Pressures of the urban environment on the endocrine system: Adverse effects and adaptation

2023 · Mixed · Insufficient evidence

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MixedInsufficient evidencePaper 1287

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2023

Study typereview

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingInsufficient

Abstract

Pressures of the urban environment on the endocrine system: Adverse effects and adaptation Rannaud-Bartaire P, Demeneix BA, Fini J-B. Pressures of the urban environment on the endocrine system: Adverse effects and adaptation. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology. 2023. doi: 10.1016/j.mce.2023.112125. Abstract With an increasing collective awareness of the rapid environmental changes, questions and theories regarding the adaptability of organisms are emerging. Global warming as well as chemical and non-chemical pollution have been identified as triggers of these adaptative changes, but can we link different kinds of stressors to certain phenotypic traits? The physiological adaptation, and particularly endocrine system adaptation, of living beings to urban environments is a fascinating way of studying urban endocrinology, which has emerged as a research field in 2007. In this paper, we stress how endocrine disruption in humans and environment can be studied in the urban environment by measuring the levels of pollution, endocrine activities or adversity. We broaden the focus to include not only exposure to the chemicals that have invaded our private spheres and their effects on wild and domestic species but also non-chemical effectors such as light, noise and climate change. We argue that taking into account the various urban stress factors and their effects on the endocrine system would enable the adoption of new approaches to protect living organisms. Highlights • Urban environments represent adaptive challenges for humans as well as wild and domesticated animals, which could serve as sentinels as they share the same environment. • These challenges include chemical pollution as well as exposure to non-chemical factors (artificial light, electromagnetic waves, noise pollution, climate change, sedentary lifestyle, lack of nature and endocrine effects). • The endocrine system, which is conserved throughout evolution, constitutes the cornerstone of the adaptation of organisms to their environment. • An integrated consideration of the various urban stressors and their effects on the endocrine system would facilitate the development of new approaches to protect living organisms. • Studies should include multiple levels of information, such as air, water and food contamination data, and integrate a translational, holistic “One Health” view, combining human epidemiological data with those collected on nearby species. Excerpts However, scientific data are still insufficient to allow the implementation of regulations that would effectively protect populations. Electromagnetic waves, artificial lights, noise, a sedentary lifestyle and global warming are all factors that interact with the endocrine system and could call upon adaptation mechanisms also activated by exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (Russart and Nelson, 2018; Seebacher, 2022).... Artificial light: In mammals, light reaching the retina is crucial for vision but also important for non-visual input to the brain. Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) project the light to the suprachiasmatic nuclei, which release various neurotransmitters and, thus, mediate the 24-hour light-dark cycle, influencing the secretion of, for example, serotonin, dopamine and melatonin. Natural light and its variations during the circadian cycle are difficult to reproduce by electrical systems. Lack of daylight exposure in the developing child, a major consequence of increased screen time indoors, is correlated with multiple health risks, ranging from physiological problems (sleep, obesity) to psychological ones (depression, anxiety), cognitive problems, impacts on eye development (increased myopia) and deficiencies in endogenous vitamin D production (Wirz-Justice et al., 2021.). The effects of artificial light at night are known in animals (glycaemic dysregulation, decreased spontaneous energy expenditure, altered seasonal reproductive cycles) and humans (increased global circulating glucocorticoids, inflammation, altered daily plasma leptin rhythms and glucose homeostasis, altered ovarian steroid secretions, ovulation and embryo implantation), but the underlying mechanisms have yet to be studied. There is a probable link between the effects of continuous artificial light, melatonin depletion and interactions with the hypothalamic-pituitary axis (Russart and Nelson, 2018; Hadinia et al., 2020; Salti et al., 2006). A recent review reported that central control via the hypothalamus disrupted by artificial light at night is one of the causes of impaired migration (Grunst and Grunst, 2023). Electromagnetic waves: The World Health Organization is currently conducting a project to assess the potential health effects of exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs), with frequencies between 100 kHz and 300 GHz, in the general and working population. Since the 1950s, RF-EMFs have been used in medicine (e.g., magnetic resonance imaging, radio frequency ablation), the industry (e.g., heating and welding), domestic appliances (e.g., baby monitors, Wi-Fi), security and navigation (e.g., radar and RFID) and, especially, telecommunication (e.g., radio and television broadcasting, mobile telephony). Six major topics were identified (brain cancer and leukaemia, adverse reproductive effects, cognitive impairment, symptoms, oxidative stress and heat-related effects), for which the WHO commissioned systematic reviews of experimental observations to analyse and synthesise the available data (Mevissen et al., 2022; Pacchierotti et al., 2021). A study published in 2020 including 21,049 Swedish and 3120 Finnish adult participants enrolled between 2008 and 2011 in the Cohort Study of Mobile Phone and followed for 4 years showed a slight increase in insomnia among mobile phone users in the highest call time category (>258 min/week), at that time, mainly in 2G and 3G. Since then, usage times and wave networks have changed significantly, but few data are available (Tettamanti et al., 2020). Increasing background levels of non-ionising anthropogenic electromagnetic fields (EMFs) from 0 Hz to 300 GHz could cause damage to non-human species at the ecosystem and biosphere levels, irrespective of the taxa; however, field studies are still scarce (McCredden et al., 2022; Pophof et al., 2023). In another study, exposure of gravid rats and pups in the postnatal phase 24 hours a day to 900-MHz electromagnetic radiation (RF-EMR) (average wave frequencies of electronic devices present in the home) led to an increase in hepatic markers of oxidative stress (Salameh et al., 2022) and changes in melatonin and cortisol secretion, but with conflicting results. Patients with electro hypersensitivity (EHS) and/or multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) appear to have similar clinical pictures, with biological markers of low-grade inflammation, oxidative stress and an autoimmune response involving autoantibodies against O-myelin, associated with hemodynamic defects on brain imaging in the capsule-thalamic area of the temporal lobes, suggesting the involvement of the limbic system and the thalamus (Belpomme and Irigaray, 2020). The appearance of 5G networks, the installation of relay antennas in densely populated areas and the constant increase in exposure to EM waves in young children is a public health issue. Table 1 (excerpt): Epidemiology Studies Experimental Studies Artificial light Wirz-Justice et al., 2021 (short review, human) Salti et al., 2006 (children's urinary melatonin excretion and screen exposure) Russart and Nelson (2018) (sensitivity of the circadian system to artificial light as night, human and nocturnal rodents) Hadinia et al. (2020) (photostimulation and puberty, pullets) Electromagnetic waves Mevissen et al. (2022) (laboratory animals studies and cancer) Pacchierotti et al. (2021) (laboratory animals studies and male fertility, radiofrequaency electromagnetics fields) Tettamanti et al. (2020) (cohort study of mobile phone use, human) McCredden et al. (2022) (electromagnetics signal, human cohort) Pophof et al. (2023) (electromagnetics signal, wildlife) Salameh et al.,2022 (electromagnetics waves, rats liver) sciencedirect.com

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typereview

Effect directionmixed

PopulationNot supplied

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureNot supplied

Evidence strengthInsufficientConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: unknown

Main findings

Narrative review arguing that multiple urban stressors, including chemical pollutants and non-chemical factors (artificial light, noise, climate change, electromagnetic waves), can interact with the endocrine system and may drive adaptive or adverse endocrine-related changes. For RF-EMF specifically, the paper notes limited/insufficient data for regulation; it cites a cohort study reporting a slight increase in insomnia among highest mobile phone call-time users and an animal study reporting increased hepatic oxidative stress markers and changes in melatonin/cortisol with conflicting results.

Outcomes measured

Endocrine disruption/adaptation in urban environments
Sleep/insomnia (mentioned via cited cohort study)
Oxidative stress markers (mentioned via cited animal study)
Melatonin and cortisol secretion (mentioned via cited animal study)
Reproductive/endocrine outcomes (general discussion; cited WHO review topics include reproductive effects)

Limitations

Review paper; does not report new primary data in the abstract/excerpts provided
Exposure parameters for electromagnetic waves are not systematically specified (beyond examples/cited studies)
Emphasizes that scientific data are still insufficient for effective regulation; field studies (e.g., wildlife/ecosystem) described as scarce
Some cited findings described as conflicting (e.g., melatonin/cortisol changes in rats)

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "review",
  "exposure": {
    "band": null,
    "source": "urban environment (multiple stressors incl. electromagnetic waves)",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": null
  },
  "population": null,
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "Endocrine disruption/adaptation in urban environments",
    "Sleep/insomnia (mentioned via cited cohort study)",
    "Oxidative stress markers (mentioned via cited animal study)",
    "Melatonin and cortisol secretion (mentioned via cited animal study)",
    "Reproductive/endocrine outcomes (general discussion; cited WHO review topics include reproductive effects)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Narrative review arguing that multiple urban stressors, including chemical pollutants and non-chemical factors (artificial light, noise, climate change, electromagnetic waves), can interact with the endocrine system and may drive adaptive or adverse endocrine-related changes. For RF-EMF specifically, the paper notes limited/insufficient data for regulation; it cites a cohort study reporting a slight increase in insomnia among highest mobile phone call-time users and an animal study reporting increased hepatic oxidative stress markers and changes in melatonin/cortisol with conflicting results.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Review paper; does not report new primary data in the abstract/excerpts provided",
    "Exposure parameters for electromagnetic waves are not systematically specified (beyond examples/cited studies)",
    "Emphasizes that scientific data are still insufficient for effective regulation; field studies (e.g., wildlife/ecosystem) described as scarce",
    "Some cited findings described as conflicting (e.g., melatonin/cortisol changes in rats)"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "insufficient",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "unknown",
  "keywords": [
    "urban endocrinology",
    "endocrine disruption",
    "urban stressors",
    "electromagnetic waves",
    "RF-EMF",
    "artificial light at night",
    "noise pollution",
    "climate change",
    "One Health",
    "melatonin",
    "cortisol",
    "oxidative stress",
    "insomnia",
    "5G"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.6,
      "reason": "Mentions WHO project commissioning systematic reviews on RF-EMF health effects (100 kHz–300 GHz)."
    },
    {
      "slug": "5g-policy",
      "weight": 0.55,
      "reason": "Discusses appearance of 5G networks, relay antennas in densely populated areas, and frames as a public health issue."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2023.112125
PubMed: Not supplied

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