Cumulative risk assessment for plasticizer-contaminated food using the hazard index approach

•A cumulative risk assessment of PAEs was used in a severe plasticizer-contaminated food episode.•ΣDBP(i + n) posed the highest risk potential of all the dietary phthalates.•Females 4-6 yr old had the highest risk for anti-androgenic effects.•Beverages, milk and dairy products were the major contributors to average daily dose of phthalate esters.

Phthalates strongly and adversely affect reproduction, development and liver function. We did a cumulative risk assessment for simultaneous exposure to nine phthalates using the hazard index (HI) and the levels of nine phthalates in 1200 foodstuff samples. DEHP (di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate) present the highest level (mean: 0.443 mg/kg) in 1200 samples, and the highest average daily dose (ADD) was found in DEHP, ΣDBP(i + n) (the sum of dibutyl phthalate [DBP] isomers [DnBP + DiBP]) posed the highest risk potential of all the phthalates. In seven phthalates, the 95th percentiles of the ADDs for ΣDBP(i + n) in 0-6-yr-old children accounted for 91% (79-107%) of the tolerable daily intake, and the 95th percentiles of the HIs for the anti-androgenic effects of five phthalates in 0-3-yr-old children and 4-6-yr-old girls were >1. We conclude that the health of younger Taiwanese may be adversely affected by overexposure of phthalate-contaminated foods.

Graphical abstractIn seven phthalates, the 95th percentile of the average daily dose (ADD) for ΣDBP(i + n) (the sum of dibutyl phthalate [DBP] isomers [DnBP + DiBP]) in 0-3-yr-old male (0-3 M) and female (0-3 F) children accounted for 97% and 84% of TDIs, respectively. For 4-6-yr-old and 7-12-yr-old males and 7-12-yr-old females, ADDs for ΣDBP(i + n) accounted for 79%, 72%, and 65% of TDIs, respectively. Download high-res image (141KB)Download full-size image