In the last two days there has been a somewhat worrying news for pregnant women that says that using deodorant during pregnancy can make labor premature. Worried because I imagine that there should be very few pregnant women who do not usually use deodorant and worrying because it is based on a study that talks about the exposure of pregnant women to phthalates, but does not seem to talk about putting anything in the armpit as a cause of preterm delivery.
And it is that phthalates are in deodorants, but also in many other things that I will discuss below. So if a pregnant woman cannot get deodorant because it contains phthalates, she will have to stop doing many, many things, if she wants to avoid premature birth. Come on, that in no way I answer the following question: Can you have a premature delivery by using deodorant during pregnancy?
Study Data
The study in question, entitled "Environmental exposure to phthalates and premature births" and conducted at the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Michigan, tries to know if there is a relationship between women's exposure to phthalates and premature births, the more reasons we know, the more risk factors are described, the easier it will be to be able to avoid the large number of pregnancies that end early.
To carry out the study, data from births that occurred between 2006 and 2008 were used in the Brigham and Woman's Hospital in Boston. They selected 130 cases of premature delivery and 352 of control, randomly taken, and analyzed urine samples from 3 different moments of pregnancy to analyze the levels of phthalate metabolites contained in them.
They examined the relationship between these levels of phthalates in the urine of women and preterm birth, defined as those births that occurred before the 37th week of gestation and also looked at the relationship with spontaneous preterm birth, which they defined as the one that It happens after labor or premature rupture of the membranes.
Results of the study
Surely you stay the same as me when reading the following, because it is clear that to know the risks you have to know the enemies, and in this case there are many, too many. The researchers observed that the urine samples of women who had had premature deliveries contained significantly higher concentrations of di-2-ethylhexyl (DEHP), (2-ethyl) -hexyl mono-phthalate metabolites (MEHP), mono- phthalate (2-ethyl-5-carboxypentyl) (MEcPP) and mono-n-butyl phthalate (MBP).
When adjusting the data to try to isolate a little which were more dangerous, they saw that those that seemed to increase the chances of premature delivery are the metabolites of MEHP, eMEcPP and Σ DEHP. When analyzing the spontaneous premature births, they saw that the phthalates that appeared to be related were MEHP, mono- (2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate, MEcPP, Σ DEHP, MBP, and mono- (3-carboxypropyl).
The researchers concluded that Women exposed to phthalates during pregnancy have an increased risk of preterm birth and that, of course, measures must be taken to try to reduce phthalate exposure during pregnancy.
Take away the deodorant, we are saved
Then one wonders: Reduce the exposure of pregnant women to phthalates? And how do you do that? Well, very easy, it is only necessary to see how the press has titled this study and do what they tell us. As the press has concluded, after all that I have commented, that the fault of everything is the deodorant (click here and you will see the result of the Google search for the words "deodorant", "childbirth" and "premature" together), because what you have to do is recommend pregnant women not to use it. If you see a pregnant woman getting deodorant, tell her that she could be buying ballots to have a preterm birth. If in the supermarket you observe that a pregnant woman is choosing a deodorant, tell her if she knows the new studies that say they cause premature births. Knowing the cause, we can solve it. We are saved!
The problem is that no, we are not saved, because although it is true that deodorants contain phthalates (apparently the highest concentration is of DEP, which is not even mentioned in the study), one of the most used is DEHP, which does it appears and that you can find it in milk, butter and meat, for example, in medical devices and serum tubes, in bottled water, in soft drinks, and now its use has been regulated in baby teethers, toys , baby creams and lotions, etc.
But DEHP is not the only phthalate, there are many more, as you can see in the study, so if a pregnant woman can not get deodorant (in addition, the risk is the same if you put deodorant on a daily basis or if you throw it every 2-3 days? If it is spray is worse than roll-on? And if it is gel? How many seconds can you squeeze the spray without it being dangerous? Is it better if you put the deodorant but do not inhale the particles who say goodbye or "pollution" occurs through the skin?), can not drink milk, meat or butter, can not do many other things, because phthalates are everywhere. To give you an idea, below I will make a small list with some of the things that a woman cannot do, following the game of strange press headlines:
- Using deodorant can cause premature births.
- Eating milk, meat and butter can cause premature births.
- Going to the doctor and getting a serum can cause premature births.
- Drinking bottled water and soda can cause premature births.
- Having PVC windows can cause premature births.
- Touching the layer that covers the pills can cause premature births.
- Taking enteric coated tablets may cause premature births.
- Using glue can cause premature births.
- Using electronic devices can cause premature births.
- Having containers at home can cause premature births.
- Making use of paints and waxes can cause premature births.
- Making use of textiles can cause premature births.
- Printing something with the printer can cause premature births.
- Using cleaning products can cause premature births.
- Having tiles at home can cause premature births.
- Having a shower curtain can cause premature births.
- If you do not have a curtain and you have a PVC screen you can have a premature delivery.
- Using nail polish can cause premature births.
- Eye shadow can cause premature births.
- Liquid shower soap can cause premature births.
- Hair spray can cause premature births.
- Having electric wires can cause premature births.
- Using the hose can cause premature births.
- Using suitcases can cause premature births.
- Wearing shoes can cause premature births.
- Using sex toys can cause premature births.
And I could probably go on a little longer because, as you can see, phthalates are everywhere. Come on, I agree with the researchers that you have to reduce phthalates in general, but not only to avoid premature births, but because there are studies that suggest that they could be related to some types of cancer, respiratory problems in children and problems at the reproductive level. That is, it is the manufacturers who have to try to reduce the use of phthalates to create products that do not harm us at the health level. They, and not women, who have to prevent.
Of course, it is more impressive to say that with the use of deodorant you can have a premature delivery, because deodorant is used by everyone and because so, in addition, women feel guilty, which seems to be more fun. But, as I say, if we play this game, we really play and say all the headlines, as I have done, so that they do not use deodorant, soap, enamel, perfume, or go to the doctor, or touch or take pills , or use the mobile, or the laptop, or wear clothes, shoes, or shower (because they will have a curtain or screen, I say), do not drink bottled water or soda or drink milk, meat or butter or any food that Come inside a container. Ah! and that do not use sex toys, but this really, because sex toys contain between 21 and 50% phthalates, that is, you could almost say that they are phthalates in the form of a sex toy, since in this case their manufacture is not regulated by any way.
I said that the authorities put the batteries to regulate the use of phthalates (some poor quality children's toys also contain percentages of up to 50% phthalates) in all elements of daily use, or at least in those who know that they can harm the health of consumers, which after all we are all , since to avoid them we would have to go to live in the jungle (and know ...).
