Reducing Phthalate, Paraben, and Phenol Exposure from Personal Care Products in Adolescent Girls: Findings from the HERMOSA Intervention Study

Kim G Harley, Katherine Kogut, Daniel S Madrigal, Maritza Cardenas, Irene A Vera, Gonzalo Meza-Alfaro, Jianwen She, Qi Gavin, Rana Zahedi, Asa Bradman, Brenda Eskenazi, Kimberly L Parra, Kim G Harley, Katherine Kogut, Daniel S Madrigal, Maritza Cardenas, Irene A Vera, Gonzalo Meza-Alfaro, Jianwen She, Qi Gavin, Rana Zahedi, Asa Bradman, Brenda Eskenazi, Kimberly L Parra

Abstract

Background: Personal care products are a source of exposure to potentially endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as phthalates, parabens, triclosan, and benzophenone-3 (BP-3) for adolescent girls.

Methods: We enrolled 100 Latina girls in a youth-led, community-based participatory research intervention study to determine whether using personal care products whose labels stated they did not contain these chemicals for 3 days could lower urinary concentrations. Pre- and postintervention urine samples were analyzed for phthalate metabolites, parabens, triclosan, and BP-3 using high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry.

Results: Urinary concentrations of mono-ethyl phthalate (MEP) decreased by 27.4% (95% CI: -39.3, -13.2) on average over the 3-day intervention; no significant changes were seen in urinary concentrations of mono-n-butyl phthalate (MnBP) and mono-isobutyl phthalate (MiBP). Methyl and propyl paraben concentrations decreased by 43.9% (95% CI: -61.3, -18.8) and 45.4% (95% CI: -63.7, -17.9), respectively. Unexpectedly, concentrations of ethyl and butyl paraben concentrations increased, although concentrations were low overall and not detected in almost half the samples. Triclosan concentrations decreased by 35.7% (95% CI: -53.3, -11.6), and BP-3 concentrations decreased by 36.0% (95% CI: -51.0, -16.4).

Discussion: This study demonstrates that techniques available to consumers, such as choosing personal care products that are labeled to be free of phthalates, parabens, triclosan, and BP-3, can reduce personal exposure to possible endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Involving youth in the design and implementation of the study was key to recruitment, retention, compliance, and acceptability of the intervention.

Citation: Harley KG, Kogut K, Madrigal DS, Cardenas M, Vera IA, Meza-Alfaro G, She J, Gavin Q, Zahedi R, Bradman A, Eskenazi B, Parra KL. 2016. Reducing phthalate, paraben, and phenol exposure from personal care products in adolescent girls: findings from the HERMOSA Intervention Study. Environ Health Perspect 124:1600-1607; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1510514.

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare they have no actual or potential competing financial interests.

References

    1. Alam MS, Ohsako S, Matsuwaki T, Zhu XB, Tsunekawa N, Kanai Y, et al. Induction of spermatogenic cell apoptosis in prepubertal rat testes irrespective of testicular steroidogenesis: a possible estrogenic effect of di(n-butyl) phthalate. Reproduction. 2010;139(2):427–437.
    1. Braun JM, Just AC, Williams PL, Smith KW, Calafat AM, Hauser R. Personal care product use and urinary phthalate metabolite and paraben concentrations during pregnancy among women from a fertility clinic. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2014;24(5):459–466.
    1. Braun JM, Sathyanarayana S, Hauser R. Phthalate exposure and children’s health. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2013;25(2):247–254.
    1. Buckley JP, Palmieri RT, Matuszewski JM, Herring AH, Baird DD, Hartmann KE, et al. Consumer product exposures associated with urinary phthalate levels in pregnant women. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2012;22(5):468–475.
    1. Cacho JI, Campillo N, Viñas P, Hernández-Córdoba M. Direct sample introduction gas chromatography and mass spectrometry for the determination of phthalate esters in cleaning products. J Chromatogr A. 2015;1380:156–161.
    1. Calafat AM, Wong LY, Ye X, Reidy JA, Needham LL. 2008a. Concentrations of the sunscreen agent benzophenone-3 in residents of the United States: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003–2004. Environ Health Perspect 116 893 897, doi:10.1289/ehp.11269
    1. Calafat AM, Ye X, Wong LY, Bishop AM, Needham LL. 2010. Urinary concentrations of four parabens in the U.S. population NHANES 2005–2006 Environ Health Perspect 118 679 685, doi:10.1289/ehp.0901560
    1. Calafat AM, Ye X, Wong LY, Reidy JA, Needham LL. 2008b. Urinary concentrations of triclosan in the U.S. population 2003–2004 Environ Health Perspect 116 303 307, doi:10.1289/ehp.10768
    1. Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. Market Shift: The Story of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics and the Growth in Demand for Safer Products. 2011 Available: [accessed 5 June 2015]
    1. CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2012. Fourth Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals, Updated Tables, (September, 2012). Available: [accessed 14 February 2016]
    1. CDC. National Biomonitoring Program. Factsheet. Benzophenone3 (BP-3). 2013a Available: [accessed 14 February 2016]
    1. CDC. National Biomonitoring Program. Factsheet. Triclosan. 2013b Available: [accessed 14 February 2016]
    1. CDC. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Homepage. 2014 Available: [accessed 12 August 2014]
    1. Chen J, Ahn KC, Gee NA, Gee SJ, Hammock BD, Lasley BL. Antiandrogenic properties of parabens and other phenolic containing small molecules in personal care products. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2007;221(3):278–284.
    1. Colacino JA, Harris TR, Schecter A. 2010. Dietary intake is associated with phthalate body burden in a nationally representative sample. Environ Health Perspect 118 998 1003, doi:10.1289/ehp.0901712
    1. Dodson RE, Nishioka M, Standley LJ, Perovich LJ, Brody JG, Rudel RA. 2012. Endocrine disruptors and asthma-associated chemicals in consumer products. Environ Health Perspect 120 935 943, doi:10.1289/ehp.1104052
    1. Environmental Working Group. Teen Girls’ Body Burden of Hormone-Altering Cosmetics Chemicals. 2008 Available: [accessed 14 February 2016]
    1. Environmental Working Group. EWG’s Skin Deep® Cosmetics Database. 2016 Available: [accessed 14 February 2016]
    1. Gavin QW, Ramage RT, Waldman JM, She J. Development of HPLC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous determination of environmental phenols in human urine. Int J Environ Anal Chem. 2014;94(2):168–182.
    1. Gonzalez H, Farbrot A, Larkö O, Wennberg AM. Percutaneous absorption of the sunscreen benzophenone-3 after repeated whole-body applications, with and without ultraviolet irradiation. Br J Dermatol. 2006;154(2):337–340.
    1. Guo Y, Kannan K. Comparative assessment of human exposure to phthalate esters from house dust in China and the United States. Environ Sci Technol. 2011;45(8):3788–3794.
    1. Guo Y, Kannan K. A survey of phthalates and parabens in personal care products from the United States and its implications for human exposure. Environ Sci Technol. 2013;47(24):14442–14449.
    1. Harris CA, Henttu P, Parker MG, Sumpter JP. The estrogenic activity of phthalate esters in vitro. Environ Health Perspect. 1997;105:802–811.
    1. Hernández-Díaz S, Su YC, Mitchell AA, Kelley KE, Calafat AM, Hauser R. Medications as a potential source of exposure to phthalates among women of childbearing age. Reprod Toxicol. 2013;37:1–5.
    1. Hornung RW, Reed LD. Estimation of average concentration in the presence of nondetectable values. Appl Occup Environ Hyg. 1990;5:46–51.
    1. Janjua NR, Frederiksen H, Skakkebæk NE, Wulf HC, Andersson AM. Urinary excretion of phthalates and paraben after repeated whole-body topical application in humans. Int J Androl. 2008a;31(2):118–130.
    1. Janjua NR, Kongshoj B, Andersson AM, Wulf HC. Sunscreens in human plasma and urine after repeated whole-body topical application. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2008b;22(4):456–461.
    1. Kato K, Silva MJ, Needham LL, Calafat AM. Determination of 16 phthalate metabolites in urine using automated sample preparation and on-line preconcentration/high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. Anal Chem. 2005;77(9):2985–2991.
    1. Kelley KE, Hernández-Díaz S, Chaplin EL, Hauser R, Mitchell AA. 2012. Identification of phthalates in medications and dietary supplement formulations in the United States and Canada. Environ Health Perspect 120 379 384, doi:10.1289/ehp.1103998
    1. Kessler R. 2015. More than cosmetic changes: taking stock of personal care product safety. Environ Health Perspect 123 5 A120 A127, doi:10.1289/ehp.123-A120
    1. Liao C, Liu F, Kannan K. Occurrence of and dietary exposure to parabens in foodstuffs from the United States. Environ Sci Technol. 2013;47(8):3918–3925.
    1. Madrigal D, Salvatore A, Casillas G, Casillas C, Vera I, Eskenazi B, et al. Health in My Community: conducting and evaluating PhotoVoice as a tool to promote environmental health and leadership among Latino/a youth. Prog Community Health Partnersh. 2014;8(3):317–329.
    1. Mahalingaiah S, Meeker JD, Pearson KR, Calafat AM, Ye X, Petrozza J, et al. 2008. Temporal variability and predictors of urinary bisphenol A concentrations in men and women. Environ Health Perspect 116 173 178, doi:10.1289/ehp.10605
    1. Meeker JD, Cantonwine DE, Rivera-González LO, Ferguson KK, Mukherjee B, Calafat AM, et al. Distribution, variability, and predictors of urinary concentrations of phenols and parabens among pregnant women in Puerto Rico. Environ Sci Technol. 2013;47(7):3439–3447.
    1. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. 2015 Poverty Guidelines. 2015 Available: [accessed 14 February 2016]
    1. Paul KB, Hedge JM, DeVito MJ, Crofton KM. Short-term exposure to triclosan decreases thyroxine in vivo via upregulation of hepatic catabolism in young Long-Evans rats. Toxicol Sci. 2010;113(2):367–379.
    1. Routledge EJ, Parker J, Odum J, Ashby J, Sumpter JP. Some alkyl hydroxy benzoate preservatives (parabens) are estrogenic. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 1998;153(1):12–19.
    1. Sandborgh-Englund G, Adolfsson-Erici M, Odham G, Ekstrand J. Pharmacokinetics of triclosan following oral ingestion in humans. J Toxicol Environ Health A. 2006;69(20):1861–1873.
    1. Schlumpf M, Cotton B, Conscience M, Haller V, Steinmann B, Lichtensteiger W. In vitro and in vivo estrogenicity of UV screens. Environ Health Perspect. 2001;109:239–244.
    1. Soni MG, Carabin IG, Burdock GA. Safety assessment of esters of p-hydroxybenzoic acid (parabens). Food Chem Toxicol. 2005;43(7):985–1015.
    1. Stoker TE, Gibson EK, Zorrilla LM. Triclosan exposure modulates estrogen-dependent responses in the female Wistar rat. Toxicol Sci. 2010;117(1):45–53.
    1. Takeuchi S, Iida M, Kobayashi S, Jin K, Matsuda T, Kojima H. Differential effects of phthalate esters on transcriptional activities via human estrogen receptors α and β, and androgen receptor. Toxicology. 2005;210(2–3):223–233.
    1. Viñas P, Campillo N, Pastor-Belda M, Oller A, Hernández-Córdoba M. Determination of phthalate esters in cleaning and personal care products by dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction and liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. J Chromatogr A. 2015;1376:18–25.
    1. Vo TT, Yoo YM, Choi KC, Jeung EB. Potential estrogenic effect(s) of parabens at the prepubertal stage of a postnatal female rat model. Reprod Toxicol. 2010;29(3):306–316.
    1. Zhang Z, Hu Y, Zhao L, Li J, Bai H, Zhu D, et al. Estrogen agonist/antagonist properties of dibenzyl phthalate (DBzP) based on in vitro and in vivo assays. Toxicol Lett. 2011;207(1):7–11.
    1. Zota AR, Calafat AM, Woodruff TJ. 2014. Temporal trends in phthalate exposures: findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001–2010. Environ Health Perspect 122 235 241, doi:10.1289/ehp.1306681

Source: PubMed

Sponsorzy i współpracownicy

Warunki medyczne

Interwencje lekowe

3
Subskrybuj