Assessing Human Exposure to Phthalates: A Preliminary Study

The main objective of this preliminary study is to better understand the relative importance of various exposure pathways for a suite of phthalates. Humans are exposed to phthalates through ingestion of food packaged in plastics containing phthalates, through inhalation and dermal exposure while using personal care products, and through inhalation of indoor air. By determining the critical exposure pathways are individual compounds, we will be able to better develop questions to predict exposures , and will attempt to validate these questions in an existing study for use in future epidemiological studies. To meet the project objectives, we will collect quasi-personal air samples, duplicate diet plates, and indoor dust samples to evaluate exposures based on environmental concentrate for 12 children aged 2 - 5. We will also collect a urine sample from the children to determine the level of exposure based on biological samples. Questionnaire will also be administered to record what foods were eaten and what personal care products were used over the previous 24 hours. As this is a preliminary project, the 12 families will be selected to try to maximize the range of exposures between the subjects.

 

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