Study phthalates increase the allergy risk in children

Phthalates, which are used as plasticisers in plastics, can significantly increase the risk of allergies in children. This could show researchers now. Therefore, children have a greater risk of developing allergic asthma if the mother was particularly affected by phthalates during pregnancy and lactation.

Phthalates can enter our body via the skin, food or air. It is known that phthalates affect the hormone system and can therefore lead to undesirable effects on metabolism or fertility. Now, the current study results show that phthalates also intervene in the immune system and can significantly increase the risk of allergies.

Attention: Plasticizers in numerous everyday objects. Picture: bluedesign - fotolia

At the beginning of the study, the research team examined pregnant women's urine from the mother-and-child cohort study LINA (lifestyle and environmental factors and their influence on neonatal allergy risk) and searched for metabolic products (metabolites) of phthalates. The levels of concentrations found related to the incidence of allergic asthma in children. There was a clear association between elevated levels of the metabolite of butylbenzyl phthalate (BBP) in the mother's urine and the incidence of allergic asthma in the children.

These results from the mother-child cohort were confirmed by the researchers in cooperation with colleagues from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Leipzig in a mouse model. Mice were exposed to phthalate exposure during pregnancy and lactation resulting in comparable urinary BBP metabolite levels as observed in high-burden mothers of the LINA cohort. The offspring showed a clear tendency to allergic asthma, whereby even the generation of grandchildren was still affected. In the adult mice, on the other hand, there was no increased allergy symptoms.

The point seems to be decisive: If the organism is exposed to phthalates during the early development phase, this can have an effect on the risk of disease until the generation after the next generation. The study can be found here. (Association of German Naturopaths)