Environ Health Perspect

Background:Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are synthetic chemicals that may persist in the environment and in humans. There is a possible association between early-life PFAS exposure and metabolic dysfunction in later life, but data are limited.Methods:We studied 665 mother\ue2\u20ac\u201cchild pairs in Project Viva, a Boston, Massachusetts-area cohort recruited 1999\ue2\u20ac\u201c2002. We quantified concentrations of PFASs [perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorononanoate (PFNA), perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS), and perfluorodecanoate (PFDeA)] in maternal plasma collected at the first prenatal visit (median, 9.6 weeks gestation) and in child plasma from the mid-childhood research visit (median, 7.7 years). We assessed leptin, adiponectin, and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) in mid-childhood. We fit covariate-adjusted linear regression models and conducted stratified analyses by child sex.Results:Children with higher PFAS concentrations had lower HOMA-IR [e.g., \ue2\u20ac\u201c10.1% (95% CI: \ue2\u20ac\u201c17.3, \ue2\u20ac\u201c2.3) per interquartile range increment in PFOA]. This inverse association between child PFAS and HOMA-IR was more pronounced in females [e.g., PFOA: \ue2\u20ac\u201c15.6% (95% CI: \ue2\u20ac\u201c25.4, \ue2\u20ac\u201c4.6) vs. \ue2\u20ac\u201c6.1% (95% CI: \ue2\u20ac\u201c16.2, 5.2) for males]. Child PFAS plasma concentrations were not associated with leptin or adiponectin. Prenatal PFAS plasma concentrations were not associated with leptin, adiponectin, or HOMA-IR in offspring.Conclusions:We found no evidence for an adverse effect of early-life PFAS exposure on metabolic function in mid-childhood. In fact, children with higher PFAS concentrations had lower insulin resistance.Citation:Fleisch AF, Rifas-Shiman SL, Mora AM, Calafat AM, Ye X, Luttmann-Gibson H, Gillman MW, Oken E, Sagiv SK. 2017. Early-life exposure to perfluoroalkyl substances and childhood metabolic function. Environ Health Perspect 125:481\ue2\u20ac\u201c487;\ue2\u20ac\u201ahttp://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP303R37 HD034568/HD/NICHD NIH HHS/United StatesK24 HD069408/HD/NICHD NIH HHS/United StatesK23 ES024803/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United StatesK12 DK094721/DK/NIDDK NIH HHS/United StatesP30 DK092924/DK/NIDDK NIH HHS/United StatesR01 ES021447/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United StatesR01 HD034568/HD/NICHD NIH HHS/United States27586368PMC533218