Patterns of personal care product use and their association with sociodemographic characteristics along with endocrine disrupting chemicals among reproductive-aged Black women

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Compared to White women, Black women in the United States are exposed to higher, more hazardous concentrations of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), which are found in personal care products. Personal care product use differs by race/ethnicity across multiple product categories such as hair care, skin care, and feminine hygiene products. These differential patterns of exposure are important as they may contribute to environmental health disparities including increased risk of breast cancer, cardiometabolic outcomes, adverse birth outcomes, and uterine fibroids. We previously examined hair product use patterns among reproductive-aged Black women and found that women with higher socio-economic status were more likely to use more products. Our objective was to expand that work to include a wider range of product types including cosmetics, skin care products, nail care products, and feminine hygiene products. AIM: Identify and describe distinct personal care product use patterns and their correlates among a cohort of reproductive-aged Black women living in Detroit, Michigan. METHODS: Using self-reported data, we employed latent class analysis to determine distinct personal care product use patterns among women enrolled in the Study of Environment, Lifestyle and Fibroids. We compared self-reported sociodemographic characteristics across latent classes and examined whether classes were associated with urinary concentrations of EDCs. RESULTS: We will describe the latent classes and report their association with (1) sociodemographic characteristics, and (2) urinary concentrations of EDCs. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this work may be used to address whether product use patterns and related chemical exposures are associated with health outcomes that disproportionately impact Black women. Such information would help identify subgroups of women who may particularly benefit from intervention and potentially modifiable exposures that may be amenable to targeted public health interventions. KEYWORDS: personal care products; Black women; exposure; endocrine disrupting chemicals; latent class analysis