The health and economic costs of three toxic chemicals used in plastics are estimated at $1.5 trillion for one year

A new study co-authored by a University of Massachusetts Amherst economist estimates that adverse health effects associated with three toxic chemicals commonly found in plastics have reached $1.5 trillion in one year, in the form of premature deaths, chronic diseases and lower IQs.

The study, published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesanalyzed data from 38 countries, representing a third of the world’s population.

“More than 16,000 chemicals are incorporated into plastics to produce color, flexibility and durability, but we know very little about how most of them affect human health,” explains Yongjoon Park, assistant professor of resource economics at UMass Amherst. “When we looked at just three chemicals, we found significant health and economic costs – and we believe these estimates are quite conservative.”

Bisphenol A (BPA), commonly found in food packaging, is an endocrine disruptor associated with cardiovascular disease, diabetes and reproductive disorders. Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), used in industrial food processing, household products and electronics, has been linked to cardiovascular mortality and developmental problems. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), flame retardants added to synthetic textiles, furniture and other household products, are neurotoxic and hinder the cognitive development of children when their mothers are exposed to them during pregnancy.

The study estimates some of the health and economic impacts of these chemicals for 2015, the year that provides the most complete assessment based on data availability, showing that:

• Exposure to BPA was linked to 5.4 million cases of heart disease and 346,000 strokes, leading to 431,000 deaths. The economic toll of these deaths was estimated in 2015 at nearly $1 trillion international dollars.
• Exposure to DEHP, especially among people aged 55 to 64, was linked to approximately 164,000 deaths, resulting in economic losses of $398 billion.
• Exposure to PBDE in pregnant women led to a loss of 11.7 million IQ points in children born that year, with an associated productivity loss of more than $80 billion.

The study focused on these metrics because they are well established in the biomedical literature and their economic costs are significant.

“Our goal was to quantify and value the health impacts of these chemicals in as many countries as possible in 2015,” said Maureen L. Cropper, a professor of economics at the University of Maryland, who led the study. “In the US, where we have exposure data going back to 2003, the health damage has been much greater in the past.”

The study shows that the United States, Canada and members of the European Union have taken measures to reduce exposure to BPA, DEHP and PBDE. It credits these efforts with a decrease in associated health risks over time. For example, cardiovascular deaths from BPA in the US fell by 60% between 2003 and 2015 due to regulatory and voluntary actions taken by manufacturers.

Despite this progress, more than 70% of chemicals used in plastics still have not been tested for toxicity.

“Protecting human health from the hazards of chemicals in plastics will require a paradigm shift in national chemical legislation,” write the authors, who also include Sarah Dunlop (University of Western Australia), Philip Landrigan (Boston College) and Christos Symeonides ( Royal Children’s Hospital).

They emphasize the need for binding international agreements under the United Nations Global Plastics Treaty to protect public health, especially in low- and middle-income countries where plastic consumption is rapidly increasing.