A common component of food packaging, personal care and other everyday items could lead to miscarriage, according to a new study.
The study, which involved more than 300 women, suggests an association exists between certain phthalates and pregnancy loss -- mostly between five and 13 weeks.
The US has already banned the use of six different phthalates in products made for children, yet several of them are still added to soaps, shampoos, vinyl flooring and paints.
Previous research demonstrates that long-term exposure to small amounts of certain phthalates can lead to pregnancy loss and other health problems for lab animals.
One study found that female factory workers exposed to significant amounts of the compounds at work carried an increased risk for pregnancy loss.
Since little research has been done on the effects of phthalates among women exposed outside of work, the researchers tested the urine of 132 women who had undergone miscarriage and 172 healthy pregnant women in China.
Their data, published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, associated high levels of three phthalates with pregnancy loss.
Although this does not provide direct proof, pregnant women and women who are trying to conceive would be best off avoiding diethyl phthalate (DEP), di-isobutyl phthalate (DiBP) and di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP).
A 2013 study conducted at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts in the US associated phthalates and preterm birth.
Working with 130 women who later experienced preterm birth and 352 who served as control participants, they analyzed the urine samples during pregnancy.
The study indicated a strong association between preterm birth and exposure to the compounds during pregnancy.
The researchers said their data is significant enough to merit taking action in the aim to reduce or prevent phthalate exposure to pregnant women.
Lead author Kelly K. Ferguson, M.P.H., of the University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, conducted more research in 2014 that concluded the compounds cause oxidative stress that can damage DNA and certain lipids.
Oxidative stress refers to an imbalance between oxygen-rich molecules called free radicals and the antioxidants that neutralize them, and it has been associated with several adverse health conditions.
Everyday substance could factor in pregnancy loss: study
A common component of food packaging, personal care and other everyday items could lead to miscarriage, according to a new study.
The study, which involved more than 300 women, suggests an association exists between certain phthalates and pregnancy loss -- mostly between five and 13 weeks.
The US has already banned the use of six different phthalates in products made for children, yet several of them are still added to soaps, shampoos, vinyl flooring and paints.
Previous research demonstrates that long-term exposure to small amounts of certain phthalates can lead to pregnancy loss and other health problems for lab animals.
One study found that female factory workers exposed to significant amounts of the compounds at work carried an increased risk for pregnancy loss.
Since little research has been done on the effects of phthalates among women exposed outside of work, the researchers tested the urine of 132 women who had undergone miscarriage and 172 healthy pregnant women in China.
Their data, published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, associated high levels of three phthalates with pregnancy loss.
Although this does not provide direct proof, pregnant women and women who are trying to conceive would be best off avoiding diethyl phthalate (DEP), di-isobutyl phthalate (DiBP) and di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP).
A 2013 study conducted at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts in the US associated phthalates and preterm birth.
Working with 130 women who later experienced preterm birth and 352 who served as control participants, they analyzed the urine samples during pregnancy.
The study indicated a strong association between preterm birth and exposure to the compounds during pregnancy.
The researchers said their data is significant enough to merit taking action in the aim to reduce or prevent phthalate exposure to pregnant women.
Lead author Kelly K. Ferguson, M.P.H., of the University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, conducted more research in 2014 that concluded the compounds cause oxidative stress that can damage DNA and certain lipids.
Oxidative stress refers to an imbalance between oxygen-rich molecules called free radicals and the antioxidants that neutralize them, and it has been associated with several adverse health conditions.
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