Menopause arrives two to four years earlier for women whose bodies contain high levels of chemicals found in plastics, personal care products, common household items, and the environment.
Researchers looked at levels in blood and urine of 111 chemicals that are suspected of interfering with the natural production and distribution of hormones in the body.
While several smaller studies have examined the link between so-called endocrine-disrupting chemicals and menopause, the new research is the first to broadly explore the association between menopause and individual chemicals on a large scale, using a nationally representative sample of patients across the United States.
“Chemicals linked to earlier menopause may lead to an early decline in ovarian function, and our results suggest we as a society should be concerned,” says senior author Amber Cooper, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Risky Ingredients?
A decline in ovarian function not only can adversely affect fertility but also can lead to earlier development of heart disease, osteoporosis, and other health problems. Other problems already linked to the chemicals include certain cancers, metabolic syndrome, and, in younger females, early puberty.
“Many of these chemical exposures are beyond our control because they are in the soil, water, and air,” Cooper says. “But we can educate ourselves about our day-to-day chemical exposures and become more aware of the plastics and other household products we use.”
For example, Cooper recommends that people microwave food in glass or paper containers instead of in plastic and try to learn more about the ingredients in cosmetics, personal-care products, and food packaging they use every day.
Although many of the chemicals included in the study have been banned from U.S. production because of their negative health effects, they still are produced globally and are pervasive in the environment.
In the study, Cooper and colleagues analyzed data collected from 1999–2008 as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The survey included data from 31,575 people, including 1,442 menopausal women who had been tested for levels of endocrine-disrupting chemicals. The average age of these women was 61, and none were using estrogen-replacement therapies or had had surgery to remove ovaries.
The survey was designed so that the women who had undergone chemical testing would represent a population of almost 9 million menopausal women.
111 Chemicals
The women’s blood and urine samples were analyzed for exposures to 111 mostly human-made chemicals, which included known reproductive toxins and/or those that take more than a year to break down.
Chemicals from the following categories were analyzed in the survey: dioxins/furans (industrial combustion byproducts); phthalates (found in plastics, common household items, pharmaceuticals, and personal-care products including lotions, perfumes, makeup, nail polish, liquid soap, and hair spray); phytoestrogens (plant-derived estrogens); polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs, coolants); phenolic derivatives (phenols, industrial pollutants); organophosphate pesticides; surfactants; and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (combustion products).
The researchers identified 15 chemicals—nine PCBs, three pesticides, two phthalates, and a furan (a toxic chemical)—that warrant closer evaluation because they were significantly associated with earlier ages of menopause and potentially have detrimental effects on ovarian function.
“Earlier menopause can alter the quality of a woman’s life and has profound implications for fertility, health, and our society,” Cooper says. “Understanding how the environment affects health is complex. This study doesn’t prove causation, but the associations raise a red flag and support the need for future research.”
From Washington University in St. Louis via Futurity.org
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