Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Original Article

Association between delivery-food consumption frequency and urinary bisphenol concentrations among Korean adults: a nationally representative study (Korean National Environmental Health Survey cycle 5, 2021–2023): Gwisang Park, Hyeyun Lee, Inchul Jeong, Eunhee Ha, Kihun Kim; Ann Occup Environ Med 2026;e37. Published online July 30, 2026; DOI: https://doi.org/10.35371/aoem.2026.38.e37 [Accepted]

Abstract PDF: Background
Bisphenol exposure remains a public health concern, particularly as the use of bisphenol analogues such as bisphenol S (BPS) has increased. In the post-pandemic period, delivery-food consumption has become routine in South Korea and may represent an important behavioral pathway for bisphenol exposure. This study examined whether delivery-food consumption in plastic containers is associated with urinary bisphenols among Korean adults.
Methods
This study used adult data from the Korean National Environmental Health Survey (KoNEHS) cycle 5 (2021–2023). Delivery-food consumption frequency (nine categories) was modeled per 1-time-per-month increase. Outcomes were urinary bisphenol A (BPA), BPS, and bisphenol F (BPF). Creatinine-adjusted concentrations were analyzed on the natural log scale using multivariable regression models. Model 1 adjusted for sociodemographic factors, and model 2 additionally adjusted for plastic-related behavioral variables.
Results
Among 4,275 adults with complete bisphenol and urinary creatinine data, delivery-food consumption frequency was positively associated with creatinine-adjusted urinary BPS concentrations (1.49% increase per 1-time-per-month increase; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.74–2.24; p < 0.001) after sociodemographic adjustment, whereas associations with BPA (0.32% increase; 95% CI, −0.45 to 1.09; p = 0.416) and BPF (−0.14% change; 95% CI: −1.18 to 0.90; p = 0.787) were not statistically significant. After additional adjustment for plastic-related behavioral variables in model 2, the association remained statistically significant for BPS (1.54%; 95% CI, 0.76–2.33; p < 0.001), whereas the associations with BPA and BPF remained non-significant.
Conclusions
More frequent consumption of delivery foods packaged in plastic containers was independently associated with higher creatinine-adjusted urinary BPS concentrations. Given that common delivery container polymers in Korea are generally bisphenol-free, this association suggests that delivery-related behavior serves as a behavioral surrogate for a bundled exposure scenario. The observed BPS signal may partly reflect cumulative exposure from ancillary materials, such as thermal receipts and labels. Future studies should identify specific delivery-associated sources and migration pathways of bisphenols.

247 View
8 Download

Research Article

Association between prenatal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and infantile allergic diseases modified by maternal glutathione S-transferase polymorphisms: results from the MOCEH birth cohort: Tai Kyung Koh, Hyesook Park, Yun-Chul Hong, Mina Ha, Yangho Kim, Bo-Eun Lee, Surabhi Shah, Eunhee Ha; Ann Occup Environ Med 2021;33:e12. Published online April 23, 2021; DOI: https://doi.org/10.35371/aoem.2021.33.e12

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material

Background

Prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) has been linked to allergic disease onset. Variations in the glutathione S-transferase (GST) gene family can impact the progression of allergic diseases. We sought to examine the association between prenatal PAH exposure and infantile allergic diseases in 6-month-old infants, and how maternal glutathione S-transferase M1 (GSTM1) or T1 (GSTT1) polymorphism affects the association between prenatal PAH exposure and allergic diseases in the Mothers and Children's Environmental Health (MOCEH) study.

Methods

The study sample comprised 349 infants and their mothers from the MOCEH study, for whom 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP) and 2-naphthol were measured in both the early period of pregnancy and late period of pregnancy. An infant was deemed to be affected by an allergic disease if diagnosed with or if developed at least one of the allergic diseases. A logistic regression analysis was performed to study the association between urinary 1-OHP and 2-naphthol levels during pregnancy and allergic diseases in 6-month-old infants. Furthermore, analyses stratified by maternal GSTM1 or GSTT1 present/null polymorphisms were performed.

Results

The risk of allergic diseases in 6-month-old infants was significantly increased in accordance with an increase in urinary 1-OHP during the early period of pregnancy (odds ratio [OR]: 1.84; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05, 3.23; by one log-transformed unit of 1-OHP μg/g creatinine). The increased risk of infantile allergic diseases associated with urinary 1-OHP during the early period of pregnancy was limited to the maternal GSTT1 null type (OR: 2.69; 95% CI: 1.17, 6.21, by one log-transformed unit of 1-OHP μg/g creatinine); however, the Relative Excess Risk due to Interaction was not statistically significant.

Conclusions

The present study found that infantile allergic diseases could be affected by intrauterine PAH exposure, particularly in the early prenatal period and the risk was limited to the maternal GSTT1 null type.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Environmental Pollutants and Food Allergy: From Traditional Triggers to Emerging Hazards
Qiang Shi, Xiang Gao, Shan Zhang, Yuhong Wu, Huan Wu, Haojie Luo, Yanhai Xie, Shuangyan Zheng, Yong Wu, Xin Li, Jinyan Gao, Jinlyu Sun, Zhongliang Wang, Hongbing Chen
Clinical Reviews in Allergy & Immunology.2026;[Epub] CrossRef
Prenatal Internal Exposure to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Maternal Genetic Susceptibility, and Child Growth Trajectories: Evidence from a Prospective Cohort Study
Jinlang Lyu, Na Han, Cuilin Zhang, Yuelong Ji, Jue Liu, Qin Li, Hui Wang, Rong Zhang, Yunxia Pu, Hai-Jun Wang
Environmental Science & Technology.2026; 60(31): 21510. CrossRef
Infantile allergic diseases: a cohort study prenatal fish intake and mercury exposure context
Surabhi Shah, Hae Soon Kim, Yun-Chul Hong, Hyesook Park, Mina Ha, Yangho Kim, Ji Hyen Lee, Eun-Hee Ha
BMC Public Health.2024;[Epub] CrossRef
Prenatal dietary exposure to mixtures of chemicals is associated with allergy or respiratory diseases in children in the ELFE nationwide cohort
Manel Ghozal, Manik Kadawathagedara, Rosalie Delvert, Amandine Divaret-Chauveau, Chantal Raherison, Raphaëlle Varraso, Annabelle Bédard, Amélie Crépet, Véronique Sirot, Marie Aline Charles, Karine Adel-Patient, Blandine de Lauzon-Guillain
Environmental Health.2024;[Epub] CrossRef
Prenatal dietary exposure to chemicals and allergy or respiratory diseases in children in the EDEN mother–child cohort
Manel Ghozal, Manik Kadawathagedara, Rosalie Delvert, Karine Adel-Patient, Muriel Tafflet, Isabella Annesi-Maesano, Amélie Crépet, Véronique Sirot, Marie Aline Charles, Barbara Heude, Blandine de Lauzon-Guillain
Environment International.2023; 180: 108195. CrossRef
Gene-environment interactions related to maternal exposure to environmental and lifestyle-related chemicals during pregnancy and the resulting adverse fetal growth: a review
Sumitaka Kobayashi, Fumihiro Sata, Reiko Kishi
Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine.2022; 27: 24. CrossRef
Role of GSTM1 in Hypertension, CKD, and Related Diseases across the Life Span
Rebecca Levy, Thu H. Le
Kidney360.2022; 3(12): 2153. CrossRef

4,550 View
8 Download
8 Web of Science
7 Crossref

First
Prev
Page of 1
Next
Last

Search