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Urinary and air phthalate concentrations and self-reported use of personal care products among minority pregnant women in New York city

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 20, pages 625–633 (2010)Cite this article

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Abstract

Diethyl phthalate (DEP) and di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP) are used extensively in personal care products, including fragrances (DEP) and nail polish (DnBP). Between May 2003 and July 2006, we gathered questionnaire data on the use of seven product categories (deodorant, perfume, hair spray, hair gel, nail polish/polish remover, liquid soap/body wash, and lotion/mist) over 48 h during the third trimester of pregnancy from 186 inner-city women. A 48-h personal air sample was collected and analyzed for DEP and DnBP; a maternal spot urine sample was collected and analyzed for their monoester metabolites, monoethyl phthalate (MEP) and mono-n-butyl phthalate (MnBP), respectively. In all, 97% of air samples and 84% of urine samples were collected within ±2 days of the questionnaire. During the 48 h, 41% of women reported perfume use and 10% reported nail polish/polish remover use. In adjusted analyses, no association was seen between nail product use and air DnBP or urine MnBP concentrations. Women reporting perfume use had 2.3 times higher (95% CI 1.6, 3.3) urinary MEP concentrations. Personal air DEP increased by 7% for each 25% increase in a composite indicator of the six other product categories (P<0.05), but was not associated with perfume use. Air DEP was correlated with urine MEP concentrations only among non-perfume users (r=0.51, P<0.001). Results suggest that perfume use is a significant source of DEP exposure.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the contributions of many staff and participants at the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health and the technical assistance of Ella Samandar, James Preau, Jack Reidy, and others at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in measuring the urinary concentrations of phthalate metabolites. This work was supported by Grants R01 ES013543, R01 ES014393, and R01 ES008977 from the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), as well as P01 ES09600/EPA RD-8321. Doctoral training support for ACJ came from T32 ES07322 and TL1 RR024158.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA

    Allan C Just, Andrew G Rundle & Robin M Whyatt

  2. Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA

    Jennifer J Adibi

  3. National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

    Antonia M Calafat & Manori J Silva

  4. Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas, USA

    David E Camann

  5. Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Russ Hauser

  6. Vincent Memorial Obstetrics and Gynecology Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Russ Hauser

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  1. Allan C Just
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  2. Jennifer J Adibi
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  3. Andrew G Rundle
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  4. Antonia M Calafat
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  5. David E Camann
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  6. Russ Hauser
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  7. Manori J Silva
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  8. Robin M Whyatt
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Correspondence to Allan C Just.

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Just, A., Adibi, J., Rundle, A. et al. Urinary and air phthalate concentrations and self-reported use of personal care products among minority pregnant women in New York city. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 20, 625–633 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2010.13

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