Childhood phthalates linked to teen liver enzymes
In the Ewha Birth and Growth Cohort, higher childhood urinary phthalates—especially later LMW exposure—tracked with higher AST, ALT, and γ-GTP at ages 10–15, with BMI interactions in girls.
Source
Prospective association between phthalate exposure in childhood and liver function in adolescence: the Ewha Birth and Growth Cohort Study
What they did
Authors measured nine urinary phthalate metabolites at ages 3–5 and 7–9 in 164 Ewha cohort children and related creatinine-adjusted tertiles and combined high/low groups to fasting AST, ALT, and γ-GTP at ages 10–15 in 126 participants, adjusting for sex, BMI, SES, secondhand smoke, and inactivity.
What they found
Geometric-mean ΣDEHP fell from 377.0 to 229.0 μg/g creatinine between the two childhood windows. Higher LMW phthalates (MiBP, MnBP, ΣDBP) tracked with higher γ-GTP (ages 3–5) and AST/ALT (ages 7–9). Combined high exposure raised enzymes more for LMW compounds; 7–9-year exposure appeared more influential. BMI modified some associations in girls.
The limits
What it doesn't show
Spot urines at two visits cannot capture phthalates’ short half-life; n=126 limits sex-stratified power; co-exposure mixtures were not modeled; residual confounding remains possible.
Key terms
- Phthalates
- Plasticizer chemicals absorbed from consumer products; metabolites are measured in urine.
- ΣDEHP
- Molar sum of four DEHP metabolites: MECPP, MEHHP, MEHP, and MEOHP.
- LMW vs HMW phthalates
- Low-molecular-weight (e.g., DBP, DEP) vs high-molecular-weight (e.g., DEHP, BBzP) parent compounds.
- Liver-function tests
- Blood enzymes AST, ALT, and γ-GTP used here as injury/metabolic biomarkers.
- Ewha Birth and Growth Cohort
- Hospital-based Korean birth cohort with childhood follow-up visits.
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Common questions
When was exposure measured?
Urinary metabolites at 3–5 and 7–9 years; enzymes at 10–15 years.
Which phthalates most affected enzymes?
LMW metabolites (MiBP, MnBP, ΣDBP), especially at 7–9 years.
Did BMI matter?
Yes—some phthalate–enzyme associations were modified by BMI, mainly in girls.
How large was the analytic sample?
126 children with both exposure windows and teen liver enzymes.
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