Background: Women of reproductive age can be exposed to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) at work, and exposure to EDCs in pregnancy may affect fetal growth.
Objectives: We assessed whether maternal occupational exposure to EDCs during pregnancy as classified by application of a job exposure matrix was associated with birth weight, term low birth weight (LBW), length of gestation, and preterm delivery.
Methods: Using individual participant data from 133,957 mother–child pairs in 13 European cohorts spanning births from 1994 through 2011, we linked maternal job titles with exposure to 10 EDC groups as assessed through a job exposure matrix. For each group, we combined the two levels of exposure categories (possible and probable) and compared birth outcomes with the unexposed group (exposure unlikely). We performed meta-analyses of cohort-specific estimates.
Results: Eleven percent of pregnant women were classified as exposed to EDCs at work during pregnancy, based on job title. Classification of exposure to one or more EDC group was associated with an increased risk of term LBW [odds ratio (OR) = 1.25; 95% CI: 1.04, 1.49], as were most specific EDC groups; this association was consistent across cohorts. Further, the risk increased with increasing number of EDC groups (OR = 2.11; 95% CI: 1.10, 4.06 for exposure to four or more EDC groups). There were few associations (p < 0.05) with the other outcomes; women holding job titles classified as exposed to bisphenol A or brominated flame retardants were at higher risk for longer length of gestation.
Conclusion: Results from our large population-based birth cohort design indicate that employment during pregnancy in occupations classified as possibly or probably exposed to EDCs was associated with an increased risk of term LBW.
1ISGlobal, Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology, Barcelona, Spain; 2Consorcio de Investigación Biomédica de Epidemiología y Salud Pública, Spain; 3Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain; 4Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain; 5Center for Research in Occupational Health, Barcelona, Spain; 6Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway; 7Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Predictive Medicine and Public Health, University of Porto Medical School, Porto, Portugal; 8Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; 9Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital Bispebjerg, Copenhagen, Denmark; 10Department of Public Health, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; 11National Institute of Health and Medical Research, InsermU1085 – Irset, University of Rennes, Rennes, France; 12Department of Environmental Science, Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania; 13Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs.Granada, University of Granada, Granada, Spain; 14Department of Environmental Epidemiology, Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Lodz, Poland; 15The Generation R Study Group, Department of Epidemiology, Department of Pediatrics, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; 16Hospital Del Mar Medical Research Institute, Barcelona, Spain; 17National School of Public Health, Athens, Greece; 18Sachs’ Children’s Hospital, Södersjukhuset, Stockholm, Sweden; 19Department of Clinical Science and Education, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; 20Faculty of Medicine, University of the Basque Country, Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; 21BioDonostia Health Research Institute, San Sebastian, Basque Country, Spain; 22Department of Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, University Hospital of Heraklion, Crete, Greece; 23Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; 24Meyer Children’s University Hospital, Florence, Italy; 25Department of Health, Government of the Basque Country, San Sebastian, Spain; 26Department of Public Health, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; 27Cancer Epidemiology Unit, Department of Medical Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
Recommended Citation:
Laura Birks,1,2,et al. Occupational Exposure to Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals and Birth Weight and Length of Gestation: A European Meta-Analysis[J]. Environmental Health Perspectives,2016-01-01,Volume 124(Issue 11):1785