A recent article in the journal Pediatrics has raised further questions about the presence of phthalates in the environment. They note that certain phthalates, found in numerous baby care products, may lead to developmental and reproductive toxicity in infants.

Phthalates are synthetic chemicals that are used to make vinyl products flexible and soft. They also make products like nail polish harder to chip and make fragrances last longer. They are found in many industrial and common household items, including PVC plastics, cosmetics, personal care products (including most lotions, shampoos and powders), plastic toys, vinyl products and almost all products with fragrance. Phthalates are also used in medical devices, and numerous items our homes and cars. Essentially, phthalates are everywhere.

Phthalate testing is problematic due to their wide spread use and background levels can lead to false positive results.  Therefore the laboratory must eliminate background sources of phthalates and ensure that quality control data supports that the analysis is free of these interferences. Although there are a number of analytical testing alternatives, the most common way for a laboratory to test for phthalates is using a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer operated in selected ion monitoring mode (GC/MS/SIM). This GC/MS/SIM technique is currently being used by Columbia Analytical Services in similar studies investigating phthalates in medications, ambient air, and other applications related to human health risk. Columbia Analytical has performed analytical testing for phthalates for over 20 years.

For more information on testing for phthalates, contact Jeff Christian, Columbia Analytical Services, Inc. at 360-577-7222.

Chemical structure of butyl benzyl phthalate