'Safe'
Levels of Environmental Pollution May Have Long-Term Health Consequences
If you're eating better and exercising
regularly, but still aren't seeing improvements in your health, there might be
a reason: pollution. According to a new research report published in the
September issue of The FASEB Journal, what you are eating and doing
may not be the problem, but what's in what you are eating could be the culprit.
"This study adds evidences for
rethinking the way of addressing risk assessment especially when considering
that the human population is widely exposed to low levels of thousands of
chemicals, and that the health impact of realistic mixtures of pollutants will
have to be tested as well," said Brigitte Le Magueresse-Battistoni, a
researcher involved in the work from the French National Institute of Health
and Medical Research (INSERM).
"Indeed, one pollutant could have a different effect when in mixture with other pollutants. Thus, our study may have strong implications in terms of recommendations for food security. Our data also bring new light to the understanding of the impact of environmental food contaminants in the development of metabolic diseases."
"Indeed, one pollutant could have a different effect when in mixture with other pollutants. Thus, our study may have strong implications in terms of recommendations for food security. Our data also bring new light to the understanding of the impact of environmental food contaminants in the development of metabolic diseases."
To make this discovery, scientists
used two groups of obese mice. Both were fed a high-fat, high-sucrose enriched
diet, with one group receiving a cocktail of pollutants added to its diet at a
very low dosage. These pollutants were given to the mice throughout -- from
pre-conception to adulthood.
Although the researchers did not observe toxicity or excess of weight gain in the group having received the cocktail of pollutants, they did see a deterioration of glucose tolerance in females, suggesting a defect in insulin signaling. Study results suggest that the mixture of pollutants reduced estrogen activity in the liver through enhancing an enzyme in charge of estrogen elimination.
In contrast to females, glucose tolerance was not impacted in males exposed to the cocktail of pollutants. However, males did show some changes in liver related to cholesterol synthesis and transport. This study fuels the concept that pollutants may contribute to the current prevalence of chronic diseases including metabolic diseases and diabetes.
Although the researchers did not observe toxicity or excess of weight gain in the group having received the cocktail of pollutants, they did see a deterioration of glucose tolerance in females, suggesting a defect in insulin signaling. Study results suggest that the mixture of pollutants reduced estrogen activity in the liver through enhancing an enzyme in charge of estrogen elimination.
In contrast to females, glucose tolerance was not impacted in males exposed to the cocktail of pollutants. However, males did show some changes in liver related to cholesterol synthesis and transport. This study fuels the concept that pollutants may contribute to the current prevalence of chronic diseases including metabolic diseases and diabetes.
"This report that confirms
something we've known for a long time: pollution is bad for us," said
Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal.
"But, what's equally important, it shows that evaluating food contaminants
and pollutants on an individual basis may be too simplistic. We can see that
when "safe" levels of contaminants and pollutants act together, they
have significant impact on public health."
Story Source:
The above story is based on materials provided
by Federation of American Societies for
Experimental Biology, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
Note: Materials may be edited for
content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited
above.
Journal Reference:
1.
D. Naville, C. Pinteur, N. Vega, Y.
Menade, M. Vigier, A. Le Bourdais, E. Labaronne, C. Debard, C. Luquain-Costaz,
M. Begeot, H. Vidal, B. Le Magueresse-Battistoni. Low-dose food
contaminants trigger sex-specific, hepatic metabolic changes in the progeny of
obese mice. The FASEB Journal, 2013; 27 (9): 3860 DOI: 10.1096/fj.13-231670
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Federation of American Societies for
Experimental Biology (2013, August 29). 'Safe' levels of environmental
pollution may have long-term health consequences. ScienceDaily.
Retrieved August 31, 2013, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130829112852.htm
