How chemicals in breast milk may change babies' gut bacteria and influence weight in Hispanic children
Official title: Perfluoroalkyl Substances and the Gut Microbiome and Fecal Metabolome: Implications for Obesity Risk in Hispanic Children
Funded at Johns Hopkins University · NIH-11286829 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether PFAS chemicals passed in breast milk change infant gut bacteria and stool chemicals and raise early childhood obesity risk in Hispanic families.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Johns Hopkins University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baltimore, United States) |
| Project start | April 1, 2023 |
| Project end | January 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $632,567 |
| NIH project number | 5R01ES035035-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11286829 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are Hispanic breastfeeding mothers and their infants who can provide breast milk and stool samples and attend follow-up visits during early childhood.
✕Less likely to help
Children who are older than the early infancy window, not breastfed, unwilling to provide samples, or not exposed to PFAS may not directly benefit from this project.
What this research studies
You and your baby would be followed from early infancy while researchers measure PFAS levels in breast milk and track your child's growth over time. The team would collect infant stool samples to profile gut bacteria and fecal metabolites and compare babies with higher versus lower PFAS exposure. Laboratory analyses and statistical models would link exposure, microbiome and metabolite changes, and rapid infant weight gain. The focus is on Hispanic mother-infant pairs to understand risks during a key window when obesity might be prevented.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to ways to reduce harmful PFAS exposure or guide early interventions to lower childhood obesity risk in affected communities.
How similar studies have gone: Previous human studies have linked prenatal PFAS exposure to faster infant weight gain, but effects of PFAS in breast milk on the infant gut microbiome and growth are largely untested.
Where this research is happening
-
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Alderete, Tanya Lynn — Johns Hopkins University
- Study coordinator: Alderete, Tanya Lynn
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Investigating how certain chemicals in breast milk affect obesity risk in Hispanic children.
This study is looking at how certain chemicals in breast milk might affect the gut health and weight of Hispanic children as they grow, with the goal of finding ways to help prevent obesity in kids.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.