Patterns of phenol, paraben, and phthalate exposure in NYC women

Abstract

TPS 622: Exposure to flame retardants and plasticizers, Johan Friso Foyer, Floor 1, August 26, 2019, 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM Background/Aims. Women are disproportionately exposed to environmental chemicals linked to adverse health outcomes through their use of personal care products. Identification of exposure patterns and associations with potential exposure sources can inform the design of targeted policies and interventions. Methods. We used information on pregnant women aged 18-35 from New York enrolled in the Mothers and Newborns cohort. Five phenols, three parabens, and nine phthalate metabolites were measured and adjusted for specific gravity in spot urine samples collected during the third trimester in 362 women. Personal care product use was assessed via questionnaire. We used principal component pursuit (PCP), a novel robust pattern recognition and dimensionality reduction technique, to simultaneously identify consistent patterns of chemical exposure and to isolate unique or extreme exposure events. We included individual pattern scores in regression models to evaluate their relationship with personal care product use. Results. Separating variance due to extreme events from common patterns, PCP explained 81% of the variance in exposure. We identified five patterns that, 1) represent overall exposure, 2) separate phthalates from phenols and parabens, 3) separate two phenols (2,4-dichloro-phenol and 2,5-dichloro-phenol) from parabens, 4) separate di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate metabolites from other phthalates, and 5) represent disproportionately high triclosan exposure. Personal care products contain varying mixtures of these chemicals. Pattern 1 was associated with make-up, perfume, and liquid soap use. Pattern 2 was associated with eye make-up and hair gel use. Pattern 3 was associated with lotion use. Pattern 4 was associated with lotion, hair spray, and sunscreen use. Pattern 5 was associated with lipstick and deodorant use. Conclusions. Phenol, paraben, and phthalate exposure comes from various environmental sources, including personal care products. PCP serves as a useful tool to aggregate exposures into consistent patterns that, if found to be related to adverse health, are amenable to targeted public health messaging.