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Tox Town - Environmental health concerns and toxic chemicals where you live, work, and play
Phthalatesen español
Phthalates are a family of chemicals used in plastics and many other products.

What are phthalates?

Phthalates are a group of chemicals used to soften and increase the flexibility of plastic and vinyl. They are used in hundreds of consumer products. 

Phthalates are used in cosmetics and personal care products, including perfume, hair spray, soap, shampoo, nail polish, and skin moisturizers. They are used in consumer products such as flexible plastic and vinyl toys, shower curtains, wallpaper, vinyl miniblinds, food packaging, and plastic wrap. 

Phthalates are also used in wood finishes, detergents, adhesives, plastic plumbing pipes, lubricants, medical tubing and fluid bags, solvents, insecticides, medical devices, building materials, and vinyl flooring. 

Phthalates had been used to make pacifiers, soft rattles, and teethers, but at the request of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, U.S. manufacturers have not used phthalates in those products since 1999.

How might I be exposed to phthalates?

You can be exposed to low levels of phthalates through air, water, or food. You can be exposed to phthalates if you use cosmetics, personal care products, cleaning products, or other plastic and vinyl products that contain them. 

Exposure to low levels of phthalates may come from eating food packaged in plastic that contains phthalates, or breathing dust in rooms with vinyl miniblinds, wallpaper, or recently installed flooring that contain phthalates. You could be exposed by drinking water that contains phthalates, though it is not known how common that is. 

Children can be exposed to phthalates by chewing on soft vinyl toys or other products made with them. Children can be exposed by breathing household dust that contains phthalates, or using IV tubing or other medical devices made with phthalates. 

People at the highest risk of exposure to phthalates are dialysis patients, hemophiliacs, or people who received blood transfusions from sources that use tubing or containers made with phthalates. The Food and Drug Administration has recommended steps to minimize exposure of patients to medical devices that contain phthalates, and alternative devices for certain procedures. Others at high risk are painters, printers, and workers exposed to phthalates during the manufacture, formulation, and processing of plastics.

How can phthalates affect my health?

The human health effects of phthalates are not yet fully known, but are being studied by several government agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and the National Toxicology Program's Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction. 

Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate is listed as a substance "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen" in the Eleventh Report on Carcinogens, published by the National Toxicology Program. 

Current levels of seven phthalates studied by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences posed "minimal" concern for causing reproductive effects. However, the National Toxicology Program concluded that high levels of one phthalate, di-n-butyl phthalate, may adversely affect human reproduction or development.

High levels of exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate through the use of medical tubing and other plastic devices for feeding, medicating, and assisting the breathing of newborn infants, may affect the development of the male reproductive system, according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.


More Links
DEHP in Plastic Medical Devices (Food and Drug Administration)
Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP). ToxFAQs (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry)
Di-n-butyl Phthalate. ToxFAQs (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry)
Di-n-octylphthalate (DNOP). ToxFAQs (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry)
Diethyl Phthalate. ToxFAQs (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry)
Phthalate Esters. Haz-Map (National Library of Medicine)
Phthalates and Cosmetic Products (Food and Drug Administration)
The Scoop on Baby Products and Possible Toxins [phthalates] (Nemours Foundation)

Locations where Phthalates may be found
City
City
Farm
Farm
Town
Town
U.S.-Mexico Border
U.S.-Mexico Border
Port
Port
Brownfield
Construction
Drinking Water
Factory
Hair and Nail Salons
Homes
Hospital
Offices and Stores
Pharmacy
River
School
Drinking Water
Homes
Landfill
Drinking Water
Factory
Homes
Offices and Stores
River
School
Drinking Water
Homes
Illegal Dumps and Tire Piles
Maquiladora
River
Stormwater and Sewage
Tienda
Trash Burning
Coastal Brownfield
Cruise Ship
Drinking Water
Homes
Marina and Boats
Offices and Stores
River
Shipping
Storms and Floods
Stormwater and Sewage
Urban and Industrial Runoff

Last Updated: November 06, 2008

Interactive Graphic Neighborhoods City Farm Town US - Mexico Border Port