Phthalate exposure and high blood pressure in adults: a cross-sectional study in China

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international 2018-06, Vol.25 (16), p.15934-15942
• Main Authors: Zhang, Shao-hui, Shen, Ya-xin, Li, Lin, Fan, Tong-tong, Wang, Yan, Wei, Ning
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adults; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Blood pressure; Butyl phthalate; China; Cholesterol; Contaminants; Cross-Sectional Studies; Dibutyl phthalate; Diethyl phthalate; Diethylhexyl Phthalate - chemistry; Diisononyl phthalate; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Epidemiology; Exposure; Humans; Hypertension; Linear Models; Parameters; Phthalates; Phthalic Acids - adverse effects; Phthalic Acids - chemistry; Population studies; Research Article; Studies; Triglycerides - chemistry; Triglycerides - metabolism; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-018-1845-1

Widespread phthalate exposure has been recently documented and is hypothesized to increase blood pressure (BP) in humans. However, current studies have provided inconclusive evidence for an association between phthalate exposure and BP. Human epidemiologic studies on the topic remain lacking. Therefore, this study aims to examine the association between serum phthalate concentrations and BP in a Chinese population. We measured several parameters of BP (systolic BP, diastolic BP, total cholesterol, and triglyceride) and the concentrations of 16 phthalates (dimethyl phthalate (DMP), diethyl phthalate, diisobutyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate (DBP), bis (2-methoxyethyl) phthalate, bis (4-methyl-2-pentyl) phthalate, bis (2-ethoxyethyl) phthalate, diamyl phthalate, dihexyl phthalate, benzyl butyl phthalate, bis (2-nbutoxyethyl) phthalate (DBEP), dicyclohexyl phthalate, bis (2-ethyl hexyl) phthalate (DEHP), diisononyl phthalate, diphenyl phthalate, and di- n -octyl phthalate) in the serum of 474 adults recruited from a primary health care clinic. The relationship between serum phthalate concentrations and BP parameters was assessed with multivariate linear regressions. DBP was the most ubiquitous and dominant contaminant in the study population. The systolic BP of subjects in the median-exposure DEHP group significantly increased by 2.96 mmHg ( p