Study Finds 96 Industrial Chemicals in Babies—Here's How To Lower The Risk

Yahoo

04-07-2025

I don't know about you, but when I hear 'chemicals,' I immediately wonder whether there's fearmongering to follow, after all, even an apple is made of chemicals, if you understand science.
However, in a recent study, researchers found chemicals that have the potential to cause serious harm, and they were most heavily detected in the youngest children. While the jury is still out on the exact effects, some of these chemicals are linked to developmental delays, altered hormones, and long-term health issues, with some specifically linked to cancer.
The study involved a small sample group of only 201 children. Still, the numbers indicate a clear need for further research, and parents may want to take active steps to limit their children's exposure wherever possible.
At this point, microplastics are so ubiquitous that our Barbie dolls are getting jealous.
We have plastic in everything — our soil, our food, our air, and our bodies. Do we all remember ads from the American Plastics Council in the late 1990s, touting how plastic could do everything from protecting kids' knees to keeping soda contained to preventing dents in cars?
It turns out that microplastics and the chemicals used to make plastic can also leach their way into our sodas, our baby foods, our bottled water, and more. Phthalates and other chemicals found in plastics were particularly prevalent. In cases where the researchers tested both the pregnant mother and, later, the child, the levels were higher in the child.
One specific type of plasticizing chemical, organophosphate esters, or OPEs, is known to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to be neurotoxic at high levels. A 2017 study found that the levels of one specific OPE, diphenyl phosphate (DHHP), found in urine, directly correlated to developmental lags:
'Each 10-fold increase in urinary DPHP was associated with a decrease of 2.9 points in Full-Scale Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and a decrease of 3.9 points in Working Memory.'
We aren't feeding our babies plastic, right? Right?
Unfortunately, when we buy baby food packaged in plastic, or even make our own baby food at home and store it on our favorite plastic containers, or freeze it in plastic ice cube trays for storage, or prepare baby formula in plastic bottles with water poured from other plastic bottles, it turns out that we're pouring these chemicals into our babies, too.
Even baby foods packaged in glass jars can still contain these chemicals, thanks to manufacturing processes!
That's not all — phthalates, parabens, and other chemicals that could pose a danger to our kids are in shampoos, sunscreens, lotions, toys, and the pesticides we use to keep our food safe from insects.
This doesn't mean you should skip the sunscreen! Some sunscreen ingredients may pose dangers but sunburn poses clear and definite dangers, so protect your baby's skin! The best choice is to protect baby's skin both by covering it (hats, shade, and rashguard-style swim tops), and by using the safest sunscreen choices, which means using sources like the Environmental Working Group (EWG) and advice from your pediatrician, and picking the options that have the fewest parabens and other potentially harmful chemicals. We recently explored the best sunscreens for kids by age group, skin type, and other considerations.
According to this latest study, kids with older siblings have higher levels of chemical contamination than firstborn children.
The study also found higher chemical levels in 2-year-olds than in 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds, but the reason for this discrepancy is not entirely apparent. This could mean that older children's bodies are better at eliminating the chemicals, or it could be related to how younger children tend to put everything in their mouths, or there may be some other explanation.
Also, kids from racial minority groups had higher exposure levels. Again, the reason is unclear, and with such a small sample size, it's challenging to draw clear conclusions; however, there's certainly an implication that marginalized groups may be more affected.
Unless and until there's a significant societal shift (and a lot more research on the effects), everyone's children will be exposed to microplastics and the chemicals that make plastic. At this point, it's inescapable.
That doesn't mean we're entirely powerless, though.
We can still look for products with a lower risk of chemical contamination. Look for labels that say 'phthalate-free' and 'paraben-free.'
Science Daily also advises specifically avoiding plastics labeled #3, #6, and #7, which may contain higher levels of BPA.
Washing hands regularly, especially before eating, and washing produce that may have been treated with pesticides, are also helpful steps.