title: Food packaging and bisphenol A and bis(2-ethyhexyl) phthalate exposure: findings from a dietary intervention.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Bisphenol A (BPA) and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) are high-production-volume chemicals used in plastics and resins for food packaging. They have been associated with endocrine disruption in animals and in some human studies. Human exposure sources have been estimated, but the relative contribution of dietary exposure to total intake has not been studied empirically.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the contribution of food packaging to exposure, we measured urinary BPA and phthalate metabolites before, during, and after a "fresh foods" dietary intervention.
  
  
  METHODS
  We selected 20 participants in five families based on self-reported use of canned and packaged foods. Participants ate their usual diet, followed by 3 days of "fresh foods" that were not canned or packaged in plastic, and then returned to their usual diet. We collected evening urine samples over 8 days in January 2010 and composited them into preintervention, during intervention, and postintervention samples. We used mixed-effects models for repeated measures and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests to assess change in urinary levels across time.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Urine levels of BPA and DEHP metabolites decreased significantly during the fresh foods intervention [e.g., BPA geometric mean (GM), 3.7 ng/mL preintervention vs. 1.2 ng/mL during intervention; mono-(2-ethyl-5-hydroxy hexyl) phthalate GM, 57 ng/mL vs. 25 ng/mL]. The intervention reduced GM concentrations of BPA by 66% and DEHP metabolites by 53-56%. Maxima were reduced by 76% for BPA and 93-96% for DEHP metabolites.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BPA and DEHP exposures were substantially reduced when participants' diets were restricted to food with limited packaging.
authors: Silent Spring Institute, Newton, Massachusetts 02458, USA. rudel@silentspring.org
authors: Ruthann A
authors: RA
authors: Rudel
authors: Janet M
authors: JM
authors: Gray
authors: Connie L
authors: CL
authors: Engel
authors: Teresa W
authors: TW
authors: Rawsthorne
authors: Robin E
authors: RE
authors: Dodson
authors: Janet M
authors: JM
authors: Ackerman
authors: Jeanne
authors: J
authors: Rizzo
authors: Janet L
authors: JL
authors: Nudelman
authors: Julia Green
authors: JG
authors: Brody
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds; D002140:California; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004032:Diet; D004051:Diethylhexyl Phthalate / Q000378:metabolism*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity* / Q000652:urine; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D018857:Food Packaging; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010636:Phenols / Q000633:toxicity* / Q000652:urine; D010795:Phthalic Acids / Q000633:toxicity* / Q000652:urine; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000098826:Bisphenol A Compounds
chemical_list: D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds; D004051:Diethylhexyl Phthalate; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D010636:Phenols; D010795:Phthalic Acids; C006780:bisphenol A; D000098826:Bisphenol A Compounds