Pregnant Women’s perceptions of exposure to brominated flame retardants

Abstract

BackgroundRecent media reports on human studies associating brominated flame retardants (BFRs) in household products in pregnancy with urogenital anomalies in boys and endocrine disruption in both sexes. We sought to explore the perceptions of pregnant women of brominated flame retardant (BFR) exposure, in light of recent media reports on the adverse health effects of BFR exposure prenatally.MethodsPregnant women were recruited for interviews through posters and pamphlets in prenatal clinics, prenatal fairs and community centres. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim for Charmaz-based qualitative analysis supported by NVIVO 10™.ResultsTheoretical sufficiency was reached after analyzing the interviews of 23 pregnant women. Themes co-constructed were: I–Lack of Awareness of BFRs; II–Factors Influencing BFR Exposure; III–Responsibility; IV–Informed Choice. Almost all participants felt it was difficult to make informed choices to avoid BFRs, and wanted communication from clinicians and regulation from governments regarding decreasing BFR exposure.ConclusionPregnant women in Canada may be unaware of the potential risks of exposure to BFRs. Professional organizations and governments should further study risk associated with BFR exposure in pregnancy and provide educational materials for pregnant women and clinicians regarding BFR exposure.

Perceptions, Knowledge, and Practices Concerning Indoor Environmental Pollution of Parents or Future Parents

“…This finding is surprising, as pregnancy is a period of high vulnerability when expectant parents should be informed about environmental risks to the development of their future child. This lack of awareness among pregnant women has already been highlighted in previous studies: it has been spontaneously expressed by pregnant women in qualitative studies [ 46 ] and found in quantitative studies. Teysseire et al [ 30 ] showed that 82% of women considered that they were not sufficiently informed about environmental risks and only 45% of the subjects were informed about environmental risks by a physician.…”

Endocrine Disruptors and Pregnancy: Knowledge, Attitudes and Prevention Behaviors of French Women

“…That is concordant with a French local survey on environmental health where 47.4% of subjects interrogated in the general population had not heard about EDC and 68.8% felt that they did not know about their effect on health [ 35 ]. It is necessary to inform women about EDC, especially since they want to know its health effects, and consequently make informed choices [ 36 , 37 ]. The most widely named molecules were Pesticides, Bisphenol A and Parabens, which is concordant with a French study [ 38 ].…”

Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals in Human Fetal Growth

“…In the survey carried out by Rouillon et al, 54.3% of 300 French women who were interviewed during pregnancy or in the first days after the birth of their child had never heard about EDCs [74]. Little knowledge of the possible risks derived from contamination with EDCs was also reported in Canada [75]. Moreover, only a minority of medical doctors who follow pregnant mothers dedicate enough time to instructing the mothers on the prevention of the environmental risks and, in turn, they often feel culturally inadequate for this task [76].…”