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Most Plastic Products Release Estrogenic Chemicals: A Potential Health Problem

That Can Be Solved

Chun Z. Yang, Stuart I. Yaniger, V Craig. Jordan, J. Klein, D.

Bittner

Abstract Top

Background: Chemicals having estrogenic activity (EA) reportedly cause many

adverse health effects, especially at low (pM-nM) doses in fetal and juvenile

mammals.

Objectives: To determine whether commercially available plastic resins and

products, including baby bottles and other products advertised as BPA-free,

release chemicals having EA.

Materials and Methods: We used a very sensitive, accurate, repeatable,

roboticized MCF-7 cell proliferation assay to quantify the EA of chemicals

leached into saline or ethanol extracts of many types of commercially available

plastic materials, some exposed to common-use stresses (microwaving, UV

radiation, and/or autoclaving).

Results: Almost all commercially available plastic products we sampled,

independent of the type of resin, product, or retail source, leached chemicals

having reliably-detectable EA, including those advertised as BPA-free. In some

cases, BPA-free products released chemicals having more EA than BPA-containing

products.

Conclusions: Many plastic products are mischaracterized as being EA-free if

extracted with only one solvent and not exposed to common-use stresses. However,

we can identify existing, or have developed, monomers, additives or processing

agents that have no detectable EA and similar costs. Hence, our data suggest

that EA-free plastic products exposed to common-use stresses and extracted by

saline and ethanol solvents could be cost-effectively made on a commercial

scale, and thereby eliminate a potential health risk posed by most

currently-available plastic products that leach chemicals having EA into food

products.

Citation: Yang CZ, Yaniger SI, Jordan VC, Klein DJ, Bittner GD 2011. Most

Plastic Products Release Estrogenic Chemicals: A Potential Health Problem That

Can Be Solved. Environ Health Perspect :-. doi:10.1289/ehp.1003220

Received: 16 November 2010; Accepted: 24 February 2011; Online: 02 March 2011

http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/fetchArticle.action?articleURI=info%3Adoi%2F1\

0.1289%2Fehp.1003220#Supplemental%20Material

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