Associations of endocrine disrupting chemical biomarkers and their mixture with vitamin D biomarker concentrations in childhood: The HOME Study

Katherine M. Marquess, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA.
Jordan R. Kuiper, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, The George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington D.C., USA.
Taylor M. Etzel, Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA.
Bruce P. Lanphear, Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada.
Andrew N. Hoofnagle, Department of Laboratory Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, USA.
Antonia M. Calafat, Division of Laboratory Sciences, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Julianne Cook Botelho, Division of Laboratory Sciences, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Maria Ospina, Division of Laboratory Sciences, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Andreas Sjodin, Division of Laboratory Sciences, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Lesliam Quirós-Alcalá, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA.
Kim M. Cecil, Department of Radiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, USA.
Aimin Chen, Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA.
Yingying Xu, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, USA.
Kimberly Yolton, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, USA.
Heidi J. Kalkwarf, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, USA.
Joseph M. Braun, Department of Epidemiology, Brown University, Providence, USA.
Jessie P. Buckley, Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA. Electronic address: Jessie.Buckley@unc.edu.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

1-1-2026

Journal

Environmental research

Volume

288

Issue

Pt 2

DOI

10.1016/j.envres.2025.123316

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Children are universally exposed to endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) which may disrupt the vitamin D system through several mechanisms, including competitive receptor binding. Current epidemiologic evidence is limited, especially in children. We cross-sectionally investigated the short-term associations of 24 EDC biomarkers with 3 vitamin D biomarkers measured at ages 8 and 12 years. METHODS: Among 236 children from the Health Outcomes and Measures of the Environment Study, we quantified serum concentrations of 4 per-/poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), 5 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and 3 vitamin D biomarkers and urinary metabolites of 4 organophosphate esters (OPE), 9 phthalates/replacements, and 2 environmental phenols at ages 8 (n = 180) and 12 (n = 187) years. Using linear regression models with generalized estimating equations, we estimated cross-sectional covariate-adjusted associations of interquartile range (IQR)-scaled log2 EDCs with vitamin D biomarkers. We used g-computation models to estimate effects of class-based and overall mixtures. RESULTS: A simultaneous IQR increase in all 24 EDCs was associated with 6.6 ng/mL (95% CI: 2.7, 10.6) higher total 25-dihydroxyvitamin D [total 25(OH)D]. Class-based mixtures of PFAS (β: 3.1; 95% CI: 1.3, 5.0), PBDEs (β: 2.1; 95% CI: 0.3, 3.9) and OPEs (β: 2.6; 95% CI: 0.3, 4.8) were associated with higher total 25(OH)D whereas environmental phenols (β: 0.8; 95% CI: -0.8, 2.4) and phthalates/replacements (β: -0.8; 95% CI: -3.3, 1.8) were not. Results for 24,25-dihydroxyvitamin D were similar. The PBDE mixture was associated with 4.0 pg/mL (95% CI: 0.4, 7.6) higher 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. DISCUSSION: Findings suggest that EDCs may alter the childhood vitamin D system. Associations with higher vitamin D biomarker levels may indicate competitive receptor binding and altered cellular transport with potential adverse downstream health impacts.

Department

Environmental and Occupational Health

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