Study Finds Increased Miscarriage Risk After Exposure to This Chemical

Newsweek

2 days ago

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A new study has found that exposure to certain frequently used chemicals that are classified as human carcinogens may increase the risk of recurring miscarriage.
The researchers found that exposure to four different types of PFAS chemicals, also known as "forever chemicals," were associated with higher risks of "unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion"—meaning recurrent miscarriage where the cause is unknown.
PFAS chemicals, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, have been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a Group 1 carcinogen—with studies since finding the chemicals can cause a wide range of effects on public health.
In the U.S., recurrent miscarriages are not common, with five in 100 women estimated to have two miscarriages in a row, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
However, for more than half of the women experiencing recurrent miscarriages, no certain cause is found for the pregnancy loss, the organization reported.
File photo: A doctor examining a pregnant patient with an ultrasound machine in a clinic.
File photo: A doctor examining a pregnant patient with an ultrasound machine in a clinic.
stockbusters/Getty Images
What the Study Found
There are thousands of variations of PFAS chemicals, and the researchers found that exposure to PFBA, PFDoDA, PFHpS and PFHxS specifically increased the risk of recurrent miscarriage.
PFAS chemicals can be found across various industries and have been used in consumer products for many years—such as in nonstick cookware, waterproof clothing, stain-resistant furniture and even in smartwatch wristbands.
As the researchers said in the study, the lack of "specific clinical manifestations complicates both diagnosis and treatment" in unexplained recurrent miscarriage.
They added that the lack of understanding posed "significant challenges to clinical management and contributes to heightened psychological burden among patients."
The cohort of the study, a group in China, was monitored between 2018 and 2020 and organized at the Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, which is affiliated with Capital Medical University.
In the sample, 110 had experienced explained recurrent miscarriage, while 91 were control subjects, and there were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of age, body mass index, occupation or income.
Overall, those who had experienced unexplained recurrent miscarriage had higher concentrations of PFAS in their blood samples than those in the control sample.
While the chemical PFOA measured at the highest concentration in the blood samples, it was the four chemicals—PFBA, PFDoDA, PFHpS and PFHxS—that the researchers believed had positive associations with unexplained recurrent miscarriage.
"We already know that PFAS are associated with preterm birth, low birth weight, reproductive toxicity, preeclampsia, decreased fertility, and single occurrence of miscarriage," Phil Brown, a professor of sociology and health sciences and the director of the Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute at Northeastern University, told Newsweek.
He said PFAS were also "associated with gestational diabetes, which in turn leads to a number of harmful outcomes such as preeclampsia and preterm birth."
The findings of the study therefore "fit into a larger body of research on PFAS and adverse reproductive outcomes," he said.
Brown said the findings that some short chain PFAS chemicals were associated with recurrent miscarriage were important, as "there is far less research on the short chain PFAS that are increasingly used as replacement chemicals."
However, he said the study was "limited in being a case-control study and more research is necessary in large prospective cohort studies and randomized controlled trials."
"Hopefully, existing cohort studies will take up this call," Brown added.
Jennifer L. Freeman, a professor of toxicology at Purdue University, Indiana, also told Newsweek that the study added to "those similarly reporting increased risk of adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes with PFAS exposures," but that more research was needed to learn about "this potential association."
However, Graham Peaslee, a professor of physics at University of Notre Dame, Indiana, told Newsweek that he had "a couple concerns about the statistics" of the study and that "a bigger study should be performed with better statistical analysis before we can identify which PFAS are most likely responsible for miscarriages."
He said he thought the findings would not be "reproducible on a larger cohort" and that while there may "indeed be a trend visible with all PFAS that could become statistically significant with a larger number of participants, this isn't irrefutable proof yet, just suggestive of a trend."
What Does This Mean for Miscarriage Care and Treatment?
While it is not yet clear exactly how PFAS chemicals may be contributing to unexplained recurrent miscarriage, Peaslee said, "PFAS have been shown to be endocrine disrupting chemicals in previous published work." He added, "If a chemical interferes with reproductive organ functions, the endocrine system, then spontaneous miscarriages are one of the unfortunate results."
There are ongoing studies "investigating multiple mechanisms to determine how a PFAS exposure may contribute to molecular, endocrine, and other alterations that could lead to these outcomes," Freeman said.
Even though more research is needed to determine how PFAS exposure is potentially contributing to adverse pregnancy outcomes, the findings of the study could "shape care for pregnant women going forward," Brown said—particularly in relation to blood testing.
"Blood testing is recommended for people with a history of elevated exposure to PFAS," he said, citing the PFAS committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM).
"That could be from local industry, contaminated food and water, personal care products, household products, and workplace exposure," he added.
Brown said that NASEM recommends clinical follow-up for people with more than 2 nanograms per milliliter of PFAS, "with extra focus on pregnant women."
"For women with two to 20 nanograms per milliliter of PFAS, doctors should specifically follow up for hypertensive disorders of pregnancy," he said.
He added that there also needed to be "more education of health care professionals."
Freeman said pregnant women and those considering pregnancy should seek advice from their medical care team regarding their specific situation of PFAS exposure risks "similar to how it's recommended for other environmental exposures of concern, for example methylmercury and other reproductive and developmental toxicants."
Advice for Pregnant Women—Experts
There are a number of things pregnant women can do in light of these findings, one being "pressing their health providers to learn about PFAS," Brown said.
They can also order PFAS blood tests and push for mandated health insurance coverage of blood tests, which are now only required in New Hampshire and likely to soon be covered in Maine, he added.
Addressing PFAS exposure through drinking water is also important, Brown said, so pregnant women can "push their local water utilities to ensure they are keeping PFAS in drinking water to the lowest possible levels, using state and federal guidelines."
Installing water filters that remove PFAS chemicals is also advisable, he said, adding that they could also be aware of their own personal consumption habits—trying to avoid products with PFAS chemicals where possible.
Freeman also said that being aware of PFAS exposure in food products was also important and that it was "recommended to consider choosing consumer and food products with fewer PFAS to minimize exposure."
"Given the myriad adverse health effects that PFAS have been shown to cause, I would recommend everybody find ways to reduce their exposure to PFAS—especially when pregnant or considering getting pregnant," Peaslee said.
However, while pregnant women can do things to help reduce their own exposure, Brown said, "upstream source reduction is always the best path forward, since people shouldn't be held responsible for harmful exposures that can be prevented."
Reference
Qianxi Cheng, Chunxian Lv, Yawei Li, Haocan Song, Shuyao Li, Dandan Li, Yingying Han, Feng Zhao, Qiang Lin (2025). Association between per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion: A case-control study in China, Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, Vol 301. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2025.118496.