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The association between urine elements and fasting glucose levels in a community-based elderly people in Beijing

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Abstract

Epidemiological studies have demonstrated that various kinds of urinary element concentrations were different between healthy, prediabetes, and diabetes patients. Meanwhile, many studies have explored the relationship between element concentration and fasting blood glucose (FBG), but the association between joint exposure to co-existing elements and FBG level has not been well understood. The study explored the associations of joint exposure to co-existing urinary elements with FBG level in a cross-sectional design. 275 retired elderly people were recruited from Beijing, China. The questionnaire survey was conducted, and biological samples were collected. The generalized linear model (GLM) and two-phase Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) model were used to perform in-depth association analysis between urinary elements and FBG. The GLM analysis showed that Zn, Sr, and Cd were significantly correlated with the FBG level, under control potential confounding factors. The BKMR analysis demonstrated 8 elements (Zn, Se, Fe, Cr, Ni, Cd, Mn, and Al) had a higher influence on FBG (posterior inclusion probabilities > 0.1). Further intensive analyses result of the BKMR model indicated that the overall estimated exposure of 8 elements was positively correlated with the FBG level and was statistically significant when all creatinine-adjusted element concentrations were at their 65th percentile. Meanwhile, the BKMR analysis showed that Cd and Zn had a statistically significant association with FBG levels when other co-existing elements were controlled at different levels (25th, 50th, or 75th percentile), respectively. The results of the GLM and BKMR model were inconsistent. The BKMR model could flexibly calculate the joint exposure to co-existing elements, evaluate the possible interaction effects and nonlinear correlations. The meaningful conclusions were found that it was difficult to get by traditional methods. This study will provide methodological reference and experimental evidence for the association between joint exposure to co-existing elements and FBG in elderly people.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge assistants from all persons involved in the project.

Funding

This study was supported by the China Medical Board (Grant No. 15–230).

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Author notes

  1. Liu Liu and Ang Li contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. China CDC Key Laboratory of Environment and Population Health, National Institute of Environmental Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, China

    Liu Liu, Qin Wang, Chunyu Xu, Zhe Liu & Dongqun Xu

  2. Chaoyang District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, China

    Liu Liu

  3. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, School of Basic Medicine Peking, Union Medical College, Beijing, China

    Ang Li & Qun Xu

  4. Center of Environmental and Health Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China

    Ang Li & Qun Xu

  5. Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, The National Institute for Occupational Health and Poison Control, Beijing, China

    Feng Han

  6. Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing, China

    Donggang Xu

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Contributions

Liu Liu, Ang Li, Chunyu Xu, Feng Han, Zhe Liu, and Qin Wang performed the data collection. Liu Liu, Chunyu Xu, and Qin Wang analyzed the biological samples. Liu Liu, Ang Li, and Dongqun Xu analyzed the data and wrote the paper. Liu Liu, Ang Li, Zhe Liu, Donggang Xu, Qun Xu, and Dongqun Xu reviewed and edited the manuscript. Dongqun Xu was the corresponding author of this paper. Donggang Xu was also the co-corresponding author of this paper.

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Correspondence to Dongqun Xu or Donggang Xu.

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Participants provided written informed consent and this study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College (Beijing, China).

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Liu, L., Li, A., Xu, Q. et al. The association between urine elements and fasting glucose levels in a community-based elderly people in Beijing. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 30102–30113 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-17948-8

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