A new pilot study has shown that women who reduce their exposure to plastic see a decrease in estrogen-mimicking chemicals in their bodies within a month.
The chemicals used in the manufacture of many plastics are known to mimic estrogen activity. There is strong scientific evidence linking these “environmental estrogens” to breast cancer. The ReThink Plastic study was designed to reduce exposure to these chemicals using simple, practical behavior change and to build a coalition of plastic use reduction by spreading the study messages. This approach could result in broad benefits by effectively reducing exposure to harmful chemicals in plastic and thus protecting against breast cancer and protecting the environment against plastic pollution.
Specifically, the objectives of the study were to:
- Inform participants about the harmful effects of chemicals that are in plastic
- Teach participants simple ways to reduce the use of plastic in order to reduce the potential for harmful health effects
- Ask participants to spread the message to other friends and family
- Evaluate the effectiveness of the study:
- Examine changes in “plastic use” behavior before and after the study
- Examine changes in estrogenic activity before and after the study in a small sub-study of post-menopausal women.