 Zachary, 14, has type 1 diabetes, and enjoys snowboarding, camping, and Boy Scouts. The decreasing age of puberty has probably contributed to the increased incidence of type 1 diabetes in younger children, by accelerating the disease process. For example, earlier puberty might explain why the peak age of onset of type 1 diabetes in girls has fallen about 4 years in Norway since the 1930s (Gale 2005b). Puberty and environmental contaminantsExposure to endocrine (hormone) disrupting compounds may contribute to the earlier appearance of puberty. A panel of experts examined the evidence regarding environmental factors and puberty timing. The majority of the panelists concluded that the girls’ data are sufficient to suggest a trend toward earlier puberty from 1940 to 1994 but that the boys’ data are insufficient to suggest a trend during this same period. Their evaluation of human and animal studies suggests that endocrine-disrupting chemicals (particularly the estrogen mimics and antiandrogens) and body fat are important factors associated in altered puberty timing (Euling et al. 2008).
Roy et al. (2009) review the evidence that estrogen-like endocrine disrupting contaminants, found in everything from plastics to flame retardants to pesticides, can affect puberty in humans. These chemicals include some persistent organic pollutants (DDT, dioxin, PCBs, PBBs), bisphenol A, phthalates, and some pesticides (e.g., atrazine, endosulfan).
Other environmental factors can also affect puberty; increased body mass index, for example, has been correlated with earlier puberty onset (Roy et al. 2009). For information on body fat and type 1 diabetes, see the height and weight page.
The bottom lineThe decreasing age of puberty probably contributes to the ongoing shift of type 1 diabetes incidence toward children of younger ages. Environmental contaminants may contribute to this acceleration of type 1 diabetes by accelerating the appearance of puberty. |