Toxic airborne chemicals known as plasticizers could be making their way into our nostrils on a daily basis, scientists have warned.
Exposure to these chemicals has been associated with fertility issues and neurodevelopmental disorders as well as childhood asthma, despite their use in a wide variety of products.
"The levels of these compounds are through the roof," David Volz, environmental sciences professor at UC Riverside, said in a statement. "No matter who you are, or where you are, your daily level of exposure to these plasticizer chemicals is high and persistent. They are ubiquitous."
Plasticizers are chemical compounds that are used in a range of products to make materials more flexible. These products range from lunch boxes to shower curtains, garden hoses and upholstery.
In the past, plasticizers were based on compounds called ortho-phthalates. However, many of these have been phased out due to health and environmental concerns, being replaced by a group of compounds called non-ortho-phthalates. This second class of plasticizers have not been well studied.
Now, scientists from the University of California and Duke University have used special chemical-collecting silicon wristbands to monitor the presence of these phthalates in urban air.
The study involved two cohorts of undergraduate students commuting from different parts of Southern California. The students wore the special wristbands continuously for five days. At the end of the collection period, the silicon bands were chopped up and analyzed for any chemical compounds they picked up along the way.
For every gram of wristband, the team detected between 100,000 and 1 million nanograms of three key phthalates, with 10 different plasticizer compounds in total. Two of the three main compounds detected are on California's Proposition 65 list, which contains a range of naturally occurring and synthetic chemicals thought to cause cancer, reproductive harm or both.
"We weren't expecting that," Volz said.
These levels were similar to those found in separate studies on the East Coast, suggesting that exposure to these chemicals might be ubiquitous across the country.
Exactly how much of these chemicals actually make their way into our bodies is unclear, and many of their health effects are severely understudied. However, the findings offer a concerning picture of the different chemicals we are exposed to on a daily basis, and warrant further research.
In the meantime, what can we do to reduce our exposure to these chemicals?
"The only way to decrease the concentration of plasticizers in the air is to decrease our production and consumption of materials containing plasticizers," Volz said.
Is there a health problem that's worrying you? Let us know via health@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice, and your story could be featured in Newsweek.
References
Reddam, A., Herkert, N., Stapleton, H. M., & Volz, D. C. (2024). Silicone wristbands reveal ubiquitous human exposure to ortho-phthalates and non-ortho-phthalate plasticizers in Southern California. Environmental Research, 258. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2024.119465
Eales, J., Bethel, A., Galloway, T., Hopkinson, P., Morrissey, K., Short, R. E., & Garside, R. (2022). Human health impacts of exposure to phthalate plasticizers: An overview of reviews. Environment international, 158, 106903. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2021.106903
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