It’s a wrap on plastic chemicals.
The health risks of “forever chemicals” known as phthalates in pregnant women have been well-documented, from preterm births to tripling the risk of infant death.
And despite switching to a supposedly “safer” chemical used in everyday items, a study from NYU Langone Health found that the new generations of plastics have been linked to complications during fetal development, including lower birth weight.
As more detrimental effects of phthalate plasticizers have been uncovered in recent years, the harmful chemicals were swapped for a safer alternative called DINCH (1,2-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid diisononyl ester).
Advertised as a non-phthalate plasticizer widely used in food packaging, researchers looked into the effects of DINCH on pregnant women and how the chemicals affect the fetus’s development.
Using data from more than 6,600 pregnancies, the team found that the alternative showed up in the urine of 70% of the women.
More notably, higher levels of DINCH increased the risk of the child being “small for gestational age,” with each tenfold increase of exposure resulting in newborns weighing 27 grams less.
The researchers noted that birth weight and the time babies spend growing in the womb are crucial for proper development.
They also added that low birth weight can increase the risk for health conditions later in life, such as heart disease, obesity, learning difficulties and more.
While many industries switched to DINCH and replaced per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs, or “forever chemicals”) with GenX compounds, the alternatives were found to be more toxic, a swap dubbed “regrettable substitution.”
Several studies have found that the chemicals in plastic food packaging can transfer into the food itself, and then the body, disrupting health in a myriad of ways.
Meanwhile, DINCH levels in the EU population have been steadily increasing over recent decades, while the Food Packaging Forum is currently conducting health research on the chemical alternative.
And the results of the Langone study support concerns around the supposedly “safer” swap.
“Chemicals should be properly tested for their safety before they become a widespread exposure for unwitting people in the general public,” lead author Leonardo Trasande told The Guardian.
Although it’s increasingly difficult to avoid harmful chemicals, the researchers suggest using glass or wood storage and utensils in the kitchen, while looking for food at the grocery store that’s either in glass containers or doesn’t use plastic.
A small study also found that consuming oat beta-glucan — a soluble fiber found in oats, barley, shiitake mushrooms and seaweed — three times a day reduced the levels of PFAs in men after four weeks.
While no action has yet been taken to limit or reduce DINCH or other GenX chemicals, the European Union banned BPA from being used in nearly all food-contact materials in 2024.
However, there is currently no nationwide ban in the US, although the FDA has barred the chemical from baby bottles, sippy cups and infant formula packaging.
