Phthalates, or phthalate esters, are esters of phthalic acid. They are mainly used as plasticizers (i.e., substances added to plastics to increase their flexibility, transparency, durability, and longevity). They are used primarily to soften polyvinyl chloride.
Published in Chapter:
Environmental Phthalate Exposure in Relation to Reproductive Outcomes and Other Health Endpoints in Humans
Sameena (P. M. B. Gujarati Science College, India), Riyes Un Aziz (Government Holkar College, India), and Aubid Bashir (Barkatullah University, India)
Copyright: © 2020
|Pages: 33
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-2351-3.ch013
Abstract
Phthalates are the class of chemicals that exhibit numerous adverse effects to health. These non-persistent chemicals are produced in high volume annually and are used in a wide array of industrial consumer products. The overall exposure of phthalates to humans is via ingestion of contaminated food from wrapped materials or dermally via consumer care products. Pthalates are anti-androgenic compounds, so for this reason, they obtrude with the expression of testosterone by manipulating gene expression of proteins and enzymes involved in production of testosterone. The primarily exposure of Pthalates during fetal development stage results in number of harmful effects in male offspring in humans, like abnormalities of the sperm-producing organs, abnormal development of penile, hypospadias, reduced anogenital distance, as well as a risk for prostate cancer and cryptorchidism. The purpose of this chapter was to review the environmental impact of phthalate exposure in relation to reproductive behavior and other health problems in humans.