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Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) and Human Health: Effects on Metabolism, Diabetes and Cancer
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This review by a panel of Italian medical experts examines how polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) — flame retardants found in industrial products and household items — disrupt hormonal signaling and may contribute to metabolic disorders, diabetes, and cancer through both molecular and clinical mechanisms.
There is increasing evidence of the role of endocrine disruptors (EDs) derived from commonly employed compounds for manufacturing and processing in altering hormonal signaling and function. Due to their prolonged half-life and persistence, EDs can usually be found not only in industrial products but also in households and in the environment, creating the premises for long-lasting exposure. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are common EDs used in industrial products such as flame retardants, and recent studies are increasingly showing that they may interfere with both metabolic and oncogenic pathways. In this article, a multidisciplinary panel of experts of the Italian Association of Medical Diabetologists (AMD), the Italian Society of Diabetology (SID), the Italian Association of Medical Oncology (AIOM), the Italian Society of Endocrinology (SIE) and the Italian Society of Pharmacology (SIF) provides a review on the potential role of PBDEs in human health and disease, exploring both molecular and clinical aspects and focusing on metabolic and oncogenic pathways.
More Papers Like This
Toxic Effects and Mechanisms of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers
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This review summarizes the toxic effects of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), flame retardant chemicals commonly added to plastics and textiles. PBDEs accumulate in human tissues including the liver, brain, and breast milk, and have been linked to damage in the liver, kidneys, thyroid, brain, and reproductive system. These chemicals are relevant to microplastics because PBDEs can attach to microplastic surfaces and be transported into the body, increasing human exposure through food and water.
A review of environmental metabolism disrupting chemicals and effect biomarkers associating disease risks: Where exposomics meets metabolomics
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This review examines how environmental chemicals, including contaminants associated with plastics, can disrupt human metabolism and contribute to conditions like obesity and diabetes. Researchers mapped the connections between chemical exposure and changes in metabolic biomarkers that signal disease risk. The study highlights the emerging field of metabolism-disrupting chemicals and the importance of understanding how everyday environmental exposures influence long-term metabolic health.
A One Health approach to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs): Integrating human, animal, and environmental health perspectives
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This review takes a One Health approach to examining polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), persistent flame retardant chemicals that contaminate the environment and accumulate in living organisms. Researchers found that PBDEs cause similar harmful effects across species, including hormonal disruption, brain development problems, and immune system damage, with children and pregnant women facing the highest risks. The study also highlights emerging concerns about interactions between PBDEs and microplastics, which may increase how much of these chemicals organisms absorb.
Environmental diabetogens: biochemical links between microplastic exposure, endocrine disruption, and glucose metabolic dysfunction
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This review pulls together existing research suggesting that microplastics—and the chemicals they carry, like BPA and phthalates—may disrupt your body's hormones and cell signaling in ways that interfere with how you process blood sugar, potentially contributing to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. While this doesn't prove microplastics *cause* diabetes in humans, it highlights a plausible biological pathway that adds to concerns about our everyday exposure to plastics in food, water, and packaging. More research is needed, but this is a reminder that reducing plastic exposure could be one more piece of the puzzle in protec
01 | Microplastics Endocrine-disrupting Chemicals and Human Health: Metabolic and Reproductive Risks in a One Health Perspective
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Researchers review evidence that microplastics detected in human placenta, blood, and breast milk release endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as bisphenols and phthalates, which drive insulin resistance, impaired gametogenesis, and potentially transgenerational epigenetic effects — positioning microplastic-associated EDCs as systemic modulators of metabolic and reproductive health.
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