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Researchers from the reproductive biology research group at Tallinn University of Technology and Celvia, a company in Tartu, showed how DEHP, .a chemical part of the phthalates group and commonly found in household products, can affect women’s fertility.
Phthalates, including DEHP (di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate), are mainly used as an ingredient in PVC plastics found in a number of household products such as food containers, toys, rain-resistant materials, as well as in cosmetic and medical products to give the materials more flexibility and water resistance. DEHP is easily released from plastic products, entering both the environment and our bodies. Since phthalates have been found in both drinking water and house dust, exposure to these chemicals is difficult to avoid. Most women of childbearing age contain measurable amounts of DEHP in the follicular environment of their ovaries.
DEHP, one of the most common phthalates, is banned in the European Union for use in household products and children’s toys due to its association with a number of health problems. However, the use of DEHP is still permitted in medical applications, for example in donor blood storage bags and medical equipment tubes.
While toys containing DEHP are banned in the European Union, they are still allowed in many other countries.
The study collected samples from patients undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) in Estonia and Sweden. It was found that DEHP affects the production of sex hormones. “We discovered that higher levels of DEHP in the ovaries are associated with changes in sex hormone production, which can threaten a woman’s fertility (1),” explained lead author Inge Varik from Taltech’s reproductive biology research group.
This study was the first to identify the association of DEHP with inflammatory processes in the ovary. According to Andres Salumets, chairman of the board at Celvia (formerly the Competence Centre on Health Technologies) and co-author of the study, the immune system within the ovary plays an important role in the release of an egg, a process called ovulation, however an excessive immune response can threaten female fertility.
An earlier study by the consortium found that IVF patients with higher DEHP levels within their ovaries were less responsive to fertility treatment (2).
Agne Velthut-Meikas, associate professor and head of the TalTech reproductive biology research group and co-author of both studies, stated: “IVF is one of the most accessible options for infertile couples to have their own biological offspring, but only about one in three procedures leads to the birth of a child. The presence of chemicals in the ovary may further reduce the likelihood of success.”
The results of the study highlight the need for more suitable methods to assess the safety of chemicals on female fertility. Animal testing does not provide a sufficiently accurate estimate of the effect of chemicals on women’s health.
The study was carried out with the pan-European consortium FREIA, and the results were published in the prestigious scientific journal Environment International.
(1) Varik et al., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2024.108960
(2) Bellavia et al., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2022.114447
This article was originally published on the TalTech (Tallinn University of Technology) website.
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