Having Trouble Getting Pregnant? Check Your Shampoo, Clothes, and Other Household Products for Toxic Chemicals

A wide range of common household products, everything from food wrappers, shampoo, and clothing, may contain toxic chemicals that make it harder for some women to get pregnant, according to new medical research on the topic.

The study led by a University of California, Los Angeles researcher may provide a boost for women who have been frustrated by their inability to conceive while once again highlighting the many dangers of toxic materials that are so common in millions of American homes.

Study Focuses on Levels of Common Toxic Chemicals

The chemicals at the center of the infertility study are perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), which belong to the family called perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs) and widely used in thousands of consumer products and materials such as furniture upholstery and pesticides.

Past research has found that PFOS and PFOA are toxic and can damage the reproductive systems, immune systems, and livers in animals. Also, women with many children have been shown to have lower levels of PFOS and PFOA than women with fewer children.

Those earlier findings prompted scientists to investigate whether the presence of the chemicals in women might cause infertility. The UCLA study is the first of its kind on the subject.

Newly Pregnant Women Studied

To test their theory of a link between PFCs and infertility, researchers studied 1,200 newly pregnant Danish women taking part in a long-term health study in that country. All of the women had become pregnant on purpose.

Some of the women, about one in three, had tried for more than six months before conceiving. Half of those who tried for more than six months had tried for more than a year.

Levels of PFOA and PFOS in the blood of the test subjects varied widely, with some women having 16 to 40 times more of the chemicals than others who had lower concentrations of the toxins.

Researchers found that women with the most PFOS in their blood were up to 134 percent more likely to have needed six months or more to get pregnant. Women with the most PFOA were up to 154 percent more likely to have trouble conceiving.

Chemicals Impossible to Avoid

The researchers said PFOS and PFOA are used in so many consumer products that avoiding them is nearly impossible. Every person has at least low levels of the chemicals in their bodies and only higher concentrations have been linked to infertility. Researchers also said additional testing of the apparent link between PFC levels in blood and infertility is needed to further investigate the theory.

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