title: Phthalates dietary exposure and food sources for Belgian preschool children and adults.
abstract: Numerous studies have indicated that for phthalates, the intake of contaminated foods is the most important exposure pathway for the general population. Up to now, data on dietary phthalate intake are scarce and - to the authors' knowledge - not available for the Belgian population. Therefore, the purpose of this study was: (1) to assess the long-term intake of the Belgian population for eight phthalates considering different exposure scenarios (benzylbutyl phthalate (BBP); di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP); dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP); di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP); diethyl phthalate (DEP); diisobutyl phthalate (DiBP); dimethyl phthalate (DMP), di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP)); (2) to evaluate the intake of BBP, DnBP, DEP and DEHP against tolerable daily intake (TDI) values; and (3) to assess the contribution of the different food groups to the phthalate intake. The intake assessment was performed using two Belgian food consumption databases, one with consumption data of preschool children (2.5 to 6.5 years old) and another of adults (≥15 years old), combined with a database of phthalate concentrations measured in over 550 food products sold on the Belgian market. Phthalate intake was calculated using the 'Monte Carlo Risk Assessment' programme (MCRA 7.0). The intake of DEHP was the highest, followed by DiBP. The intake of BBP, DnBP and DEP was far below the TDI for both children and adults. However, for DEHP, the 99th percentile of the intake distribution of preschoolers in the worst case exposure scenario was equal to 80% of the TDI, respectively. This is not negligible, since other exposure routes of DEHP exist for children as well (e.g. mouthing of toys). Bread was the most important contributor to the DEHP intake and this may deserve further exploration, since the origin of this phthalate in bread remains unclear.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Ghent University, UZ-2 Blok A, De Pintelaan 185, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium. Isabelle.Sioen@UGent.be
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Sioen
authors.forename: Tine
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fierens
authors.forename: Mirja
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Van Holderbeke
authors.forename: Lieve
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Geerts
authors.forename: Mia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bellemans
authors.forename: Mieke
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: De Maeyer
authors.forename: Kelly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Servaes
authors.forename: Guido
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vanermen
authors.forename: Polly E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Boon
authors.forename: Stefaan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: De Henauw
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004051:Diethylhexyl Phthalate / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D004787:Environmental Pollution / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D010795:Phthalic Acids / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D010795:Phthalic Acids; D004051:Diethylhexyl Phthalate