Exposure to Common Type 2 Diabetes Could Change How Fish Reproduce

A drug commonly prescribed to treat diabetes in humans could change how fish in Lake Michigan reproduce, a new study suggests.

Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee have found that low levels of Metformin, a Type 2 diabetes medication, and other pharmaceuticals and personal-care byproducts persist miles from sewage treatment discharge pipes, the Detroit Free Press.

The hormonal systems of fish in the affected areas of the lake are changed, the researchers said, but long-term effects on fish and their ability to reproduce are unknown at this time.

But lead investigator Rebecca Klaper said the drugs, which weren’t completely broken down by people’s bodies or eliminated in wastewater treatment processes, are “enough to raise an alarm bell that this might be something that causes changes in reproduction of fish.”

Klaper said sewage systems are removing a significant amount of Metformin, “but it’s just that it’s coming in at such a high concentration, it doesn’t remove it all.”

“A sewage treatment plant wasn’t designed to take these medications out, she said

Though the drugs are found in miniscule amounts – micrograms and nanograms per liter of water – “it’s something that definitely warrants further study,” Klaper said.

There’s not much to be done about the problem, Klaper acknowledged. Millions of Americans have Type 2 diabetes, and the majority of those receiving prescription drugs for treatment are taking Metformin.

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Sophisticated treatment systems that would remove all drugs – Metformin, or low level amounts of birth-control hormones and antibiotics used to treat urinary tract and ear infections – would be too costly, experts said.

“It’s very difficult — wastewater treatment plants aren’t designed to treat nanoparticles,” said Timothy Lynch, manager of the Benton Harbor-St. Joseph Wastewater Treatment Plant on the shores of Lake Michigan.

“To retrofit with that type of technology would be very expensive, and are the paybacks for what you are accomplishing worth the cost?” he said. “For most facilities and most governmental units, just maintaining the existing infrastructure is a challenge.”

Future studies will look at the long-term effects on fish exposed to Metformin and other drugs.

“We also need to explore other compounds,” she said. “This was just one of many. What happens when these are in a mixture? Which ones are the ones to focus on and get rid of? Then we’ve got a starting point.”

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Photo via Flickr