Phthalates and your fertility – are these chemicals really a big deal?
“People are recognising we have a reproductive health crisis, but they say it’s because of delayed childbearing, choice or lifestyle – it can’t be chemical. I am not saying other factors aren’t involved. But I am saying chemicals play a major causal role. It is difficult to use that word, “cause”, but it’s a body of evidence. We have mechanisms, animal studies, and multiple human studies”
Dr Shanna Swan PhD.
Something TCM has long recognised - the world around us influences our fertility. Right now - we are seeing more research and a growing body of evidence to show that different chemicals are having a negative impact on our fertility and reproductive health.
What are phthalates?
Phthalates refers to a group of chemicals. They’re used in the production of plastics to make the end product more durable and flexible. They’re also fragrance carriers, so are also commonly found in cosmetics, cleaning products and nearly anything with a perfume.
Why the focus on phthalates?
Similar to BPA and BPS, part of the reason these toxicants are so concerning is because we can’t decide to avoid them, (or quit like some of our other habits that are negatively impacting fertility - I’m looking at you vaping). They are so completely prevalent that all we can do is try to minimise our exposure.
Are they really impacting fertility? What does the research say?
The bad news
Research is pretty clear – several studies have shown an association between high exposure to phthalates and negative impacts on fertility. In the IVF world, levels of phthalates were measured by the concentration of phthalates metabolites in urine. High levels were associated with lower numbers of eggs retrieved and a lower chance of clinical pregnancy and live birth.
Similarly, research from 2016 has shown that phthalates are likely to have a negative impact on the number of antral follicles and likelihood of pregnancy.
The good news
There does appear to be a dose dependant relationship. Those women in both the referenced articles with low urinary concentration of phthalates had significantly better fertility outcomes than those in the highest groups - but more research is needed to begin to define acceptable levels.
Take action: what to do about phthalates
First, it’s important to understand how phthalates are entering our bodies. Heavier weighted phthalates leach into food or can make up house dust. Light weighted phthalates are usually found in skin care of perfumed products – they are ingested or inhaled, exposure may be episodic, but it’s certainly ongoing.
If you’re trying to conceive you should remember, we can’t avoid them altogether, and trying to do so will add incredible stress to an already emotional time. So - the next best thing is to minimise our exposure:
6 tips to minimise exposure to phthalates
Choose fragrance free products for your home and on your skin
Switch out plastic food containers to glass
Use glass or porcelain over plastic drink bottles – all that heating and cooling drives leaching
Choose organic food if and when you can – some phthalates are attracted to fats, so this goes for meats and dairy too.
Limit your fast-food. US based research shows diets high in fast food are correlated with higher phthalate exposures – likely because of the plastics used to produce and serve these meals
Check your labels – look for plastic marked 2, 4 or 5 only
The possibility of off-setting phthalates
Consider antioxidants. One recent review poses the possibility that oxidative stress could be one plausible explanation for this phthalate-induced reduced fertility. An area with scope for more research.
Want to know more? You can read about phthalates and men’s fertility here