Japan Environment Health and Children’s Study Publications from the University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan

Abstract

The Japan Environment Health and Childrenʼs Study (JECS) is an ongoing cohort study designed to evaluate the impact of various environmental factors on children’s health. In this study, more than 100,000 pregnant women were recruited in 15 regional centers throughout Japan. Within the University of Occupational and Environmental Health, the departments of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Environmental Health, and the School of Health Sciences collaborate with the JECS University of Occupational and Environmental Health Subunit Center in advancing research in this study. Several original articles based on JECS and written by our unit members were published in recent years. The aim of this review is to summarize these studies by JECS and University of Occupational and Environmental Health Subunit Center based on the data from JECS. We introduce research articles covering the following categories; environmental health, occupational health, and maternal and child health. Studies found associations between concentrations of metals and maternal health, such as premature birth, placenta previa and placenta accrete, associations between metals and IgE, dietary differences among occupational groups, associations between work-related factors and dietary behaviors, associations between job changes and pregnancy/delivery, mental and physical stress among pregnant women and influence on work, associations between sleep and gestational diabetes, and associations between an ability to push up in the prone position and infant development. This review may promote the development of new research, such as collaborative research projects, including clinical and social medicine, epidemiological studies and laboratory investigations.