Triclosan and triclocarban exposure and thyroid function during pregnancy—A randomized intervention

Abstract

Triclosan and triclocarban (TCs) are broad-spectrum microbicides found in household and personal wash products. We sought to determine whether TC exposure from wash products or urinary triclosan level modified thyroid function during pregnancy or anthropometric measurements at birth. A randomized intervention of wash products with or without TCs, including toothpaste, enrolled pregnant women from 20 weeks’ gestation. Urinary triclosan, TSH, T4 and T3 were assessed at enrollment, 36 weeks’ gestation and/or post-delivery; anthropometric measures at birth were ascertained from medical records. 78 and 76 mothers were assigned to the TC-containing and no-TC-containing product arms, respectively. No differences were observed in any thyroid function measure at any time point or in any anthropometric measurement at birth between either exposure arms or lowest and highest urinary triclosan quartile groups. TCs from wash products, primarily liquid and bar soaps, did not affect thyroid function measures during pregnancy or babies’ anthropometric measures at delivery.

Impact of prenatal triclosan exposure on gestational age and anthropometric measures at birth: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…[ 28 29 ] The effect of TCS on thyroid hormones is inconsistent, and reported associations in human studies included the positive, negative, or nonexistent association. [ 8 30 31 32 ]…”

“…Conducted studies on the US and China national population reported that in 74% and 98.2% of urine samples, TCS was detected. [ 8 9 ] In addition, TCS was detected in other biological fluids such blood and breast milk. The endocrine-disrupting properties of TCS include the influence of the antiandrogenic activity and thyroid hormone function.…”

Cross-sectional associations between urinary triclosan and serum thyroid function biomarker concentrations in women

“…In pregnant women, Aker et al (2016), Wang et al (2017), and Berger et al (2018) observed inverse associations of triclosan with maternal total T 3 , free T 4 , and total T 4 concentrations, respectively. However, null associations were found in both a randomized intervention where pregnant women were assigned to use triclosan-containing products (Ley et al, 2017) and two other pregnancy cohorts (Aker et al, 2018; Braun et al, 2017). In neonates, Wang et al (2017) and Braun et al (2017) reported inverse associations of maternal triclosan concentrations with free T 3 and total T 4 concentrations, respectively.…”

Stannous Fluoride Effects on Enamel: A Systematic Review

“…Other scholars counter these criticisms, stating instead that the advantages of using fluorine as an aid in the mineralization of dental enamel are also demonstrated by natural observations in populations residing in neighboring areas in the presence of waters rich in fluorine ions, in which it is present a low incidence of caries. It is also noteworthy that the risk of using fluoride is quite low and indeed the use of toothpaste with a high fluoride content (1350–1500 ppm) is recommended for all ages (although smaller volumes are used for children small; a “stain” of toothpaste up to 3 years) [ 63 , 64 , 65 ]. There are several fluoride-free toothpaste options available on the market for those who choose not to use this element.…”