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Last Updated: Mar 29, 2009 - 5:58:43 PM |
MONDAY FEB 4, 2008 (Foodconsumer.org) -- A wide variety of phthalates, common plasticizers used to make hard plastic soft, are found in infants, particularly in those who use baby lotion, powder, and shampoo, according to a new study released February 1 in the Feb 2008 issue of Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The study led by Sheela Sathyanarayana, MD, MPH from the University of Washington and colleagues from within the university and other organizations showed 81 percent of infants have been contaminated with at least 7 phthalates.
Specifically, exposure to lotion, baby powder and shampoo was linked to monoethyl phthalate and monomethyl phthalate, monoisobutyl phthalate and monomethyl phthalate, respectively.
Phthalates are synthetic, man-made chemicals widely used in plastic products such as children's toys, lubricants, and infant care products, chemical stabilizers in cosmetics, personal care products and polyvinyl chloride tubing, according to the background information provided by the authors.
The toxicity of phthalates, mainly causing harm to the male reproductive system, has been demonstrated in both animals and humans. The authors said in their report "the immature male reproductive tract is particularly sensitive to di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) and dibutyl phthalate (DBP)."
In rodents, DEHP and DBP lead to increased incidence of hypospadias (a birth defect of the urethra in the male that involves an abnormally placed urinary meatus (opening)) and cryptorchidism (absence from the scrotum of one or both testes). Diethyl phthalate has been associated with sperm DNA damage in male adults and suspected to have an impact on endocrine and reproductive systems.
In male infants, early studies have showed prenatal concentration of monoethyl phthalate and mono-n-butyl phthalate, monobenzyl phthalate and nonoisobutyl phthalate were correlated with decreased anogenital distance, a marker of decreased androgenization in animal studies, in male newborns, according to the researchers.
In the study, the researchers measured 9 phthalate metabolites in 163 infants born between 1999 and 2002 in California, Minnesota and Missouri. Urine samples were collected within 24 hours of use of any infant care products as reported by mothers.
The researchers found exposure to phthalates was particularly high in children younger than 8 months for some reason the researchers do not know. They also found the number of products used was related to the phthalate concentrations. But the study did not reveal which specific product attributes to a specific phthalate.
The researchers said in their report that both ingestion and absorption through the skin are important routes for the contamination of phthalates. Mother's exposure to phthalates could be a source to raise the levels of phthalates in children. A new study published in the September 7 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives found phthalates in human breast milk affect reproductive hormones in baby boys.
One important source of phthalates posing risk in children is hospital. One study found children treated in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) have high levels of phthalates in their bodies. Phthalates are present in a variety of medical products and devices used in NICUs, including examination
gloves, bags containing blood, plasma, intravenous (IV) fluids and tubing and
other products associated with the delivery of fluids, nutrients, and air to
NICU infants. Women in delivery room could also polluted with phthalates. Among others, the bags for intravenous fluids and tubing contain these chemicals.
The European countries have banned at least three types of phthalates that are known to be toxic while the United States does not ban any, according to media reports. Use of phthalates, which like many other chemicals in consumer products are often not labeled, is unrestricted in the U.S.
Consumers who are concerned about the toxicity of phthalates may consider avoiding contact or use of any soft plastics such as pacifiers and baby bath toys and if you use, make sure it is free of phthalates, a foodconsumer.org health advocate suggested. Phthalates are only one group of chemicals which toxicity have not been thoroughly tested. Overall, only a small percentage of all chemicals used have been subject to safety testing.
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