Data_Sheet_1_Effects of prenatal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and childhood material hardship on reading achievement in school-age children: A preliminary study.docx

BackgroundChildren from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds are at elevated risk for reading problems. They are also likely to live in neighborhoods with high levels of air pollution and to experience material hardship. Despite these risk factors, the links between prenatal chemical exposures, socioeconomic adversities, and reading problems in youth from disadvantaged backgrounds remain understudied. Here we examine associations between prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), a common air pollutant, and reading skills, and determine if this relationship is exacerbated by material hardship among Black and/or Latinx children who have been followed as part of a longitudinal urban birth cohort.MethodsMothers and their children, who were participants in a prospective birth cohort followed by the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health, were recruited for the current study. Personal prenatal PAH exposure was measured during the third-trimester of pregnancy using a personal air monitoring backpack. Mothers reported their level of material hardship when their child was age 5 and children completed measures of pseudoword and word reading [Woodcock Johnson III Tests of Achievement (WJ-III) Basic Reading Index] at age 7. We used multiple linear regression to examine the effects of the interaction between prenatal PAH and material hardship on Basic Reading Index, controlling for ethnicity/race, sex, birthweight, presence of a smoker in the home (prenatal), and maternal education (prenatal) (N = 53).ResultsA prenatal PAH × material hardship interaction significantly associated with WJ-III Basic Reading Index scores at age 7 (β = −0.347, t(44) = −2.197, p = 0.033). Exploratory analyses suggested that this effect was driven by untimed pseudoword decoding (WJ-III Word Attack: β = −0.391, t(44) = −2.550, p = 0.014).ConclusionEnvironmental chemical exposures can be particularly toxic during the prenatal period when the fetal brain undergoes rapid development, making it uniquely vulnerable to chemical perturbations. These data highlight the interactive effects of environmental neurotoxicants and unmet basic needs on children’s acquisition of reading skill, specifically phonemic processing. Such findings identify potentially modifiable environmental risk factors implicated in reading problems in children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.</p

The Effects of the World Trade Center Event on Birth Outcomes among Term Deliveries at Three Lower Manhattan Hospitals-2

<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "The Effects of the World Trade Center Event on Birth Outcomes among Term Deliveries at Three Lower Manhattan Hospitals"</p><p>Environmental Health Perspectives 2004;112(17):1772-1778.</p><p>Published online 8 Sep 2004</p><p>PMCID:PMC1253672.</p><p>This is an Open Access article: verbatim copying and redistribution of this article are permitted in all media for any purpose, provided this notice is preserved along with the article's original DOI.</p

Distribution of CBCL and CPRS Scores in children at age 9 (N = 250^a).

a<p>Children included in analysis with all covariates.</p>b<p>CBCL “borderline or clinical” defined as percentile ≥93^rd; CPRS “moderately to markedly atypical” defined as T-score >65.</p><p>Distribution of CBCL and CPRS Scores in children at age 9 (N = 250^{<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0111670#nt117" target="_blank">a</a>}).</p

Associations between PAH Exposure and CBCL DSM-oriented Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity problems and ADHD Behavior Problems on the CPRS Subscales adjusting for postnatal exposure^a.

a<p>Adjusting for postnatal PAH exposure (measured by metabolites at ages 3 or 5, adjusted for specific gravity), prenatal ETS, child sex, maternal education, child ethnicity, gestational age, maternal demoralization, heating season, HOME caretaking environment, maternal intelligence, child age at assessment, maternal ADHD, child anxiety/depression at age 9.</p>b<p>OR stands for odds Ratio; CI stands for Confidence Interval.</p>c<p>CBCL- Borderline or clinical defined as percentile ≥93^rd; CPRS- Moderately to markedly atypical defined as T-score >65.</p><p>*p-value <0.05.</p><p>Associations between PAH Exposure and CBCL DSM-oriented Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity problems and ADHD Behavior Problems on the CPRS Subscales adjusting for postnatal exposure^{<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0111670#nt121" target="_blank">a</a>}.</p

Number of children categorized as moderately to markedly atypical on the CPRS DSM-IV Hyperactive Impulsive and CPRS DSM-IV Inattentive Subscales^a.

<p>Number of children categorized as moderately to markedly atypical on the CPRS DSM-IV Hyperactive Impulsive and CPRS DSM-IV Inattentive Subscales^a.</p

Number of children scoring in the borderline or clinical range on the CBCL and in the moderately to markedly atypical range on the CPRS in the analyses with maternal adducts or cord adducts^a.

a<p>Children included in analysis with all covariates.</p>b<p>CBCL- Borderline or clinical defined as percentile ≥93^rd; CPRS- Moderately to markedly atypical defined as T-score >65.</p><p>Number of children scoring in the borderline or clinical range on the CBCL and in the moderately to markedly atypical range on the CPRS in the analyses with maternal adducts or cord adducts^{<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0111670#nt119" target="_blank">a</a>}.</p