Women Exposure to Di(2-Ethylhexyl)Phthalate (Dehp) and Bisphenol a (Bpa) from Different Residing Areas in Italy: Data from the Life Persuaded Project

Phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA) are plasticizers used in many industrial products that can act as endocrine disruptors. In the frame of the LIFE PERSUADED project, we measured the urinary concentrations of BPA and Di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) metabolites in 900 Italian women enrolled between 2015 and 2017 and living in North, Centre and South of Italy in both rural and urban areas. The whole cohort, representative of the Italian female adult population, was exposed to DEHP and BPA with measurable levels above the limit of detection (LOD) in more than 99% and 95% of the samples, respectively. The exposure patterns differed for the two chemicals in the three macro-areas with the highest urinary levels for DEHP in South compared to Central and Northern Italy and for BPA in Northern compared to Central and Southern Italy. BPA levels were higher in women living in urban areas, whereas no difference between areas was observed for DEHP. The estimated daily intake of BPA was 0.11 μg/kg per day, about 36-fold below the current temporary Tolerable Daily Intake of 4 μg/kg per day established by the European Food Safety Authority in 2015. The analysis of cumulative exposure showed a positive correlation between DEHP and BPA. These results suggest to further limit the exposure to DEHP and BPA through specific legislative measures. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Clinical Protocols ### Funding Statement This work was supported by the European Commission Directorate General Environment in the LIFE+ Programme, Environment Policy and Governance (grant number LIFE13 ENV/IT/000482), LIFE PERSUADED project. ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: The whole study was approved by the Ethical Committee of the Istituto Superiore di Sanita'. The enrolled mothers signed an informed consent to provide a first-morning urine sample for the measurement of DEHP and BPA exposure and filled a questionnaire with information on residential environment, socio-demographic and lifestyle data as well as on food habits. Participants were assigned an alphanumeric code to guarantee anonymity ([La Rocca et al. 2018][1]). I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable. Yes All data produced in the present work are contained in the manuscript [1]: #ref-28