Endocrine-disrupting chemicals in plastics add $249 billion to US health care costs
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Key takeaways:
- Exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ether was associated with an estimated $159 billion in health care costs in 2018.
- Health care costs can be lowered through a reduction in chemical production and consumption.
Exposure to plastics containing endocrine-disrupting chemicals added an estimated $249 billion to health care costs in the U.S. in 2018, according to study data.
In an article published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society, researchers reviewed existing literature to identify plastic-related fractions of disease and disability for endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Plastic-related fractions of more than 90% were found for bisphenol A, bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, butyl and benzyl phthalates, polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE)-47 and PFAS. The combined disease burden attributed to plastics totaled $249 billion in 2018, with most of that burden stemming from PBDE exposure.
“These costs are equivalent to 1.22% of the gross domestic product,” Leonardo Trasande, MD, MPP, director of the NYU Grossman School of Medicine Center for the Investigation of Environmental Hazards, told Healio. “The diseases due to plastics run the entire life course from preterm birth to obesity, heart disease and cancers.”
Trasande and colleagues defined a product as plastic if it consisted of synthetic or semisynthetic materials made of polymeric substances. A list of uses and the proportion of total chemical production allocated to each use was compiled through industry reports, reports from governing bodies and peer-reviewed publications. Applications qualifying as a plastic-related use of a chemical included monomers, plastic additives, processing aids and surface treatments applied to plastics. Plastic-related fractions were determined from each source that identified a chemical’s use by proportion. Disease burden and cost estimates were calculated by multiplying base plastic-related fractions by base case estimates from primary manuscripts.
Plastics contributed to the majority of disease burden and costs for most EDCs, including 97.5% for bisphenol A, 98.5% for bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, 100% for benzyl butyl phthalate, 93% for PFOA, 85% for dibutyl phthalate and 98.2% for PBDE. PFOS had the lowest plastic-related fraction at 48%.
The total plastic-attributable disease burden in 2018 was an estimated $249 billion. PBDE contributed the highest costs at an estimated $159 billion, followed by phthalates at $66.7 billion and PFAS at $22.4 billion.
Trasande said reduced production and consumption of plastic is needed to lower exposure to the chemicals included in the study. In the study’s conclusion, the authors noted reducing chemical exposure could lead to billions of dollars in reduce health care costs in the U.S. alone.
“Our study drives home the need to address chemicals used in plastic materials as part of the Global Plastics Treaty,” Trasande said. “Actions through the Global Plastics Treaty and other policy initiatives will reduce these costs in proportion to the actual reductions in chemical exposures achieved.”
For more information:
Leonardo Trasande, MD, MPP, can be reached at leonardo.trasande@nyulangone.org.
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