Background Several phthalates, particularly diethyl phthalate (DEP) and di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), can be used in personal care products (PCPs) to fix fragrance and hold color. We investigated associations between women’s reported use of personal care products within the 24 hours prior to urine collection and concentrations of several urinary phthalate metabolites. Methods Between 2002–2005, 337 women provided spot urine samples and answered questions regarding their use of thirteen PCPs at a follow-up visit 3–36 months after pregnancy. We examined associations between urinary concentrations of several phthalate metabolites and use of PCPs using linear regression. Results Use of individual PCPs ranged from 7% (nail polish) to 91% (deodorant). After adjusting for age, education, and urinary creatinine, women reporting use of perfume had 2.92 times higher (95% CI: 2.20–3.89) concentration of monoethyl phthalate (MEP, the primary metabolite of diethyl phthalate) than other women. Other PCPs that were significantly associated with MEP included: hair spray, nail polish, and deodorant. MEP concentrations increased with the number of PCPs used. Conclusion PCP use was widespread in this group of recently pregnant women. Women’s use of PCPs, particularly of perfumes and fragranced products, was positively associated with urinary concentration of multiple phthalate metabolites.

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In animal models, prenatal stress programs reproductive development in the resulting offspring, however little is known about effects in humans. Anogenital distance (AGD) is a commonly used, sexually dimorphic biomarker of prenatal androgen exposure in many species. In rodents, prenatally stressed males have shorter AGD than controls (suggesting lower prenatal androgen exposure), whereas prenatally stressed females have longer AGD than controls (suggesting greater prenatal androgen exposure). Our objective was to investigate the relationship between stressful life events in pregnancy and infant AGD. In a prospective cohort study, pregnant women and their partners reported exposure to stressful life events during pregnancy. Pregnancies in which the couple reported 4+ life events were considered highly stressed. After birth (average 16.5 months), trained examiners measured AGD in the infants (137 males, 136 females). After adjusting for age, body size and other covariates, females born to couples reporting high stress had significantly longer (i.e. more masculine) AGD than females born to couples reporting low stress (p=0.015). Among males, high stress was weakly, but not significantly, associated with shorter AGD. Our results suggest prenatal stress may masculinize some aspects of female reproductive development in humans. More sensitive measures of prenatal stress and additional measures of reproductive development are needed to better understand these relationships and clarify mechanisms.

Objective To examine ovarian function in relation to parity and time since last birth. Design Women collected daily urine samples for up to 8 menstrual cycles. Urinary estradiol and progesterone metabolite concentrations (E1C and PdG) were measured using enzyme-linked immunoassay. Cycle phase lengths were calculated from hormone profiles and daily diaries. Setting California, U.S.A. Patients Three hundred forty-six naturally cycling women, age 18-39. Intervention(s) None. Main Outcome Measure(s) Mean follicular E1C (cycle days −8 to −1), mean luteal PdG (days 0 to +10), and cycle phase lengths in ovulatory cycles. Results Women who had given birth within the previous three years had lower E1C than nulliparas (β=−0.22, 95% CI: −0.33, −0.11) and women who last gave birth >3 years earlier (β=−0.13, 95% CI: −0.23, −0.03). Among parous women, E1C was positively associated with time since last birth (β=0.02, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.04). Women who last gave birth >3 years earlier had longer follicular phases than nulliparas (β=1.18, 95% CI: 0.02, 2.34). There were no associations between parity and PdG or luteal phase length. Conclusions Our cross-sectional data suggest that ovarian function differs in nulliparous and parous women and is positively associated with time since last birth. Longitudinal research is needed to explore within-woman changes in ovarian function pre- and post-partum.