In all living creatures, phthalates tip hormonal scales, making males and females more feminine.
Solid research links phthalates to the rising incidence of hormone-related medical conditions,
including polycystic ovarian syndrome, infertility, and breast cancer. Young women, who use a lot
more cosmetics and fragrances than men, are at particular risk.
A 2000 study at the University of Puerto Rico in San Juan linked the use of phthalates in beauty
products to early puberty in girls (Colón et al. 2000). A study by the Atlanta-based Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention found that phthalate levels in young women may be twenty times
higher than average (CDC 2001).
Unborn baby boys are in particular danger since phthalates have been shown to damage developing
testes in males. This could result in many systemic disorders such as low sperm count, sexual
dysfunction, and hormonal imbalance. Men who come in contact with phthalates from plastics,
fragrances, hair care products, and even MP3 player earphones risk even more than their sexual
identity. A 2007 study done by scientists from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and
Dentistry in Rochester, New York, found that phthalates, already connected to reproductive problems
in women, are linked to abdominal obesity (think Homer Simpson’s body shape) and insulin
resistance in men (Stahlhut et al. 2007). The study found that men with the highest levels of phthalates
in their urine had more belly fat and insulin resistance. Studies conducted at Harvard University in
Cambridge linked phthalates to decreased sperm counts and testicular cancer in men (Hauser 2006).
“This doesn’t mean that women are safe. Women are exposed to phthalates when they are pregnant,
and boys actually come from women,” reminds Stacy Malkan, “and the damage to baby boys is done
when they are most vulnerable. Most of the research was done to check the effects of phthalates on
males, but hopefully there will be more studies researching the effects of phthalates on females. There
are some links to breast and uterine cancer, and these findings date to quite some time ago” (Singh et
al. 1975, Harris et al. 1997, Högberg et al. 2008).
The newest research reluctantly admits that babies are exposed to phthalates at a much higher rate
than adults. Many baby care products contain high levels of phthalates hiding in baby lotions, powder,
and shampoo, and leaking from PVC-containing toys, spoons, and pacifiers. Scientists “observed that
reported use of infant lotion, infant powder, and infant shampoo were associated with increased
infant urine concentrations of [phthalate metabolites], and this association is strongest in younger
infants. These findings suggest that dermal exposures may contribute significantly to phthalate body
burden in this population. Young infants are more vulnerable to the potential adverse effects of
phthalates given their increased dosage per unit body surface area, metabolic capabilities, and
developing endocrine and reproductive systems” (Sathyanarayana, Karr 2008).
Cancer, diabetes, allergies, infertility... are phthalates worth the risk? Scientists answer in
unison: no, they are not, especially when there are so many alternatives available.
Double Standards
The European Union has banned some phthalates from many cosmetics and toys, while in the
United States, the state of California banned phthalates from use in children’s toys starting in 2009.
The bill prohibits the manufacture, sale, and distribution of toys and childcare products used by
children under the age of three that contain phthalates. But these measures do not lull consumer
activists.
“Sometimes the stuff they find is just the tip of the iceberg,” says Stacy Malkan. “In Europe, they