Turning the plastic tide: the chemicals in plastic that put our health at risk

The production, use and recycling of plastics are not only the source of significant pollution of our environment, but they also have consequences for our health. HEAL’s work on chemicals and health aims to shine a light on a rarely explored perspective to plastic pollution: the undeniable link between the synthetic chemicals used in plastics and their effects on our health.

While most of us think of plastics only in their final form as consumer products, food packaging or other useful items, all plastics are made of complex mixtures of chemicals. It is the properties of those chemicals – and particularly the ‘additives’, which are typically not bound to the plastic material itself – that cause concerns for health.

The chemicals in plastic put our health at risk

The word ‘plastic’ refers to a huge variety of synthetic chemical substances that can be moulded or shaped into useful forms. The manufacture of plastics starts with small molecules, called “monomers”, which are repeated thousands or millions of times and assembled into long strands, called “polymers”. Almost all plastics derive from fossil fuels, especially natural gas.

Many of the largest and most hazardous chemical families – including heavy metals, flame retardants, phthalates, bisphenols, and fluorinated compounds – are directly associated with plastics production.

Plastics represent a tremendously diverse set of compounds, from the coatings and resins used in construction and industry, to the synthetic textiles making up our clothes, to the rubber granules recycled from tyres which end up on football fields our children play on. We ingest or inhale these substances daily, and many have serious impacts on our health.

Exposure to chemicals used in plastics, like flame retardants, endocrine disruptors, ‘forever chemicals’ or PFAS, bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates, have been associated with a myriad of potential health impacts. For example, health concerns related to endocrine disruptors include reproductive disorders, development dysfunction, behavioural disorders, thyroid problems, low birth weight, diabetes and obesity, asthma, breast and prostate cancers.

Turning the plastic tide

To turn this plastic tide around, we need stronger regulations for EU-wide solutions and better health.

Solving the environmental pollution and health impacts of plastics is only possible by acknowledging that the problems of plastics are inextricably linked to chemical safety. Effective protection of health and environment will require stronger, more efficient and protective EU-wide regulations on chemicals and articles in which they are used. And those regulations need to encompass the entire lifecycle of plastics if they are to truly contribute to the transition to a non-toxic circular economy.

Our report ‘Turning the Plastic Tide’ puts forward recommendations for regulators to turn the plastic tide, including:

1. Protect and be consistent

• No substance of very high concern (SVHC) should ever make its way into consumer products or food.
• It is high time to crack down on plastics additives.
• Rather than treating substances one by one, we must start regulating substances in groups. The reality of our exposure to mixtures, which is particularly relevant when addressing plastics, must be taken into account in chemicals assessments and regulations.
• Regulations on recycled materials should be the same as for virgin materials

2. Anticipate and communicate

• Implement essential EU principles such as the precautionary principle in cases of scientific uncertainties and the polluter-pays principle. Do not let substances that are not proven safe enter the market.
• Avoid contaminating the future: do not allow recycling of plastics with hazardous additives and components.
• Safe substitution must be anticipated and put more focus on in regulatory processes in order to avoid regrettable replacements, when a substance or group of substance are being restricted.
• Ensure full transparency on chemical content throughout the supply chain and towards consumers.