Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational study

Abstract Background Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are commonly utilized in consumer products. While earlier studies have suggested potential impacts of certain PFAS on serum concentrations of vitamin D, these investigations were constrained to a limited set of conventional PFAS. Moreove...

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Main Authors: Hui Zhao, Yuxin Ren, Jianping Ni, Lanlan Fang, Tao Zhang, Mengmeng Wang, Guoqi Cai, Yubo Ma, Faming Pan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2024-11-01
Series:Environmental Health
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-024-01140-9
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author Hui Zhao
Yuxin Ren
Jianping Ni
Lanlan Fang
Tao Zhang
Mengmeng Wang
Guoqi Cai
Yubo Ma
Faming Pan
author_facet Hui Zhao
Yuxin Ren
Jianping Ni
Lanlan Fang
Tao Zhang
Mengmeng Wang
Guoqi Cai
Yubo Ma
Faming Pan
author_sort Hui Zhao
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are commonly utilized in consumer products. While earlier studies have suggested potential impacts of certain PFAS on serum concentrations of vitamin D, these investigations were constrained to a limited set of conventional PFAS. Moreover, they did not specifically focus on populations with longer duration of PFAS exposure and potentially higher blood PFAS levels, such as older adults, and lacked adequate evidence to examine sex-related disparities. Methods This observational investigation utilized cross-sectional data obtained from the U.S. NHANES spanning the years 2003 to 2018. Survey-weighted multiple regression models were employed to evaluate the relationship between PFAS exposure and vitamin D concentrations. Multi-pollutant models were employed to evaluate the association between PFAS mixtures and vitamin D concentrations. Subsequently, environmental risk scores (ERS) were constructed to gauge associations with vitamin D concentrations. ERS was computed through a weighted linear combination of PFAS, utilizing calculations from ridge regression and adaptive elasticity network (adENET) methodologies. All analyses were stratified by sex. Results The study encompassed 3,853 older adults. Our analysis revealed a negative association between PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, and MeFOSAA and serum vitamin D concentrations. In analyses examining mixed exposures, various models consistently indicated an inverse association between PFAS mixed exposure and vitamin D concentrations. Moreover, an increase in ERS of PFAS across the interquartile range was associated with a decrease in vitamin D concentrations (Q4 vs. Q1, adENET: β: -0.083, 95% CI: -0.117, -0.048; ridge regression: β: -0.077, 95% CI: -0.111, -0.042). Notably, these associations were exclusively observed within the female population. Conclusions Our study indicates that heightened exposure to PFAS correlates with diminished serum vitamin D concentrations in females aged 60 years and older, evident in both single and mixed exposures. These findings find support in in vitro mechanistic studies, suggesting that PFAS may impact the metabolism of 25(OH)D, consequently affecting vitamin D concentrations.
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spelling doaj-art-f75e5cc8f3554e2a8b086f45b4e2a6fc2025-08-20T02:22:16ZengBMCEnvironmental Health1476-069X2024-11-0123111310.1186/s12940-024-01140-9Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational studyHui Zhao0Yuxin Ren1Jianping Ni2Lanlan Fang3Tao Zhang4Mengmeng Wang5Guoqi Cai6Yubo Ma7Faming Pan8Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical UniversityAbstract Background Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are commonly utilized in consumer products. While earlier studies have suggested potential impacts of certain PFAS on serum concentrations of vitamin D, these investigations were constrained to a limited set of conventional PFAS. Moreover, they did not specifically focus on populations with longer duration of PFAS exposure and potentially higher blood PFAS levels, such as older adults, and lacked adequate evidence to examine sex-related disparities. Methods This observational investigation utilized cross-sectional data obtained from the U.S. NHANES spanning the years 2003 to 2018. Survey-weighted multiple regression models were employed to evaluate the relationship between PFAS exposure and vitamin D concentrations. Multi-pollutant models were employed to evaluate the association between PFAS mixtures and vitamin D concentrations. Subsequently, environmental risk scores (ERS) were constructed to gauge associations with vitamin D concentrations. ERS was computed through a weighted linear combination of PFAS, utilizing calculations from ridge regression and adaptive elasticity network (adENET) methodologies. All analyses were stratified by sex. Results The study encompassed 3,853 older adults. Our analysis revealed a negative association between PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, and MeFOSAA and serum vitamin D concentrations. In analyses examining mixed exposures, various models consistently indicated an inverse association between PFAS mixed exposure and vitamin D concentrations. Moreover, an increase in ERS of PFAS across the interquartile range was associated with a decrease in vitamin D concentrations (Q4 vs. Q1, adENET: β: -0.083, 95% CI: -0.117, -0.048; ridge regression: β: -0.077, 95% CI: -0.111, -0.042). Notably, these associations were exclusively observed within the female population. Conclusions Our study indicates that heightened exposure to PFAS correlates with diminished serum vitamin D concentrations in females aged 60 years and older, evident in both single and mixed exposures. These findings find support in in vitro mechanistic studies, suggesting that PFAS may impact the metabolism of 25(OH)D, consequently affecting vitamin D concentrations.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-024-01140-9PFASVitamin DCo-exposureERSOlder adults
spellingShingle Hui Zhao
Yuxin Ren
Jianping Ni
Lanlan Fang
Tao Zhang
Mengmeng Wang
Guoqi Cai
Yubo Ma
Faming Pan
Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational study
Environmental Health
PFAS
Vitamin D
Co-exposure
ERS
Older adults
title Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational study
title_full Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational study
title_fullStr Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational study
title_full_unstemmed Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational study
title_short Sex-specific association of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure with vitamin D concentrations in older adults in the USA: an observational study
title_sort sex specific association of per and polyfluoroalkyl substances pfas exposure with vitamin d concentrations in older adults in the usa an observational study
topic PFAS
Vitamin D
Co-exposure
ERS
Older adults
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-024-01140-9
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