Abstract
Galaxolide is the most used fragrance since the early 1990s, and it has been largely detected in environmental and biological matrices. This polycyclic musk is present in almost all of our daily products, so the risk of human exposure is substantial, as it had been proved by its detection in human tissues and fluids. Due to the lack of information about the concentrations found in consumer products, monitoring data is needed for exposure assessment purposes. Dermal contact, mostly by personal care products, seems to be the major route of human exposure to galaxolide, and, due to the immaturity of young children’s skin, exposure consequences can be worse in this population. The main objective of this study was to evaluate galaxolide levels in personal care products used by children of Oporto (Portugal), aged 0–5 years, and relate it with consumer habits. Consumer patterns were obtained through 250 questionnaires to caregivers of Oporto children. The 79 most used products were extracted by a dispersive solid phase extraction methodology known as QuEChERS and galaxolide was determined by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection. The concentrations ranged between 0.001 ± 0.001 mg·kg−1, on a baby wipe, and 300.480 ± 8.819 mg·kg−1, on glycerin soap, which may correspond to an estimated daily dermal exposure of 277.10 ± 0.02 µg·day−1 on the population of Oporto children. This value is in the range of the results observed for adults, although no information of toxicological risk for children is available.
Highlights
Musks are synthetic fragrances widely used in innumerous daily products, like personal care products (PCP), in order to maintain the desired scent
The aim of this study was to collect information to assess the risk of dermal exposure of children to the synthetic fragrance galaxolide contained in toiletries and personal care products
The final sample size was set at 250 children, corresponding to a representative sample population for a 5.2%
Summary
Musks are synthetic fragrances widely used in innumerous daily products, like personal care products (PCP), in order to maintain the desired scent. They are applied as fixatives, because of their low volatility against other fragrances, retarding their release. The PM galaxolide (HHCB; 1,3,4,6,7-hexahydro-4,6,6,7,8-hexamethylcyclopenta-γ-2-benzopyran; Figure 1) is the most used musk in the world since the early 1990s [2]. As HHCB has a high octanol-water partition coefficient (log Kow = 5.9) and relatively low water solubility (1.75 mg·L−1), this compound has been found in wastewater treatment plants (influents, effluents, and in sewage sludge) and even in environmental matrices (surface water, sediments, and suspended matter) [2]
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