Obesogens in food as a health risk for obesity
pdf

Keywords

adipose tissue
chemicals
environmental factors
obesogens
obesity

How to Cite

Janikowska, A., & Nowak, D. (2025). Obesogens in food as a health risk for obesity. Kwartalnik Naukowy Fides Et Ratio, 64(4), 73-80. https://doi.org/10.34766/3n5wdn78

Abstract

Modern society is confronted on a daily basis with the problem of obesity, which is one of the greatest threats of the 21st century. Factors in the development of obesity are well known, although one of the lesser-known but equally important factors is exposure to chemicals called obesogens. These compounds are found in cosmetics, food and plastics, among others, and exposure can occur through the skin, the respiratory tract and the gastrointestinal tract. The results of many studies highlight the need for increased control and regulation of chemicals contained in consumer products. Understanding the role of obesogens as a factor in the development of obesity can help formulate better and more effective prevention and treatment strategies, which is crucial for public health.

pdf

References

Alharbi, H. F., Algonaiman, R., Alduwayghiri, R., Aljutaily, T., Algheshairy, R. M., Almutairi, A. S., Alharbi, R. M., Alfurayh, L. A., Alshahwan, A. A., Alsadun, A. F., & Barakat, H. (2022). Exposure to bisphenol A substitutes, bisphenol S and bisphenol F, and its association with developing obesity and diabetes mellitus: A narrative review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(23), 15918. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315918

Amato, A. A., Wheeler, H. B., & Blumberg, B. (2021). Obesity and endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Endocrine Connections, 10(2), 87 – 105. https://doi.org/10.1530/EC-20-0578

Barra, G. N., Kwon, H. Y., Morrison, M. K., Steinberg, R. G., Wade, G. M., Khan, M. M., Schertzer, D. J., & Holloway, C. A. (2022). Increased gut serotonin production in response to bisphenol A structural analogs may contribute to their obesogenic effects. American Journal of Physiology – Endocrinology and Metabolism, 323(1), 80 – 91. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.00049.2022

Blüher, M. (2019). Obesity: Global epidemiology and pathogenesis. Nature Reviews Endocrinology, 15(5), 288 – 298. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-019-0176-8

Burki, T. (2021). European Commission classifies obesity as a chronic disease. The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, 9(7), 418. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(21)00145-0

Chamorro-García, R., & Veiga-Lopez, A. (2021). The new kids on the block: Emerging obesogens. Advances in Pharmacology, 92, 457 – 484. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.apha.2021.05.003

Ćurić, M., Majanović, S. K., Detel, D., Ružić, A., & Štimac, D. (2021). Obesogens – new global health problem? Periodicum Biologorum, 123(3 – 4), 49 – 53. https://doi.org/10.18054/pb.v123i3-4.5032

Darbre, D. F. (2017). Endocrine disruptors and obesity. In Etiology of Obesity, 6(1), 18 – 27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13679-017-0240-4

Egusquiza, R. J., & Blumberg, B. (2020). Environmental obesogens and their impact on susceptibility to obesity: New mechanisms and chemicals. Endocrinology, 161(3), Article bqaa024. https://doi.org/10.1210/endocr/bqaa024

Entezari, B., Bozdağ, D., & Orhan, H. G. (2022). Obesogens: Definition, mechanisms of action, potential industrial chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Istanbul Journal of Pharmacy, 52(2), 215 – 225. https://doi.org/10.26650/IstanbulJPharm.2022.102702

Folkvord, F., Naderer, B., Coates, A., & Boyland, E. (2021). Promoting fruit and vegetable consumption for childhood obesity prevention. Nutrients, 14(1), 157. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14010157

Grün, F., & Blumberg, B. (2009a). Endocrine disrupters as obesogens. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 304(1 – 2), 19 – 29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mce.2009.02.018

Grün, F., & Blumberg, B. (2009b). Minireview: The case for obesogens. Molecular Endocrinology, 23(8), 1127 – 1134. https://doi.org/10.1210/me.2008-0485

Grün, F., & Blumberg, N. (2006). Environmental obesogens: Organotins and endocrine disruption via nuclear receptor signaling. Endocrinology, 147(6), 50 – 55. https://doi.org/10.1210/en.2005-1129

Gupta, R., Kumar, P., Fahmi, N., Garg, B., Dutta, S., Sachar, S., Mathaur, A. S., & Vimaleswaran, K. S. (2020). Endocrine disruption and obesity: A current review on environmental obesogens. Current Research in Green and Sustainable Chemistry, 3, 100 – 002. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crgsc.2020.06.002

Heindel, J. J. (2019). History of the obesogen field: Looking back to look forward. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 10, 14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2019.00014

Heindel, J. J., Lustig, R. H., Howard, S., & Corkey, B. E. (2024). Obesogens: A unifying theory for the global rise in obesity. International Journal of Obesity (London), 48(4), 449 – 460. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-024-01460-3

Janesick, A., & Blumberg, B. (2012). Obesogens, stem cells and the developmental programming of obesity. International Journal of Andrology, 35(3), 437 – 448. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2605.2012.01247.x

Jaskulak, M., Zimowska, M., Rolbiecka, M., & Zorena, K. (2025). Understanding the role of endocrine disrupting chemicals as environmental obesogens in the obesity epidemic: A comprehensive overview of epidemiological studies between 2014 and 2024. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 299, 118401. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2025.118401

Kannan, K., & Vimalkumar, K. (2021). A review of human exposure to microplastics and insights into microplastics as obesogens. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 12, Article 724989. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2021.724989

Kapama, A., Stefanaki, C., Mastorakos, G., & Papagianni, M. (2025). The role of endocrine disruptors in childhood obesity: Unraveling the obesogens. Hormone Research in Paediatrics, 26, 1 – 14. https://doi.org/10.1159/000545043

Kladnicka, I., Bludovska, M., Plavinova, I., Muller, L., & Mullerova, D. (2022). Obesogens in foods. Biomolecules, 12(5), 680. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom12050680

Lee, M. K., & Blumberg, B. (2019). Transgenerational effects of obesogens. Basic & Clinical Pharmacology & Toxicology, 125(S3), 44 – 57. https://doi.org/10.1111/bcpt.13214

Lewis, N., Abdulkadir, A., Kandel, S., Rosby, R., & Hossain, E. (2024). Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as emerging obesogens: Mechanisms, epidemiological evidence, and regulatory challenges. Physiologia, 4(4), 517 – 567. https://doi.org/10.3390/physiologia4040035

Li, X., Ycaza, J., & Blumberg, B. (2011). The environmental obesogen tributyltin chloride acts via peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma to induce adipogenesis in murine 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 127(1 – 2), 9 – 15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsbmb.2011.03.012

Martinez-Esquivel, A., Trujillo-Silva, J. D., & Cilia-Lopez, G. V. (2022). Impact of environmental pollution on the obesogenic environment. Nutrition Reviews, 80(7), 1787 – 1799. https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuac003

Micić, D., Polovina, S., Micić, D., & Macut, D. (2021). Endocrine disrupting chemicals and obesity: The evolving story of obesogens. Acta Endocrinologica (Bucharest), 17(4), 503 – 508. https://doi.org/10.4183/aeb.2021.503

Mohajer, N., Du, C. Y., Checkcinco, C., & Blumberg, B. (2021). Obesogens: How they are identified and molecular mechanisms underlying their action. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 12, 780888. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2021.780888

Nicolaou, M., Toumba, M., Kythreotis, A., Daher, H., & Skordis, N. (2024). Obesogens in adolescence: Challenging aspects and prevention strategies. Children, 11(5), 602. https://doi.org/10.3390/children11050602

Núñez-Sánchez, A. M., Jiménez-Méndez, A., Suárez-Cortés, M., Martínez-Sánchez, A. M., Sánchez-Solís, M., Blanco-Carnero, E. J., Ruiz-Alcaraz, J. A., & Ramos-Molina, B. (2023). Inherited epigenetic hallmarks of childhood obesity derived from prenatal exposure to obesogens. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(6), 4711. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20064711

Oliviero, F., Marmugi, A., Viguié, C., Gayrard, V., Picard-Hagen, N., & Mselli-Lakhal, L. (2022). Are BPA substitutes as obesogenic as BPA? International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(8), 4238. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23084238

Piché, M. E., Tchernof, A., & Després, J. P. (2020). Obesity phenotypes, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. Circulation Research, 126(11), 1477 – 1500. https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.120.316101

Rato, L., & Sousa, A. C. A. (2021). The impact of endocrine-disrupting chemicals in male fertility: Focus on the action of obesogens. Journal of Xenobiotics, 11(4), 163 – 196. https://doi.org/10.3390/jox11040012

Ravichandran, G., Lakshmanan, D. K., Arunachalam, A., & Thilagar, S. (2022). Food obesogens as emerging metabolic disruptors: A toxicological insight. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 217, 106042. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsbmb.2021.106042

Shahnazaryan, U., Wójcik, M., Bednarczuk, T., & Kuryłowicz, A. (2019). Role of obesogens in the pathogenesis of obesity. Medicina, 55(9), 515. https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina55090515

Sousa, A. C. A., Alves, M. G., Oliveira, P. F., Silva, B. M., & Rato, L. (2022). Male infertility in the XXI century: Are obesogens to blame? International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(6), 3046. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23063046

Urbanetz, L. A. M. L., Soares Junior, J. M., Maciel, G. A. R., Simões, R. S., Baracat, M. C. P., & Baracat, E. C. (2023). Does bisphenol A (BPA) participate in the pathogenesis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)? Clinics, 78, 100310. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinsp.2023.100310

Veiga-Lopez, A., Pu, Y., Gingrich, J., & Padmanabhan, V. (2018). Obesogenic endocrine-disrupting chemicals: Identifying knowledge gaps. Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism, 29, 607 – 625. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tem.2018.06.003

Wang, X., Sun, Z., Liu, Q. S., Zhou, Q., & Jiang, G. (2024). Environmental obesogens and their perturbations in lipid metabolism. Environment & Health, 2(5), 253 – 268. https://doi.org/10.1021/envhealth.3c00202

Wu, S., Tong, C., & Liu, J. (2025). Obesogenic effects of six classes of emerging contaminants. Journal of Environmental Sciences, 151, 252 – 272. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jes.2024.03.032

Yilmaz, B., Erdogan, C. S., Sandald, S., Kelestimur, F., & Carpenter, D. O. (2025). Obesogens and energy homeostasis: Definition, mechanisms of action, exposure, and adverse effects on human health. Neuroendocrinology, 115, 72 – 99. https://doi.org/10.1159/000542901

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Copyright (c) 2025 Quarterly Journal Fides et Ratio

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.