Plastic Additive Linked to Millions of Early Births
Di‑2‑ethylhexylphthalate (DEHP), a chemical that softens plastic, may be behind almost two million preterm births each year. A study by researchers in New York used data from 200 countries to estimate that 1.97 million premature deliveries in 2018 were connected to mothers exposed to this substance—about eight percent of all preterm births that year. Nearly 74 000 of those infants died, according to the analysis.
How DEHP Reaches Us
The compound can break into tiny particles that people inhale or ingest through food and water, raising health concerns beyond premature delivery. Earlier work has tied phthalate exposure to higher risks of cancer, heart disease and infertility.
Global Exposure Patterns
Surveys from the United States, Europe, Canada and other regions helped the team gauge worldwide exposure levels. They then matched these figures with previous research on how DEHP influences preterm birth odds.
- Heavy plastic manufacturing regions—especially the Middle East and Southeast Asia—could account for more than half of the global preterm cases linked to DEHP.
- In Africa, babies born early faced the highest mortality rates.
Proposed Solutions and Their Limits
One proposed fix—replacing DEHP with another phthalate called diisononylphthalate (DiNP)—would only slightly reduce preterm births to about 1.9 million annually. The authors warn that swapping chemicals without solid safety data is risky and unlikely to solve the problem.
They call for broad, class‑wide regulation of plastic additives to prevent repeating past mistakes.
Publication
The findings were published in eClinicalMedicine on March 30 and underscore the urgent need for tighter oversight of plastic chemicals worldwide.
