Data shortage makes it difficult to identify hormone-disrupting substances
A lack of data from the chemical industry in the EU makes it impossible to determine whether substances, used in consumer products, are hormone-disrupting. Researchers from DTU Food Institute and SDU recommend that the information requirements in EU legislation be updated and simultaneously suggest methods for assessing chemical substances so that available information is utilized to the fullest.
Researchers from DTU Food Institute and the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) have screened the scientific literature for the Danish Environmental Protection Agency to identify substances showing signs of hormone-disrupting properties, which could potentially be harmful to humans and/or the environment.
The results of the study are published in a new report from the Danish National Centre on Endocrine Disruptors (CeHoS). In the study, researchers found a widespread lack of data, especially concerning effects in the environment. The researchers emphasize that this lack of data is deeply problematic.
- The study shows that there is a great need to update the information requirements in EU legislation REACH to include information on hormone-disrupting properties, says Marie Louise Holmer, a specialist consultant at DTU Food Institute and co-author of the report.
Endocrine disruptors
Endocrine disruptors are substances that increasingly raise concerns for both human and environmental health. In humans, they are believed to contribute to fertility problems, obesity, cancer, diabetes, and disruptions in brain development and function. Endocrine disruptors can be found in products such as cosmetics, clothing, toys, food, and medications. Some end up in the environment, where they may impact fish, amphibians, and other animals, potentially contributing to species loss and reduced biodiversity.
Optimal utilization of data
In the EU, it is highly prioritized to minimize exposure of humans and the environment to hormone-disrupting substances. However, data submitted by companies under the EU's industrial chemical legislation, REACH, rarely contain information that can be used to assess whether the substances are hormone-disrupting in the environment.
For 70% of the more than 26,000 industrial chemicals used in various products, there is also no information available that can be used to assess whether the substances are hormone-disrupting for humans.
Therefore, the researchers recommend that all available information be utilized to the fullest by using two approaches:
1. By assessing similar substances in groups.
2. By using knowledge about harmful effects across species.
Avoid endocrine disruptors
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Don’t smoke.
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Avoid plastic-packaged foods when possible.
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Wash new clothes before you wear them.
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Avoid using personal care products that contain chemicals, suspected to be endocrine disruptors.
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Avoid use of pesticides and air fresheners.
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Use old-fashioned cleaners like vinegar and baking soda.
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Ventilate your home, keep rooms well aired, vacuum and clean regularly to remove chemicals that can be found indoors.
Nine substances showing signs of hormone-disrupting properties
The new study builds upon a report from CeHoS in 2018, which identified a baseline list of 171 substances. In the new study, the baseline list is expanded to 192 substances. Through a series of exclusion criteria, the 192 substances are filtered down to 97 focus substances, of which 10 are selected for a literature screening.
- In the literature screening, we find signs of hormone-disrupting properties for 9 out of 10 of the substances. The question is, what it looks like for the remaining 87 focus substances, says Sofie Christiansen, a senior researcher at DTU Food Institute and co-author of the report.
The researchers behind the study emphasize that this is only an initial screening of the literature and that a more thorough assessment of the available data is needed before final conclusions can be drawn.
Cross-species knowledge and grouping of substances can increase our understanding
Due to the widespread lack of data, the data available for individual chemicals must be utilized to the fullest. Therefore, researchers from DTU Food Institute and SDU focus on using all available knowledge about the substances' hormone-disrupting properties, regardless of whether humans, fish, amphibians, or rodents have been studied.
- The effects in animals and humans may be different, but they stem from the same impact on the hormonal system, so the effects we see in, for example, fish studies may also be concerning for humans, says Henrik Holbech, an associate professor at the Department of Biology at SDU and co-author of the report.
Using the new approaches, researchers examined a group of benzophenones, used as UV filters in cosmetics and sunscreens. The researchers created a so-called heatmap, providing information on the substances' potentially hormone-disrupting properties across the group and across species. The heatmap can be used to assess where more testing is needed and which substances are similar enough to be evaluated together.
- By looking across similarities among chemical substances and including knowledge across species, we utilize the available information to the fullest. This is important as our study also indicates a lack of knowledge about hormone-disrupting properties for the majority of substances around us, says Marie Louise Holmer.
About the report
The report title is Prioritisation of Endocrine Disruptors for Regulation, CeHoS-5.3. It can be found here.
This project was commissioned by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency and conducted under the auspices of the Danish National Centre on Endocrine Disruptors (CeHoS).
DTU Food Institute mainly contributes to the technical part of the report, which deals with the substances' potential effects on humans, while the University of Southern Denmark primarily contributes to the technical knowledge about the substances' potential effects on wildlife.
The study is based on literature reviews and reviews of the regulation and use of the chemical substances.
Authors: Marie Louise Holmer, Sofie Christiansen, and Marta Axelstad Petersen from DTU Food Institute, as well as Henrik Holbech, Jane Ebsen Morthorst, and Karin Lund Kinnberg from the Department of Biology, University of Southern Denmark.
Meet the researcher
Henrik Holbech is Associate Professor and expert in ecotoxicology at Department of Biology.