On June 17, 2013 the monthly e-publication Health& Environment published an article criticizing the lack of available information on potential paraben exposures, including from food packaging. In the article, author Paul Whaley argues that parabens are suspected endocrine-disruptors but most people are not aware that paraben exposure not only arises from cosmetics, but also from food additives (E214-219) and food packaging. The article bases its concern on a study by Liao et al. that found measurable levels of parabens in over 90% of 267 food samples collected in New York, U.S (2013). The study estimated an average estimated daily intake (EDI) of 307 ng/kg body weight(bw)/day for adults and levels as high as 940 ng/kg bw/day for infants. The European Commission qualifies four of the most common parabens as Category 1 endocrine disruptors. Whaley points out that it is therefore of utmost importance to find out whether the combined exposure to parabens via food and cosmetics is sufficient to produce unsafe levels in the body.
Read more
