology; Public health; Temperament; Temperament - drug effects; Toddler; Urine; Environmental exposure; Infant; Phthalate; Toddler; Temperament
• ISSN: 0161-813X; 1872-9711
• DOI: 10.1016/j.neuro.2017.08.002

•Prenatal phthalates metabolites were measured in spot urine samples.•Temperament was assessed by parent report at 12- and 24-months.•Prenatal phthalates were generally not associated with temperament.
Gestational phthalate exposures have been adversely associated with attention, externalizing, and internalizing behaviors in childhood. Early childhood temperament may be a marker of later behavioral patterns. We therefore sought to determine whether gestational phthalate exposures were associated with infant and toddler temperament.
The Mount Sinai Children’s Environmental Health Study is a prospective cohort study of children born between May 1998 and July 2001 in New York City (N=404). Phthalate metabolites were measured in spot urine samples collected from pregnant women in their third trimester. Child temperament was assessed by parental report at 12-months using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ) (N=204) and at 24-months using the Toddler Behavior Assessment Questionnaire (TBAQ) (N=279). We used multiple linear regression to evaluate associations between urinary phthalate metabolites and eleven temperament domains.
Phthalate biomarker concentrations were weakly associated with lower gross motor activity levels as well as higher duration of orienting at the 12-month assessment. Mono(3-carboxypropyl) phthalate (MCPP), monobenzyl phthalate (MBzP) and the sum of metabolites of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (∑DEHP) were associated with lower levels of smiling and laughing at 12 months. At 24-months, social fear and lower pleasure was linked to higher concentrations of MCPP and MBzP, and higher ∑DEHP was weakly associated with increased anger levels at 24-months.
Though we observed some weak associations between biomarkers of prenatal exposure to phthalates and temperament at 12- and 24-months, overall phthalates biomarkers were not strongly associated with alterations in temperament.