Marc Joseph Nutrition - Blog

Last week, I wrote about the potential risks of exposure to the estrogenic chemical, bisphenol-A.

Another class of chemicals that may have negative health effects is phthalates, which are used in plastic packaging, cosmetics, shampoos, soaps, lotions, lubricants, paints, and pesticides. Phthalates are also commonly used as a softener for products made using PVC (polyvinylchloride) and as a key ingredient in fragrances. One kind of phthalate helps prevent the fragrance in perfumes, lotions, shampoos, make-up, nail polish and hair sprays from degrading.

Research has shown that phthalates impair testicular function in rats and are linked to abnormal sperm counts and anti-androgenic effects in humans, such as decreased testosterone levels. In recent years, a significant population-wide decline in testosterone levels has been observed in American men. More than 75% of the US population has measureable levels of several phthalates in the blood.

Latest Research

A study (full-text PDF) published in the latest issue of Environmental Health Perspectives further explored the potential negative effects of phthalates. Researchers found that adult males with the highest urinary levels of several different phthalates were more likely to be insulin resistant and obese.

Study Limitations

The study’s authors note that:

• The results do not prove a link and that there are likely several factors that contribute to complex conditions like insulin resistance and obesity. For example, other chemical compounds, such as dioxins, PCBs, and organochloride pesticides, have also been associated with greater risk of insulin resistance and diabetes. These substances aren’t measured, and their effects may be additive.
• The database used for the analysis doesn’t contain hormone levels for the participants, so those values aren’t correlated with the phthalate levels and insulin resistance and obesity incidence.
• The study is cross-sectional (examining a point in time) and uses spot-urine samples. Thus, it doesn’t measure changes over time and may not reflect long-term phthalate exposure.
• See the report for more discussion.

Recommendations

What can you do to reduce phthalate exposure? Quite a bit:

• Avoid personal care products (soaps, shampoos, lotions, nail polishes, hair sprays, hair gels, deodorants, fragrances, etc.) that contain phthalates. Look for labels that say, “phthalate-free.” Refer to the Environmental Working Group’s report “Skin Deep” for information on individual products.
• Don’t use plastic in the microwave.
• Use glass or ceramic to store foods.
• Avoid plastic toys and other products that contain phthalates (e.g., PVC plastic with a #3 or “V” in the recycling symbol).

The good news is that phthalates are metabolized (broken down) and excreted relatively quickly in/from the body, so taking steps like the ones above may significantly reduce your body’s overall levels.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, March 18th, 2007 at 10:09 pm and is filed under Diabetes, Hormone Issues, Obesity, Other Toxins. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.