title: Association between paraben exposure and menstrual cycle in female university students in Japan.
abstract: Parabens have been known to have estrogenic activity in many in vivo and in vitro studies and biomonitoring data indicated ubiquitous exposure in general populations. However, there are few human studies on reproductive effects of parabens. In this study, menstrual cycle length and its intra-individual variation were investigated by bleeding record over the period of 5 months and urinary concentrations of parabens were measured for 128 female Japanese university students. We found significantly negative relationships between menstrual cycle length and urinary estrogen-equivalent total paraben (odds=0.73, 95% CI 0.56-0.96) and butyl paraben concentrations (odds=0.83, 0.70-0.99), which indicated shortened cycle length in women with high urinary paraben concentrations. This study indicated that paraben exposure at not excessive levels is associated with menstrual cycle length or its variability among general female subjects. These results suggest a possibility that parabens exposure is one of the environmental causes of human reproductive problem.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Studies, University of Tokyo, Kashiwanoha 5-1-5, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8563, Japan.
authors.forename: Yukiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nishihama
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Studies, University of Tokyo, Kashiwanoha 5-1-5, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8563, Japan; Faculty of Life Sciences, Toyo University, 1-1-1 Izumino, Itakura, Ora, Gunma 374-0193, Japan. Electronic address: yoshinaga@toyo.jp.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yoshinaga
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental, Occupational Health and Toxicology, School of Allied Health Sciences, Kitasato University, Kitasato 1-15-1, Minami, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-0373, Japan.
authors.forename: Ayaka
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iida
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Ecology, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Hongou 7-3-1, Bunkyou, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
authors.forename: Shoko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Konishi
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Tokyo Healthcare University, Higashigaoka 2-5-1, Meguro, Tokyo 152-8558, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Imai
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Environmental Studies, Onogawa 16-2, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8506, Japan.
authors.forename: Miyuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoneyama
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Environmental Studies, Onogawa 16-2, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8506, Japan.
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Nakajima
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Environmental Studies, Onogawa 16-2, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8506, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shiraishi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000652:urine; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000652:urine; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008597:Menstrual Cycle / Q000187:drug effects*; D010226:Parabens / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D013334:Students; D014495:Universities; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D010226:Parabens
keywords: Female fecundity; Menstrual cycle; Paraben; Urine