Perfluorooctanesulfonic Acid Exposure Linked to Lower Bone Density

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 13, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- In a cohort of Hispanic adolescents and young adults, plasma perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) exposure is associated with lower bone mineral density (BMD), according to a study published online Dec. 6 in Environmental Research.

Emily Beglarian, M.P.H., from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, and colleagues examined associations of individual perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and PFAS mixtures with longitudinal changes in BMD in Hispanic young persons. The study included 304 overweight/obese adolescents from the Study of Latino Adolescents at Risk of Type 2 Diabetes (SOLAR) and 137 young adults from the Southern California Children's Health Study (CHS). The longitudinal associations between BMD and five PFAS were estimated.

The researchers found that baseline plasma PFOS was associated with longitudinal changes in BMD among SOLAR adolescents. There was an average −0.003 g/cm² difference in change in trunk BMD per year during follow-up in association with each doubling of PFOS. In CHS young adults, associations with PFOS persisted, with each doubling of plasma PFOS associated with an average difference of −0.032 g/cm² in total BMD at baseline; the longitudinal associations were not significant. Other PFAS were not associated with BMD; associations of PFAS mixture with BMD outcomes were mainly negative, but did not reach significance.

"These results suggest that minimizing PFAS exposure in adolescence may improve adolescent bone density, thereby preserving bone health at all ages and leading to long-term reductions in osteoporosis and fractures later in life," the authors write.

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