Plastics Pose "Urgent Threat" to Children’s Lifelong Health

 

A sweeping new review warns that chemicals in common plastics pose serious and lasting health risks to children, from before birth through adulthood. Published Sept. 21 in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health medical journal, the study examined hundreds of studies involving pregnant women, babies and children. 

Researchers found that plastic additives such as phthalates, bisphenols and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) can disrupt hormones, trigger inflammation and affect brain development, increasing lifelong risks of chronic conditions such as obesity, infertility, asthma, diabetes, cancer and heart disease.

“Our findings point to plastic’s role in the early origins of many chronic diseases that reverberate into adolescence and adulthood,” said lead author Dr. Leonardo Trasande, a professor at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine. 

“If we want kids to stay healthy and live longer, then we need to get serious about limiting the use of these materials.”

The report comes amid growing global attention to the relationship of plastics and health, including a recent expert meeting in New York on plastics and human health, as well as the launch of the Lancet Countdown on Health and Plastics, an independent global monitoring effort. It also follows stalled negotiations on the United Nations’ Global Plastics Treaty, primarily due to pressure from the oil industry and U.S. opposition to production limits.

“We need to get serious about limiting the use of these materials.”

Researchers say health risks stretch across the plastic life cycle — from production to disposal. Plastics contain more than 16,000 chemicals, including phthalates, bisphenols (including BPAs), and PFAS (“forever chemicals”), which make plastic more flexible or rigid or more resistant to heat or water. When used, heated or treated (often with ultra-processed foods), they release microplastics (tiny plastic particles less than 5 millimeters in size) and even smaller pieces called nanoparticles.

A recent U.K. study found plastic particles in every hot and cold beverage tested, while researchers for the first time detected nanoparticles in vegetables, underscoring how plastic pollution seeps into the food chain. Microscopic particles have also been found in our blood, bones, brains and organ systems, ranging from reproductive to respiratory, with new research showing how nano-plastics can even disrupt energy metabolism in brain cells.

Trasande and colleagues call evidence for the adverse effects of plastic on children’s health “robust and rapidly accumulating.” In the U.S. alone, they estimate $250 billion in annual health costs from childhood disease and disability linked to plastic chemicals.

A considerable amount of research from multiple studies has shown that phthalates may contribute to preterm birth, the researchers note. Other studies link phthalates, bisphenols and PFAS exposure to higher risks of gestational diabetes and blood sugar problems during pregnancy. “The fact that in-utero PFAS exposure has also been associated with childhood obesity is not surprising,” the researchers said.

Phthalates and bisphenols may also interfere with brain development in the womb by disrupting thyroid or sex hormones, they say. Brain imaging has also revealed significant changes in both structure and function. In an extensive Dutch study, phthalate exposure was linked to reduced brain gray matter, which partially explained decreases in childhood IQ.

The findings are especially complex for pediatric medicine, where plastics have long been indispensable in treating various health conditions, the new study notes. Premature infants depend on plastic ventilators and feeding tubes. Children of all ages with asthma rely on nebulizers with plastic parts to manage their condition. Pill packaging, masks, dialysis machines and protective equipment also rely on plastic components.

At the same time, researchers note that health care systems contribute to the problem through widespread use of non-essential plastics. Phthalates, for example, are commonly found in infusion tubing, blood bags and other flexible plastic devices. Yet safer alternatives exist.

Studies show that substituting phthalate-free devices in neonatal intensive care units reduces exposure. Likewise, hospitals that switched to bisphenol A-free equipment in maternity and pediatric wards documented measurable declines in exposure for patients and staff, Trasande and his co-authors said.

“The health consequences are particularly grave for populations in low-income regions across the globe.”

“We do not impugn the essential uses of plastic for human life. However, the proliferation of non-essential plastic in the environment is increasing prenatal, childhood, and adolescent exposures, with multiple and serious effects reverberating into adulthood,” they said. “The health consequences are particularly grave for populations in low-income regions across the globe, driving disparities in health.”

Calling for systemic reform, the authors argue that current risk assessments fall short of protecting children and fail to consider the effects of newer chemicals. Many countries also lack reliable exposure data, making it impossible to track risks or improvements.

They urge child health providers to support stricter regulation of nonessential plastics, hazard-based criteria to limit chemicals like phthalates and PFAS, along with bans on single-use plastics and endocrine disruptors. 

Regulatory action could be “the most potent and greatest leveler,” the researchers said: “The burden of proof of safety should be firmly placed on manufacturers rather than youth.”

 Study: Plastics Pose ‘Urgent Threat’ to Children’s Lifelong Health - Truthdig