posted on 2024-02-13, 07:03authored bySamantha Schildroth, Traci N. Bethea, Amelia K. Wesselink, Alexa Friedman, Victoria Fruh, Antonia M. Calafat, Ganesa Wegienka, Symielle Gaston, Donna D. Baird, Lauren A. Wise, Birgit Claus Henn
Personal care products (PCPs) are sources of exposure
to endocrine-disrupting
chemicals (EDCs) among women, and socioeconomic status (SES) may influence
these exposures. Black women have inequitable exposure to EDCs from
PCP use, but no study has investigated how exposure to EDCs through
PCPs may vary by SES, independent of race. Using data from the Study
of Environment, Lifestyle, and Fibroids, a cohort of reproductive-aged
Black women (n = 751), we quantified associations
between PCPs and urinary biomarker concentrations of EDC mixtures
(i.e., phthalates, phenols, parabens) within SES groups, defined using k-modes clustering based on education, income, marital status,
and employment. Information about PCP use and SES was collected through
questionnaires and interviews. We used principal component analysis
to characterize the EDC mixture profiles. Stratified linear regression
models were fit to assess associations between PCP use and EDC mixture
profiles, quantified as mean differences in PC scores, by SES group.
Associations between PCP use and EDC mixture profiles varied by SES
group; e.g., vaginal powder use was associated with a mixture of phenols
among lower SES women, whereas this association was null for higher
SES women. Findings suggest that SES influences PCP EDC exposure in
Black women, which has implications for public health interventions.