What is DEHP and what health risks is it associated with?

DEHP is a common chemical that makes plastics more pliable and is linked to health hazards, including nearly 2 million premature births globally per year.

How many premature births are linked to DEHP exposure annually?

An estimated 1.97 million premature births globally are linked to maternal exposure to DEHP each year, accounting for about 8% of all preemie deliveries in 2018.

Why is replacing DEHP with other chemicals like DiNP not a complete solution?

Replacing DEHP with chemicals like DiNP may not significantly reduce premature births, as DiNP exposures are linked to a similar number of preemie deliveries, suggesting a need for class-wide regulation of plastic additives.

Home / Health / Plastic Chemical Linked to 2 Million Premature Births

Plastic Chemical Linked to 2 Million Premature Births

3 Apr

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Summary

A common plasticizer, DEHP, is linked to nearly 2 million premature births annually.
Maternal exposure to DEHP may have caused about 8% of global preemie births in 2018.
Regulating plastic additives as a class, not individually, is urged by researchers.

A chemical commonly used to make plastics more flexible, di-2-ethylhexylphthalate (DEHP), has been linked to a significant number of premature births. New research estimates that nearly 2 million premature births worldwide in 2018, approximately 8% of the total, were associated with maternal exposure to DEHP. Tragically, around 74,000 newborns linked to this exposure did not survive.

DEHP can break down into tiny particles that people may inhale or ingest. Researchers calculated global DEHP exposures in 200 countries, finding that regions like the Middle East and Southeast Asia bear a substantial burden. Babies in Africa faced the highest risk of death from premature birth.

Experts caution that simply replacing DEHP with alternative chemicals, such as diisononyl phthalate (DiNP), may not offer a solution, as similar numbers of preemie births are linked to DiNP. The study's authors advocate for stronger, class-wide oversight of plastic additives, emphasizing that addressing these chemicals one by one is an ineffective strategy.

Disclaimer: This story has been auto-aggregated and auto-summarised by a computer program. This story has not been edited or created by the Feedzop team.