Oxidative stress has been recognized as one of the most important contributors to infertility in both males and females. Exposure to many environmental chemicals, such as phthalates, has been shown to induce oxidative stress. In a longitudinal study designed to assess exposure to environmental chemicals and fecundity in couples who were planning pregnancy, 894 urine samples were collected from ...

The variability and predictors of urinary concentrations of phthalate metabolites in preschool-aged children have not been thoroughly examined. Additionally, the impact of temporal changes in the use and restriction of phthalates in children's products has not been assessed. Our objective was to identify demographic, behavioral, and temporal predictors of urinary phthalate metabolite concentrat...

Phthalates, a ubiquitous class of chemicals found in consumer, personal care, and cleaning products, have been linked to adverse health effects. Our goal was to characterize urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations and to identify work and nonwork sources among custodians using traditional cleaning chemicals and 'green' or environmentally preferable products (EPP). Sixty-eight custodians pro...

Phthalate exposures in the general population and in subpopulations are ubiquitous and widely variable. Many consumer products contain specific members of this family of chemicals, including building materials, household furnishings, clothing, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, nutritional supplements, medical devices, dentures, children's toys, glow sticks, modelling clay, food packaging, automobiles...

Phthalates are ubiquitous endocrine-disrupting chemicals that are contaminants in food and contribute to significant dietary exposures. We examined associations between reported consumption of specific foods and beverages and first trimester urinary phthalate metabolite concentrations in 656 pregnant women within a multicenter cohort study, The Infant Development and Environment Study (TIDES), ...

In utero exposure to phthalates may adversely affect reproductive development in children due to the anti-androgenic properties of the pthalates. Accordingly, we aimed to determine the effects of in utero and environmental phthalate exposure on the reproductive development of eight-year-old children. We recruited 180 children in central Taiwan during November 2001 and followed them until August...

Phthalates are used as plasticizers and solvents in industrial, medical and consumer products; however, occupational exposure information is limited. We sought to obtain preliminary information on occupational exposures to diethyl phthalate (DEP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) and di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) by analyzing for their metabolites in urine samples collected from workers in a cros...

People are exposed to phthalates through their wide use as plasticizers and in personal care products. Many phthalates are endocrine disruptors and have been associated with adverse health outcomes. However, knowledge gaps exist in understanding the molecular mechanisms associated with the effects of exposure in early and late pregnancy. In this study, we examined the relationship of eleven uri...

The widespread use of plastic bags in routine blood bank procedures has been attended by concern about the accumulation of substances from the plastic containers in the blood products and the biologic effects of these substances (1-11). Most poly(vinyl chloride) plastic bags contain di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) to make them pliable enough to prevent breakage (2, 5). This material has been s...

The potassium permanganate oxidation of methylated humic acid from a Spanish lignite yielded mainly straight-chain alkanes together with a mixture of fatty acids, methyl straight-chain alkyl ketones, aliphatic dicarboxylic, phenolic and benzenecarboxylic acids. Furthermore, some unusual compounds such as dehydroabietic and bromohydroxybenzoic acids and bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate were also ident...