Phthalates and Where They Hide
Consider this common picture: you wake up, walk to the bathroom, pull open the plastic shower curtain, and wash your hair. After hopping out, you apply lotion, brush your teeth, throw some makeup on, and head downstairs to reheat the breakfast you had prepared the night before. Between the vinyl curtain, shampoo, creams, foundation, and plastic food container, within the first hour of your day, you’ve already been exposed to a steady stream of phthalates — the toxic chemicals that hide in every room of our homes, most of the products we use, and even in the food we eat.
You may have seen the word ‘phthalates’ in articles or printed on the back of product bottles but haven’t known what they were, let alone how to pronounce them. We’re here to break down what to know, where they hide, and why and how to avoid them.
What are phthalates?
Phthalates, dubbed “The Everywhere Chemical,” are an endocrine-disrupting class of chemicals found in many of the everyday products in our lives — including personal care, cleaning products, food, and more.¹ Manufacturers use these chemicals for many reasons, including to retain scents used in fragrances, to soften and strengthen plastic, and to help topical products (like lotions and cosmetics) stick to and penetrate skin.² We’re exposed to phthalates when they seep out of these products and enter our bodies through ingestion, inhalation, through the skin, and can cross the placenta once inside.³
Health risks:
Concerns about the dangers of the chemicals on human and environmental health began mounting in the 1990s, when studies showed that phthalates were particularly threatening to our endocrine system — the body’s system for regulating hormones, which is critical to many of the core functions of the body.³ They can disrupt this system by increasing the production of some hormones, decreasing the production of others, and interfering with hormone signaling, all of which can cause serious health problems.
Some of the health harms associated with exposure to phthalates, even at low levels, include changes to fertility, early puberty, birth defects, obesity, diabetes, impacts to the immune system, cardiovascular and respiratory problems, certain cancers, and neurological problems.⁴ Since these chemicals have become so pervasive in our lives, recent studies have shown that nearly every person in the U.S. is exposed to phthalates, with some finding that almost 100% of Americans have some amount of the substance in their bodies.
Tips to reduce exposure:
Given the now widespread pervasiveness of phthalates in our everyday products and food systems, it’s impossible to completely avoid phthalates altogether. And, since there are insufficient regulations enforcing companies to disclose the use of phthalates in products, they’re often hidden in plain sight. That’s why knowing typical areas they hide, clues to look out for, and certain swaps can help you significantly reduce exposure.
Read labels carefully - While product labels rarely say “contains phthalates” upfront, consumers can still identify the use of the chemicals by looking for certain acronyms on labels. There are multiple phthalate compounds, but the eight most commonly used are:
BBP (Butyl benzyl phthalate)
DBP (Dibutyl phthalate): most commonly found in nail polish
DEHP (Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate): most commonly found in medical products, like disposable gloves, tubes, catheters, and blood bags
DEP (Diethyl phthalate): most commonly found in personal care products and fragrances
DiDP (Di-isodecyl phthalate)
DiNP (Di-isononyl phthalate): most commonly found in toys and childcare products, like bath toys, drinking straws, and rubber ducks
DnHP (di-n-hexyl phthalate)
DnOP (di-n-octyl phthalate)
Avoid #3 plastics - Plastics labeled with a recycling #3 inside the universal recycling symbol are made with polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which is often a telltale sign of the presence of phthalates.¹ It’s best to limit plastics as much as possible, but when you can’t, choose plastics with #2, 4, and 5 instead, which are less likely to contain phthalates.
Eat fresh foods when possible - In a recent Consumer Report testing food and food packaging, they found phthalates were alarmingly in almost every food tested — even at high levels.⁴ Phthalates can enter food during all stages of production, from contact with tubing, conveyor belts, gloves during food processing, the plastic containers themselves, and even enter directly into meat and produce via contaminated water and soil. While it’s impossible to avoid them altogether, reducing packaged and processed food and opting for fresh food when possible is one of the best ways to reduce exposure to phthalates through food.
Go fragrance-free - Most fragrances include phthalates, so it’s best to choose fragrance-free options or select products that specifically say “phthalate-free.” Aside from perfumes, other common products with added fragrances include laundry products, lotions, air fresheners, and hair products.
Reduce kitchen plastics - Phthalates are found in most kitchen plastic products, so opt for containers and utensils that are made from glass, ceramic, wood, stainless steel, or silicone whenever possible. Also avoid microwaving food directly in plastic food containers or running the containers through the dishwasher, as heating plastic can cause even more phthalates to leach out.
Opt for plastic-free cosmetics and personal care products - Frighteningly, phthalates are in many of the cosmetic and personal care products we put on our bodies daily, especially in nail polishes, scented lotions, body washes, hair care products, and color cosmetics.¹ Avoid “DEP,” “DBP,” “DEHP,” and fragrance on labels, and opt for products that say "phthalate-free” on packaging. Check out the EWG Skin Deep database, which is a great resource for finding safe products.
It’s becoming increasingly urgent for governments and companies to create, enforce, and adhere to stricter regulations on phthalate use in our products. While the scale of the problem is undoubtedly daunting and widespread, there is power in being informed, making small swaps, advocating for industry-wide change, and voting with our dollar.
Sources
1 Phthalates: The Everywhere Chemical. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. (n.d.). https://www.niehs.nih.gov/sites/default/files/research/supported/translational/peph/resources/assets/docs/phthalates_the_everywhere_chemical_zero_breast_cancer_508.pdf
2 Shelia Hu, O. K. (2022, April 20). Fighting phthalates. What Are Phthalates? And How Do You Avoid Them? https://www.nrdc.org/stories/fighting-phthalates
3 Phthalates. Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. (2023, March 8). https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/research/centers/columbia-center-childrens-environmental-health/our-research/environmental-exposures/phthalates-los-ftalatos
4 Friedman, L. F. (2024, January 4). The plastic chemicals hiding in your food. Consumer Reports. https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-contaminants/the-plastic-chemicals-hiding-in-your-food-a7358224781/#:~:text=The%20findings%20on%20phthalates%20are,than%20another%20to%20have%20them.
