Interventions to Reduce Exposure to Synthetic Phenols and Phthalates from Dietary Intake and Personal Care Products: a Scoping Review

Purpose of ReviewA scoping review was conducted to identify interventions that successfully alter biomarker concentrations of phenols, glycol ethers, and phthalates resulting from dietary intake and personal care product (PCPs) use.Recent FindingsTwenty-six interventions in populations ranging from children to older adults were identified; 11 actively removed or replaced products, 9 provided products containing the chemicals being studied, and 6 were education-only based interventions. Twelve interventions manipulated only dietary intake with a focus on bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates, 8 studies intervened only on PCPs use and focused on a wider range of chemicals including BPA, phthalates, triclosan, parabens, and ultraviolet absorbers, while 6 studies intervened on both diet and PCPs and focused on phthalates, parabens, and BPA and its alternatives. No studies assessed glycol ethers. All but five studies reported results in the expected direction, with interventions removing potential sources of exposures lowering EDC concentrations and interventions providing exposures increasing EDC concentrations. Short interventions lasting a few days were successful. Barriers to intervention success included participant compliance and unintentional contamination of products.The identified interventions were generally successful but illustrated the influence of participant motivation, compliance, ease of intervention adherence, and the difficulty of fully removing exposures due their ubiquity and the difficulties of identifying safer replacement products. Policy which reduces or removes EDC in manufacturing and processing across multiple sectors, rather than individual behavior change, may have the greatest impact on population exposure.

Automated summary

A scoping review was conducted to identify interventions that successfully alter biomarker concentrations of phenols, glycol ethers, and phthalates resulting from dietary intake and personal care product use. The review identified 26 interventions, including product removal/replacement, product provision, and education-based interventions. Short interventions lasting a few days were successful. The study highlights the importance of participant motivation, compliance, ease of intervention adherence, and the challenges of fully removing exposures and identifying safer replacement products.