Beverages with levels of plasticizers 100 times higher than those of water

Scientists have found levels of plasticizers 100 times higher in some beverages than in water.

These scientists, from the Institute for Environmental Diagnosis and Water Studies (IDAEA), dependent on the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC), have analyzed the presence of organophosphate plasticizers in 75 samples of different beverages: water, cola-type soft drinks, juices, wine and hot drinks. The results show that, on average, sugary drinks have 100 times more concentration of this type of plasticizer than water, which shows the lowest values. The work has identified that the plasticizers come both from the containers and from the sugar added to the drinks itself.

Plasticizers are a class of chemical compounds that are added to plastics to give them the desired flexibility and durability. The most recent studies have shown the toxicity of several of the organophosphate plasticizers, including neurological damage, endocrine disruption, cancer and fertility problems. “Our results show that more than 95% of the beverages have at least one of the 19 organophosphate plasticizers that we studied, which shows the ubiquity of these compounds and our exposure to them in our day-to-day lives,” explains Julio Fernández Arribas. , IDAEA researcher and co-author of the study.

The highest levels of contamination have been detected in cola-type sugary soft drinks, with an average concentration of 2,876 nanograms per liter (ng/L), and for juices with added sugars (2,965 ng/L), while the lowest levels are have been found in the water samples (20.7 ng/L).

Analysis of 75 beverage samples revealed a higher presence of organophosphate plasticizers in sugary beverages. (Photo: Julio Fernández Arribas)

“One of the results that most caught our attention was the discovery that sugary drinks had higher levels of plasticizers, especially due to the presence of 2-ethylhexyldiphenyl phosphate (EHDPP),” says the IDAEA researcher. Ethel Eljarrat and study co-author. Analysis of sugar samples shows elevated levels of EHDPP, corroborating that sugar added to beverages is one of the routes of contamination. It is important to note that the toxicity of EHDPP is related to an increased risk of suffering from some types of cancer, such as breast and uterine cancer.

To find out the influence of the type of container on the origin of these chemical compounds, the research team has analyzed drinks of the same brand, but marketed in different types of containers: glass, plastic bottles, aluminum cans and tetra brik. The results show that the concentrations of the organophosphate plasticizers are similar, regardless of the brand and the type of container. “The presence of plasticizers in bottles, cans and tetra brik was expected; but the levels in drinks packaged in glass were not foreseeable a priori”, indicates Eljarrat. The authors of the study have discovered that the source of contamination is the plastic coating on the metal plates of the glass bottles to prevent the drink from coming into contact with the metal. This coating releases eight plasticizers into the beverages, with EHDPP again being the major compound.

Considering the consumption of beverages per capita in Spain, the intake of these plasticizers through beverages represents up to 10% of the total daily intake. “Despite the fact that these values ​​are below the safety threshold, we must take into account that these plasticizers also reach the human body through other routes of exposure such as food intake and inhalation, so it is necessary to carry out a full assessment of the total amount of plasticizers we are exposed to,” concludes Eljarrat.

The study is titled “Human exposure to organophosphate esters in water and packed beverages”. And it has been published in the academic journal Environment International. (Source: Alicia Arroyo / IDAEA / CSIC)