Environmental contaminants ranging from legacy chemicals like p,p’-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) to emerging chemicals like phthalates are ubiquitous.
Research aims/questions:
This research aims to examine the presence and co-occurrence of contaminants in human milk and effects of pasteurization on human milk chemical contaminants.
Methods:
We analyzed human milk donated by 21 women to a milk bank for 23 chemicals, including the persistent organic pollutants (POPs) polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) isomers that are known to sequester in adipose tissue, along with the current-use and nonpersistent pesticides chlorpyrifos and permethrin, phthalates, and bisphenol A (BPA). Human milk was analyzed raw and pasteurized for these chemicals using gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry for the POPs and high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry for non-POPs.
Results:
Within the different chemical classes, PBDE47, PCB153, ppDDE, and MEHHP (phthalate metabolite) had the highest median concentrations and were observed in all samples. We also observed chlorpyrifos and BPA in all samples and permethrin in 90% of the samples tested. Only two chemicals, chlorpyrifos and permethrin, were susceptible to substantial degradation from pasteurization, a standard method for processing donated human milk.
Conclusion:
We detected 19 of 23 chemicals in all of our prepasteurized milk and 18 of 23 chemicals in all of our pasteurized milk. Pasteurization did not affect the presence of most of the chemicals. Future research should continue to explore human milk for potential chemical contamination and as a means to surveil exposures among women and children.
BraunJ. M.KalkbrennerA. E.CalafatA. M.YoltonK.YeX.DietrichK. N.LanphearB. P. (2011). Impact of early-life bisphenol A exposure on behavior and executive function in children. Pediatrics, 128(5), 873-882. doi:10.1542/peds.2011-1335
2.
BurkeR. D.ToddS. W.LumsdenE.MullinsR. J.MamczarzJ.FawcettW. P.. . . AlbuquerqueE. X. (2017). Developmental neurotoxicity of the organophosphorus insecticide chlorpyrifos: From clinical findings to preclinical models and potential mechanisms. Journal of Neurochemistry, 142(Suppl 2), 162-177. doi:10.1111/jnc.14077
3.
CachoN. T.ParkerL. A.NeuJ. (2016). Necrotizing enterocolitis and human milk feeding: A systematic review. Clinics in Perinatology.
4.
CalafatA. M.SlakmanA. R.SilvaM. J.HerbertA. R.NeedhamL. L. (2004). Automated solid phase extraction and quantitative analysis of human milk for 13 phthalate metabolites. Journal of Chromatography B, 805(1), 49-56.
California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment. (n.d.b). California, B. pyrethroid pesticides fact sheet. Retrieved December 21, 2017, from https://biomonitoring.ca.gov/chemicals/fact-sheets
8.
ChenX.PanuwetP.HunterR. E.RiedererA. M.BernoudyG. C.BarrD. B.RyanP. B. (2014). Method for the quantification of current use and persistent pesticides in cow milk, human milk and baby formula using gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Journal of Chromatography B, 970, 121-130.
9.
DayanA. (2007). Risk assessment of triclosan [Irgasan®] in human breast milk. Food and Chemical Toxicology, 45(1), 125-129.
10.
FrommeH.GruberL.SeckinE.RaabU.ZimmermannS.KiranogluM.. . . VölkelW. (2011). Phthalates and their metabolites in breast milk—Results from the Bavarian Monitoring of Breast Milk (BAMBI). Environment International,37(4), 715-722.
11.
FrommeH.RaabU.FürstP.ViethB.VölkelW.AlbrechtM.SchweglerU. (2011). Occurrence and relevance to health of persistent organic substances and phthalates in breast milk. Gesundheitswesen (Bundesverband der Arzte des Offentlichen Gesundheitsdienstes (Germany)), 73(1), e27-e43.
12.
GuoW.HoldenA.SmithS. C.GephartR.PetreasM.ParkJ.- S. (2016). PBDE levels in breast milk are decreasing in California. Chemosphere, 150, 505-513.
13.
HinesE. P.CalafatA. M.SilvaM. J.MendolaP.FentonS. E. (2009). Concentrations of phthalate metabolites in milk, urine, saliva, and serum of lactating North Carolina women. Environ Health Perspect, 117(1), 86-92. doi:10.1289/ehp.11610
14.
HoffmanK.MendezM.Siega-RizA. M.HerringA. H.SjödinA.DanielsJ. L. (2016). Lactational exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers and its relation to early childhood anthropometric measurements. Environmental Health Perspectives, 124(10), 1656.
15.
HornungR. W.ReedL. D. (1990). Estimation of average concentration in the presence of nondetectable values. Applied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, 5(1), 46.
16.
Human Milk Banking Association of North America. (2015). Guidelines for the establishment and operations of a donor human milk bank. Fort Worth, TX: Author.
17.
JacobsonM. H.BarrD. B.MarcusM.MuirA. B.LylesR. H.HowardsP. P.. . . DarrowL. A. (2016). Serum polybrominated diphenyl ether concentrations and thyroid function in young children. Environmental Research, 149, 222-230.
18.
JakobssonK.FångJ.AthanasiadouM.Rignell-HydbomA.BergmanÅ. (2012). Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in maternal serum, umbilical cord serum, colostrum and mature breast milk. Insights from a pilot study and the literature. Environment International, 47, 121-130.
19.
JoskowR.BarrD. B.BarrJ. R.CalafatA. M.NeedhamL. L.RubinC. (2006). Exposure to bisphenol A from bis-glycidyl dimethacrylate-based dental sealants. Journal of the American Dental Association (1939), 137(3), 353.
20.
KalantziO. I.MartinF. L.ThomasG. O.AlcockR. E.TangH. R.DruryS. C.. . . JonesK. C. (2004). Different levels of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and chlorinated compounds in breast milk from two UK regions. Environmental Health Perspectives, 112(10), 1085.
21.
KantorowskaA.WeiJ. C.CohenR. S.LawrenceR. A.GouldJ. B.LeeH. C. (2016). Impact of donor milk availability on breast milk use and necrotizing enterocolitis rates. Pediatrics, 137(3), e20153123.
22.
KatoK.SilvaM. J.BrockJ. W.ReidyJ. A.MalekN. A.HodgeC. C.. . . BarrD. B. (2003). Quantitative detection of nine phthalate metabolites in human serum using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry. Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 27(5), 284-289.
23.
KimS.LeeJ.ParkJ.KimH.- J.ChoG.KimG.- H.. . .SuhE. (2015). Concentrations of phthalate metabolites in breast milk in Korea: Estimating exposure to phthalates and potential risks among breast-fed infants. Science of The Total Environment, 508, 13-19.
24.
LaKindJ. S.BerlinC. M.NaimanD. Q. (2001). Infant exposure to chemicals in breast milk in the United States: What we need to learn from a breast milk monitoring program. Environmental Health Perspectives, 109(1), 75.
25.
LaKindJ. S.BerlinC. M.Jr.SjödinA.TurnerW.WangR. Y.NeedhamL. L.. . . PattersonD. G.Jr. (2009). Do human milk concentrations of persistent organic chemicals really decline during lactation? Chemical concentrations during lactation and milk/serum partitioning. Environmental Health Perspectives, 117(10), 1625.
26.
LamJ.LanphearB. P.BellingerD.AxelradD. A.McPartlandJ.SuttonP.. . . WoodruffT. J. (2017). Developmental PBDE exposure and IQ/ADHD in childhood: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Environmental Health Perspective, 125(8), 086001. doi:10.1289/EHP1632
27.
LandriganP. J.SonawaneB.MattisonD.McCallyM.GargA. (2002). Chemical contaminants in breast milk and their impacts on children’s health: An overview. Environmental Health Perspectives, 110(6), A313.
28.
LawrenceR. A.LawrenceR. M. (2010). Breastfeeding: A guide for the medical professional. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Health Sciences.
29.
LönnerdalB. (2003). Nutritional and physiologic significance of human milk proteins. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 77(6), 1537S-1543S.
30.
MainK. M.MortensenG. K.KalevaM. M.BoisenK. A.DamgaardI. N.ChellakootyM.. . . PetersenJ. H. (2006). Human breast milk contamination with phthalates and alterations of endogenous reproductive hormones in infants three months of age. Environmental Health Perspectives, 114(2), 270-276.
31.
MarchittiS. A.FentonS. E.MendolaP.KennekeJ. F.HinesE. P. (2017). Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in human milk and serum from the US EPA MAMA study: Modeled predictions of infant exposure and considerations for risk assessment. Environmental Health Perspectives, 125(4), 706.
32.
MarderM. E.PanuwetP.HunterR. E.RyanP. B.MarcusM.BarrD. B. (2016). Quantification of polybrominated and polychlorinated biphenyls in human matrices by isotope-dilution gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 40(7), 511-518.
33.
MendoncaK.HauserR.CalafatA.ArbuckleT.DutyS. (2014). Bisphenol A concentrations in maternal breast milk and infant urine. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 87(1), 13-20.
34.
NachmanR. M.HartleJ. C.LeesP. S.GroopmanJ. D. (2014). Early life metabolism of bisphenol A: A systematic review of the literature. Current Environmental Health Reports, 1(1), 90-100. doi:10.1007/s40572-013-0003-7
35.
Office of the Surgeon General. (2011). The Surgeon General’s call to action to support breastfeeding. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General.
36.
PanI. J.DanielsJ. L.GoldmanB. D.HerringA. H.Siega-RizA. M.RoganW. J. (2009). Lactational exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene and infant neurodevelopment: An analysis of the pregnancy, infection, and nutrition babies study. Environmental Health Perspectives, 117(3), 488-494. doi:10.1289/ehp.0800063
37.
ParkerM. G.Barrero-CastilleroA.CorwinB. K.KavanaghP. L.BelfortM. B.WangC. J. (2013). Pasteurized human donor milk use among US level 3 neonatal intensive care units. Journal of Human Lactation, 29(3), 381-389.
38.
SchecterA.PavukM.PapkeO.RyanJ. J.BirnbaumL.RosenR. (2003). Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in U.S. mothers’ milk. Environmental Health Perspectives, 111(14), 1723-1729.
39.
SchlumpfM.KypkeK.WittassekM.AngererJ.MascherH.MascherD.. . . LichtensteigerW. (2010). Exposure patterns of UV filters, fragrances, parabens, phthalates, organochlor pesticides, PBDEs, and PCBs in human milk: Correlation of UV filters with use of cosmetics. Chemosphere, 81(10), 1171-1183.
40.
WeldonR. H.BarrD. B.TrujilloC.BradmanA.HollandN.EskenaziB. (2011). A pilot study of pesticides and PCBs in the breast milk of women residing in urban and agricultural communities of California. Journal of Environmental Monitoring, 13(11), 3136-3144.
41.
ZhuJ.PhillipsS. P.FengY.- L.YangX. (2006). Phthalate esters in human milk: Concentration variations over a 6-month postpartum time. Environmental Science & Technology, 40(17), 5276-5281.
42.
ZimmermannS.GruberL.SchlummerM.SmolicS.FrommeH. (2012). Determination of phthalic acid diesters in human milk at low ppb levels. Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A, 29(11), 1780-1790.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
