274947 Phthalates in the U.S. food supply

Tuesday, October 30, 2012 : 3:30 PM - 3:50 PM

Sarah Janssen, MD, PhD, MPH , Health and Environment Program, Natural Resources Defense Council, San Francisco, CA
     
Thousands of chemicals have been approved as additives in food and materials used in food storage, including known hormone disrupting chemicals such as phthalates and phenolic compounds like bisphenol A. Both BPA and certain phthalates have been approved as indirect food additives since the 1950s. There is evidence of widespread exposure in the population and food is assumed to be a major source of exposure. However, no comprehensive testing of the U.S. food supply has been done for phthalates and it is unknown which foods are most contaminated. This presentation will discuss preliminary testing of foods bought in California and a discussion of gaps in FDA's oversight of chemical contamination of our food supply.

Learning Areas:
Environmental health sciences

Learning Objectives:
1. Explain why food is a major source of exposure to hormone disrupting chemicals. 2. Discuss current problems with monitoring of the food supply for chemical contaminants. 3.Identify foods found to be most highly contaminated with phthalates.

Keywords: Environmental Exposures, Food Tests

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the primary author and investigator of this research project. I have expertise in endocrine disrupting chemicals, such as the phthalates which are the subject of this research.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 4297.0: What's in our food and our bodies: Using new technologies to test for known and unknown chemicals