PFAS affects weight trajectory after pregnancy

Certain polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in pregnant women appear to predict the trajectories of maternal weight, spanning 17 years following pregnancy, suggests a recent study.

A group of researchers assessed 1,106 Project Viva participants with measures of early-pregnancy plasma concentrations of eight PFAS. They measured the weight of these women at in-person visits at 6 months and at 3, 7, and 12 years after pregnancy. Self-reported weight was collected using annual questionnaires up to 17 years after pregnancy.

The Superimposition by Translation and Rotation model was used to estimate the weight trajectory parameters. Linear regression and Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) were utilized to examine the individual and joint effects of PFAS with trajectory parameters.

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) concentrations showed a positive association with weight trajectory magnitude in both linear regression (0.8 kg per doubling of PFOS, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 0.1‒1.4) and BKMR analyses (2.6 kg per increase from 25th to 75th percentile of PFOS concentrations).

BKMR analyses revealed a negative association between perfluorononanoate with trajectory magnitude (‒2.0 kg, 95 percent CI, ‒2.9 to ‒1.1).

Stratified linear regression found older participants to have more pronounced positive associations of PFOS, perfluorooctanoate, and 2-(N-ethyl-perfluorooctane sulfonamido) acetate with weight trajectory velocity. Notably, associations with the overall PFAS mixture were not observed.

“Select PFAS, assessed in pregnancy, may affect maternal weight trajectories spanning 17 years after pregnancy, especially for older-aged individuals,” the researchers said.