More than 400 chemicals regularly used in everyday plastic products are linked to breast cancer, and the dangerous compounds could be a driver of increasingly elevated cancer rates in young women, new research finds.
Many of the toxic chemicals – such as PFAS, phthalates, parabens and aromatic amines – are added to food packaging, personal care products and single-use plastics, making exposures nearly ubiquitous.
Though the paper’s findings highlight “widespread and frustrating” under-regulation of plastic, it also strongly points toward regulatory solutions
Despite the known risks, plastic in general remains a little-regulated substance, largely because of the petrochemical and plastic industry’s lobbying power. But regulation can be effective: the addition of some phthalates to California’s Proposition 65 law, which targets toxic chemicals in consumer goods, broadly reduced the level of the dangerous compound in Californians’ blood.
The world also needs to wind down plastic production, Rudel said, adding that the United Nations-backed plastic treaty could be an effective tool. However, that process has been sabotaged by the unwillingness of petroleum-producing nations like the US.
On an individual level, women can take some steps to protect themselves. Diet is a major exposure route so avoiding plastic in kitchenware and food packaging could significantly reduce exposure.
