Organophosphates in yoga mats can lead to infertility
Organophosphates are industrial chemicals that include flame retardants found in certain clothing, yoga mats, and car seats. This group of chemicals can be absorbed through the skin.
In this study of over 200 women, it was found that these flame retardants were negatively associated with successful fertilization, implantation, clinical pregnancy, and live birth.
Organophosphates generally refers to a broad group of chemicals that include primarily pesticides, but also includes chemicals having other industrial uses. For a full list, and to read more, refer to this page by Toxipedia.
The Research
Urinary Concentrations of Organophosphate Flame Retardant Metabolites and Pregnancy Outcomes among Women Undergoing in Vitro Fertilization.
Carignan CC1, Mínguez-Alarcón L1, Butt CM2, Williams PL3,4, Meeker JD5, Stapleton HM2, Toth TL6, Ford JB1, Hauser R1,4,6; EARTH Study Team.
1 Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health , Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
2 Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University , Durham, North Carolina, USA.
3 Department of Biostatistics, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health , Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
4 Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health , Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
5 Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan School of Public Health , Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
6 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School , Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
Evidence from animal studies suggests that exposure to organophosphate flame retardants (PFRs) can disrupt endocrine function and impair embryo development. However, no epidemiologic studies have been conducted to evaluate effects on fertility and pregnancy outcomes.
OBJECTIVES:
We evaluated associations between urinary concentrations of PFR metabolites and outcomes of in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment among couples recruited from an academic fertility clinic.
METHODS:
This analysis included 211 women enrolled in the Environment And Reproductive Health (EARTH) prospective cohort study (2005-2015) who provided one or two urine samples per IVF cycle. We measured five urinary PFR metabolites [bis(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (BDCIPP), diphenyl phosphate (DPHP), isopropylphenyl phenyl phosphate (ip-PPP), tert-butylphenyl phenyl phosphate (tb-PPP), and bis(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (BCIPP)] using negative electrospray ionization liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Molar concentrations of the urinary PFR metabolites were summed. We used multivariable generalized linear mixed models to evaluate the association of the PFR metabolites with IVF outcomes, accounting for multiple IVF cycles per woman.
RESULTS:
Detection frequencies were high for BDCIPP (87%), DPHP (94%), and ip-PPP (80%), but low for tb-PPP (14%) and BCIPP (0%). We observed decreased success for several IVF outcomes across increasing quartiles of both summed and individual PFR metabolites (DPHP and ip-PPP) in our adjusted multivariable models. Significant declines in adjusted means from the lowest to highest quartile of ΣPFR were observed for the proportion of cycles resulting in successful fertilization (10% decrease), implantation (31%), clinical pregnancy (41%), and live birth (38%).
CONCLUSIONS:
Using IVF to investigate human reproduction and pregnancy outcomes, we found that concentrations of some urinary PFR metabolites were negatively associated with proportions of successful fertilization, implantation, clinical pregnancy, and live birth. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP1021.
