The widespread exposures among our study participants are not a surprise. Phthalates are found in an array of consumer products most of us use every day: cosmetics and personal-care products, plastic toys, and vinyl flooring, wallpaper, and shower curtains. The chemicals are often an unlisted ingredient in personal-care products such as lotions, shampoo, perfume, and after-shave, where they are used to carry fragrances and can thus simply be labeled “fragrance,” despite the fact that they may make up 20% or more of the product (ATSDR 1995). In nail polish, phthalates are included to prevent chipping (EWG 2000).

In plastic, phthalates can make up as much as 80% of a product. Since they’re not chemically bound to the plastic, up to 50% of the phthalates can leach from a product over its lifetime (DiGangi 2002). Phthalates are used most often as plasticizers, or softeners, in PVC products; in fact, such use accounts for 90% of all phthalate use. PVC, the second-most commonly used plastic worldwide (CHEJ 2004), is found in an incredible range of products, from pipes and building materials to packaging and toys.

Scientists have shown that phthalates leach from medical devices, such as tubing and blood bags. In a 2005 study, Harvard University researchers measured phthalate levels in newborns at two Boston-area hospitals to determine whether those who received feedings, respiratory therapy, and other treatments with PVC products received higher phthalate exposures than those treated with non-PVC products. The study found that the newborns in the hospital where PVC was used had higher phthalate levels than newborns in the hospital using predominantly other plastics (Green 2005). Newborns that had the most intensive treatment with phthalate-containing products had levels five times those of newborns with less-intensive treatment.