Chemicals from hair and beauty products impact hormones, especially
during pregnancy

Date:
December 10, 2021
Source:
Rutgers University
Summary:
The use of certain personal care products during pregnancy may
impact maternal hormone levels, according to a new study.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
Use of certain personal care products during pregnancy may impact maternal hormone levels, according to a new Rutgers study.


========================================================================== Personal care and beauty products contain several ingredients that often include a wide range of endocrine-disrupting chemicals like phthalates, parabens, phenols, parabens and toxic metals. These chemicals interact
with hormone systems, influencing synthesis, regulation, transport,
metabolism and hormone reception, which are all especially vulnerable
during pregnancy.

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and National
Institutes of Health-funded study, published in Environmental Research, examined the association between personal care product use and the
levels of sex steroid hormones, including estrogens and progesterone
and thyroid hormones among pregnant women. The researchers also explored
how demographic factors impact the use of certain personal care products.

Researchers collected blood samples from 1,070 pregnant women between
18 and 40 years of age enrolled in the Puerto Rico PROTECT Cohort,
an ongoing prospective birth study designed to examine environmental
exposures in pregnant women and their children who live in the northern
karst zone of Puerto Rico.

As part of the study, participants underwent physical exams and completed
a series of questionnaires providing their demographics, occupation,
lifestyle and use of personal care products like fragrances, lotions, cosmetics, nail polish, shaving cream, mouthwash, shampoo and other
hair products, such as bleach, relaxers and mousse. Participants also
provided blood samples twice throughout their pregnancies, which were
analyzed for nine sex steroid and thyroid hormones.

The researchers found that the use of hair products, particularly hair
dyes, bleach, relaxers and mousse are associated with lower levels of
sex steroid hormones, which have a critical role maintaining pregnancy
and fetal development. Disruptions of these hormones may contribute
to adverse maternal and pregnancy outcomes like growth restriction,
preterm birth and low birth weight.

"Alterations in hormone levels, especially during pregnancy, can have vast consequences beyond health at birth including changes in infant and child growth, pubertal trajectories and may influence development of hormone- sensitive cancers such as breast, uterine and ovarian cancer," says the
study's lead author, Zorimar Rivera-Nu'n~ez, an assistant professor at the Rutgers School of Public Health. "Additional research should address the
public health impact of exposure to chemicals in hair products in pregnant populations." The researchers also found that socioeconomic variables,
such as income, education and employment status, influence the use of
personal care products among pregnant women in Puerto Rico. For example, participants who reported a household income greater than $100,000 used personal care products more often than participants with lower household incomes. Additionally, employed participants reported using more cosmetics
than those who were unemployed.

"Prior research has shown that non-pregnant populations have also reported associations between frequency of use and socioeconomic markers, such as household income and education," Rivera-Nu'n~ez said. "A strong culture
of beauty influences Latina women, which may impact consistent use
of cosmetics through pregnancy. This data is important because it will
allow us to identify populations who are at an increased risk of chemical exposures associated with personal care product use." The researchers,
who include individuals from the Rutgers Environmental and Occupational
Health Sciences Institute, University of Michigan, University of Puerto
Rico, University of Georgia and Northeastern University, recommend that
primary physicians and obstetricians should speak to reproductive-age
women about the potential health impact of endocrine disrupting chemicals,
like those found in hair products.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Rutgers_University. Original written
by Michelle Edelstein. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Zorimar Rivera-Nu'n~ez, Pahriya Ashrap, Emily S. Barrett, Adana A.M.

Llanos, Deborah J. Watkins, Amber L. Cathey, Carmen M. Ve'lez-Vega,
Zaira Rosario, Jose' F. Cordero, Akram Alshawabkeh, John
D. Meeker. Personal care products: Demographic characteristics and
maternal hormones in pregnant women from Puerto Rico. Environmental
Research, 2021; 112376 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112376 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/12/211210125741.htm

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