Scientists have revealed in a new study that humans are exposed to chemicals found in food packaging materials.
The study reveals chemicals used in food packaging and other food-contact items have been found in samples of human body fluids, such as urine, blood and breast milk.
The research team consisted of researchers from the Food Packaging Forum in Switzerland, along with researchers from University College London, Wayne State University in the United States, and the Department of Environmental Systems Science at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.
The researchers highlighted the large gaps in data related to monitoring these substances in the body and explaining their effects on the body. The study was published on September 17 in Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.
Using a systematic approach, the authors examined more than 14,000 chemicals known to come into contact with food, data from 5 human chemical monitoring programs and 3 databases, as well as published research, to uncover evidence that 3,601 chemicals reach humans.
“Our research links food contact chemicals, human exposure and health, highlights chemicals that have so far been overlooked in biomonitoring studies, and offers an important opportunity for prevention and health protection,” said Dr Birgit Giucki of the Food Packaging Forum in Switzerland and co-author of the study.
Substances to which humans are exposed
Certain groups of chemicals, such as bisphenols, phthalates, metals, and volatile organic compounds, have been widely detected in human body samples, and many of these chemicals have been associated with dangerous properties and health threats to humans.
“This work highlights the fact that food contact materials are not completely safe, even though they may comply with regulations, because they transmit chemicals known to be hazardous to humans,” said study co-author Dr Jane Monk of the Food Packaging Forum in Switzerland. “We would like this new evidence base to be used to improve the safety of food contact materials, both in terms of regulations and in the development of safer alternatives.”
In addition, the study noted that the potential risks of many chemicals have not been adequately investigated.
Although food packaging is not the only source of exposure to chemicals, this study will contribute to a better understanding of the role that food contact materials play in the delivery of chemicals to humans.
The actual number of chemicals that come into contact with food and are transferred to humans is likely to be higher than currently discovered, because only a small group of these substances have been investigated in detail.
“There are many dangerous chemicals used in food contact materials, and not only do they stay there, but some of them also reach the human body to some extent,” said co-author Professor Martin Scheringer from ETH Zurich. “This is worrying, and there is a clear need for safer and simpler food contact materials.”
“We already knew that problematic chemicals in food packaging were not limited to well-known ones like bisphenol A and phthalates, but we were surprised by the large number of food contact chemicals for which there is some evidence of human exposure,” said Olwen Martin of University College London, a co-author of the study. “This highlights the need for more research into the toxicity and exposure of these chemicals, as well as improved regulations surrounding their use in food packaging.”