Do medical products used to care for premature infants contain potentially harmful levels of chemicals?
Researchers have repeatedly raised questions about the long-term health impact of plastics in medical supplies commonly used to care for prematurely-born infants. A 2014 study noted the presence of DEHP in essential neonatal intensive-care items like intravenous tubing, catheters and IV bags, finding that exposure for critically ill infants may be “at levels approximately 4,000 to 160,000 times higher than those believed to be safe.”
A 2019 study found other chemicals that can disrupt hormones, including BPA and parabens, in many items tested in neonatal care units.
The long-term impact of exposure isn’t well understood. A 2020 study argues that “the risk from these medical exposures is likely understated because our knowledge is restricted to a few known classes of endocrine disruptors and a limited set of medical devices,” Environmental Health News reports.
