Chemicals in household products could affect how long it takes to get pregnant, UMass study finds

Exposure to phthalates — chemicals found in many common American household products — could affect a person's ability to get pregnant, according to researchers at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

However, the study did not find a connection between phthalates and pregnancy loss, said Carrie Nobles, an assistant professor of environmental health sciences and the study's lead author.

Researchers said in a statement they discovered a link between the "group of plasticizing and solvent chemicals" and an increase in inflammation, as well as changes in hormonal patterns that could affect ovulation cycles.

The research team analyzed data from a study of over 1,200 participants, which detailed their efforts to get pregnant over six menstrual cycles, according to the statement. The researchers measured their urine samples for phthalates. Women who became pregnant were studied through their pregnancies.

“We were able to look at some environmental exposures like phthalates and how that relates to how long it takes to get pregnant," Nobles said in the statement. "There was detailed data for each menstrual cycle, so we had a good handle on the date of ovulation and the timing of pregnancy when that happened."

Nobles told New England Public Media that phthalates can be found nearly everywhere, "in things like shower curtains or like vinyl flooring, but also in food packaging as well."

Researchers noted that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say most people are exposed to the chemicals by "ingesting food and liquid" that has touched products containing phthalates.

Some European countries limit or ban the use of phthalates in household products. The U.S. does not.

“Maybe we want to think differently about our regulatory system," Nobles said in the statement, "and how we identify important exposures that are having adverse effects on whether people can get pregnant and have a healthy pregnancy."

The study was published in mid-December in the journal "Environmental Health Perspectives."

With reporting from New England Public Media