Urinary paraben exposure increases the risk of a low estimated glomerular filtration rate in Taiwanese general population

Background: The inconsistent relationship between chemical exposure and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) has been examined in only a few studies. We investigated the association between paraben exposure and indicators of renal function in a total of 361 individuals recruiting from a representative study. Method: The levels of urinary parabens, including methylparaben (MeP), ethylparaben (EtP), propylparaben (PrP), and butylparaben (BuP), were measured using UPLC-MS/MS. The association between paraben exposure and indices of renal function was assessed using multiple logistic regression and Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression (BKMR). Results: The median levels of urinary parabens in the adult group were significantly higher than those in the minor group, that is, 397 vs. 148 ng/mL for MeP, 38.8 vs. 13.6 ng/mL for EtP, 117 vs. 57.7 ng/mL for PrP, and 6.61 vs. 2.79 ng/mL for BuP (all P < 0.001). In the adult group, multivariate regression models confirmed a positive association between the albumin-to-creatinine ratio and urinary MeP (beta = 0.580) and a positive association of BUN (beta = 0.061) and a negative association of eGFR (beta = -0.051) with urinary EtP (all P < 0.001). In the adult group, compared with the lowest tertile group, the adjusted odds ratio in the third tertile (T-3) of urinary EtP levels indicated a 3.08 times increased risk of eGFR abnormalities, followed by the second tertile (T-2) with a 2.63 times increased risk. The generalized additive model (GAM) and BKMR models showed a non-linear correlation between urinary EtP levels and early CKD, as well as reduced eGFR. We observed a significant positive cumulative effect of urinary paraben on eGFR, and a significant positive single exposure effect of urinary EtP with eGFR abnormality. Conclusion: We found a significant association between exposure to EtP and an increased risk of high BUN levels and decreased eGFR.