A European study will analyse the impact of endocrine disruptors during pregnancy and the first 18 months of life

• The research is part of the European project HYPIEND, coordinated by the Eurecat technology centre, and will be conducted simultaneously in Spain, Poland and Belgium with over 800 participants.
• In Catalonia, the study will be carried out at the Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital, with the involvement of ASSIR Badalona and ASSIR Sant Adrià del Besòs, and aims to recruit over 135 pregnant women and their babies.
• The project will assess the effects of endocrine disruptors on the hypothalamic-pituitary axis, where the central nervous system and the endocrine system converge.
• Eurecat has developed a digital platform based on the behaviour change model, offering tailored advice to help reduce exposure to potential endocrine disruptors.

A European study will investigate how endocrine disruptors (EDs) -chemical substances found in plastics, personal care products, textiles, cleaning agents, food, furniture, and electronic devices, among others- may alter the hormonal systems of pregnant women and their babies during the first 18 months of life. The project will also evaluate the effectiveness of a strategy to minimise exposure to these substances.

The perinatal study is part of the European project HYPIEND, coordinated by the Eurecat technology centre, and will be conducted simultaneously in Spain, Poland and Belgium with over 800 participants. In Catalonia, the research is led by the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), specifically by the Woman & Health Group headed by Dr Inés Velasco from the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department. It will take place at the Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital, in collaboration with ASSIR Badalona (CAP Doctor Robert) and ASSIR Sant Adrià del Besòs (CAP Doctor Barraquer), and aims to include over 135 pregnant women and their newborns.

Endocrine disruptors are present in everyday products and may pose a health risk through inhalation, ingestion or skin contact. The study will focus on understanding how these compounds "interfere with the hormonal system during a particularly sensitive stage of human development, as well as on gaining a deeper understanding of their effects on the hypothalamic-pituitary axis and how to prevent them", explains the scientific coordinator of the HYPIEND project, Noemí Boqué, a researcher at Eurecat's Nutrition and Health Unit.

Specifically, the project will analyse "their effects on the axis where the central nervous system and the endocrine system converge, which regulates hormones such as growth hormone and oxytocin that control key body functions such as somatic growth, breastfeeding and adaptation to stress", adds Núria Canela, director of the Omics Sciences Centre, a joint unit between Universitat Rovira i Virgili and Eurecat. "High-sensitivity mass spectrometry techniques will be used for the analysis, along with omics data studies to understand how endocrine disruptors affect metabolism", she adds.

Antoni Caimari, director of Eurecat's Biotechnology Area, highlights that "this is one of the first investigations to study the effects and dangers of these environmental chemicals from multiple perspectives, and we hope to gain insights into the mechanisms by which combinations of endocrine disruptors exert adverse effects on health".

Digital platform to promote behaviour change

As part of the intervention, Eurecat has developed a digital platform based on the behaviour change model, which includes a "gamified system that recommends 'missions' tailored to each participant's profile and provides specific guidance on lifestyle habits and reducing exposure to endocrine disruptors", explains Sílvia Orte, head of the Health Data Science line at Eurecat's Digital Health Unit.

The platform includes three types of content to support behaviour change: motivational messages to explain the need for change and increase effectiveness; 'missions', which are specific tasks that demonstrate how to carry out the changes; and reinforcement messages, designed to help sustain these changes over the long term. The tool has been developed both as a mobile app and a web platform, each with specific functions, and will be rolled out progressively throughout the study.

Study participants will be randomly assigned to either an intervention or a control group. Samples will be collected to measure levels of various endocrine disruptors, among other parameters. The intervention will involve the use of the digital platform to help reduce exposure to EDs, along with workshops led by a multidisciplinary team of doctors, psychologists and nutritionists.

In addition, the HYPIEND project will launch a second study involving children aged 6 to 8 in schools in Spain and Belgium, starting with the 2025-2026 school year, to assess exposure levels in children and promote habits to help reduce them.

With a budget of €7 million, the project brings together teams with expertise in computational toxicology, biochemistry and molecular biology, human nutrition, omics sciences, epidemiology and digital health. Advanced mass spectrometry techniques will be applied to detect chemical compounds even at very low concentrations, along with behavioural science tools to promote strategies that mitigate environmental exposure.

"The HYPIEND project is a Eurecat-led initiative in a strategically important and increasingly urgent field: environmental health. We are generating evidence on how climate change and environmental risks impact human health and developing strategies to mitigate these effects", concludes Felip Miralles, director of Health Technologies at Eurecat.

The HYPIEND consortium includes 14 partners from 8 European countries. Alongside the coordinating organisation Eurecat, the partners include the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP-CERCA), Universidad de Granada, ProtoQSAR, and HULAFE - Health Research Institute Hospital La Fe (Spain); Stichting Radboud University (SRU, Netherlands); Sciensano, KU Leuven and University of Liège (ULiège, Belgium); KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Sweden); Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education (Poland); Enco SRL (Italy); as well as King's College London (UK) and the University of Geneva (Switzerland).

You can find more information about the study here or contact the team by email at hypiend(ELIMINAR)@igtp.cat or by phone on +34 930 330 552.