Guangdong Provincial Engineering Technology Research Center of Environmental Pollution and Health Risk Assessment, Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, China.
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, College for Public Health & Social Justice, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO 63104, USA.
Sci Total Environ. 2022 Nov 10;846:157524. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157524. Epub 2022 Jul 21.
Studies on the obesogenic effect of air pollution on children have been mixed and sparse. Moreover, due to insufficient air monitoring, few studies have investigated the role of more tiny but unregulated particles (ambient particles with a diameter of 0.1 μm or less, ultrafine particles).
We sought to explore the associations between long-term exposure to ambient ultrafine particles (UFPs) and childhood obesity in Chinese children.
In this cross-sectional study, we randomly recruited 47,990 children, aged 6-18 years, from seven cities in Northeastern China between 2012 and 2013. Child age- and sex-specific z-scores for body mass index (BMI Z-score) and weight status were generated using the World Health Organization growth reference. Four-year average concentrations of UFPs and airborne particulates of diameter ≤ 1 μm (PM), ≤2.5 μm (PM), and ≤10 μm (PM) were estimated at home, using neural network simulated WRF-Chem model and spatiotemporal model, respectively. Confounder-adjusted generalized linear mixed models examined the associations between air pollution and BMI Z-score and the prevalence of childhood obesity.
We found that UFPs exposure was associated with greater childhood BMI Z-score and a higher likelihood of obesity. Compared with the lowest quartile, higher quartiles of UFPs were associated with greater odds for obesity prevalence in children (i.e., the adjusted OR was 1.25; 95 % CI, 1.12-1.39; 1.43; 95 % CI, 1.27-1.61; and 1.41; 95 % CI, 1.25-1.58 for the second, third, and fourth quartile, respectively). Similar associations were observed for PM, PM, and PM, and were greater in boys and children living close to roadways.
Long-term UFPs exposure was associated with a greater likelihood of childhood obesity, and stronger associations on BMI Z-score were observed in boys and children living close to roadways. This study indicates that more attention should be paid to the health effects of UFPs, and routinely monitoring of UFPs should be considered.
关于空气污染对儿童肥胖的致肥影响的研究结果不一且较为缺乏。此外，由于空气监测不足，很少有研究调查更小但未受监管的颗粒（直径为 0.1μm 或以下的环境颗粒，即超细颗粒）的作用。
我们旨在探索中国儿童长期暴露于环境超细颗粒（UFPs）与儿童肥胖之间的关系。
在这项横断面研究中，我们于 2012 年至 2013 年期间在东北地区的 7 个城市随机招募了 47990 名 6-18 岁的儿童。使用世界卫生组织生长参考值生成儿童年龄和性别特异性体重指数（BMI）Z 分数（BMIZ 分数）和体重状况的年龄和性别特异性 z 分数。使用神经网络模拟的 WRF-Chem 模型和时空模型分别估计家中 UFPs 和直径≤1μm（PM1）、≤2.5μm（PM2.5）和≤10μm（PM10）的四年平均浓度。调整混杂因素后的广义线性混合模型检验了空气污染与 BMIZ 分数和儿童肥胖患病率之间的关系。
我们发现 UFPs 暴露与儿童 BMIZ 分数更高和肥胖患病率更高有关。与最低四分位相比，UFPs 较高四分位与儿童肥胖患病率的更高几率相关（即，调整后的 OR 为 1.25；95%CI，1.12-1.39；1.43；95%CI，1.27-1.61；和 1.41；95%CI，1.25-1.58 分别为第二、第三和第四四分位）。类似的关联也见于 PM1、PM2.5 和 PM10，且在男孩和居住在道路附近的儿童中更为明显。
长期 UFPs 暴露与儿童肥胖的可能性增加有关，且在男孩和居住在道路附近的儿童中观察到 BMIZ 分数的更强关联。本研究表明，应更加关注 UFPs 的健康影响，并考虑常规监测 UFPs。
