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How Everyday Chemicals Could Be Impacting Your Pregnancy
Expecting a baby is exciting, but it also requires taking extra care of yourself. As you prepare for your little one’s arrival, it is important to be mindful of your lifestyle choices, including what you eat and the environment.
It is a harsh reality that many everyday items contain chemicals that can disrupt your body’s hormonal balance, potentially affecting your pregnancy and your baby. As they are known, these endocrine disruptors are often hidden in plain sight, making it crucial for expectant mothers to be informed and vigilant.
This blog post illuminates these hidden threats, exploring how everyday chemicals might impact pregnancy. You will also learn to make safer choices for yourself and your baby.
Endocrine Disruptors
Let us explore those endocrine disruptors we mentioned earlier. Understanding how these chemicals work can empower you to make informed choices.
BPA (Bisphenol A)
BPA, or bisphenol A, is a common chemical in many everyday products. It is used to make certain plastics and resins, often in food packaging like cans and plastic containers. You might also encounter BPA in unexpected places, like cash register receipts. This chemical can act as an endocrine disruptor, interfering with your body’s hormones.
A study published in PMC found that exposure to BPA during pregnancy, when the baby is developing, appears to be particularly harmful. Even at low levels, BPA can disrupt how the body regulates sugar and fat, leading to problems like obesity and type 2 diabetes.
The European Respiratory Society says pregnant women exposed to higher levels of BPA are more likely to have children with breathing problems. The study found 79% of pregnant women had BPA in their urine. These women with higher BPA levels were 13% more likely to have children with wheezing. Moreover, for every doubling of BPA in the mother’s urine, the child’s lung capacity decreased by an estimated 5ml.
Phthalates
Phthalates are a group of chemicals used to make plastics more flexible and durable. They’re also found in many personal care products, such as perfumes, lotions, and cosmetics. You might even find phthalates in products like vinyl flooring and shower curtains. These chemicals are often hidden in ingredient lists under names like “fragrance.”
Unfortunately, phthalates can disrupt hormones, which is a concern during pregnancy. A study in ScienceDirect examined how exposure to phthalates affects a hormone called pCRH in pregnant women. The placenta makes pCRH and is essential for a healthy pregnancy.
Exposure to phthalates was linked to higher pCRH in mid-pregnancy but lower pCRH later in pregnancy. The relationship between phthalates and pCRH was different for women who had pregnancy complications like gestational diabetes or gestational hypertension. Overall, the study suggests that phthalates can affect pCRH levels in pregnancy and that related complications can influence this relationship.
PFAS (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances)
PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” makes products resistant to water, grease, and stains. They’re found in many everyday items, including non-stick cookware, water-resistant clothing, and food packaging. These chemicals are incredibly persistent, meaning they don’t break down in the environment and can accumulate in our bodies over time.
PFAS chemicals are a growing concern, especially those in AFFF firefighting foam. Military and civilian firefighters have widely used Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) for decades due to its effectiveness in suppressing fuel fires.
However, the PFAS chemicals in AFFF led to environmental and health problems. When AFFF is used, the PFAS chemicals in the foam can seep into the ground, contaminating soil and groundwater.
Legal Actions and Health Risks Associated with PFAS Exposure
Once these chemicals enter the water supply, they are difficult to remove. As a result, people who rely on these water sources are at risk of prolonged exposure, which can lead to serious health issues. Women exposed to high levels of PFAS have reported severe health complications during pregnancy.
Victims have filed lawsuits as they become aware of the dangers associated with AFFF. The AFFF lawsuit holds chemical manufacturers accountable for their contamination. Plaintiffs also seek compensation for medical expenses and suffering from the chemical exposure.
The lawsuits are ongoing in the U.S. District Court, with cases reaching 7,150 as of December 2024, per TorHoerman Law. PFAS chemicals can react with the developing fetus of a pregnant mother, raising concerns about long-lasting health issues for the baby.
Given these risks, it’s advisable to minimize PFAS exposure during pregnancy. Choose PFAS-free cookware and avoid products treated with stain-resistant coatings. Filtering your water can also help reduce your exposure. Taking these precautions can create a safer environment for you and your baby.
Hidden Hazards in Your Home
Let’s focus on other potential hazards lurking in your home environment. These hidden dangers often hide in plain sight.
Cleaning Products
Keeping your home clean is essential during pregnancy but has a new meaning. You want to create a safe space for your baby. However, many common cleaners contain harsh chemicals that may pose risks. These products often release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the air. VOCs are gases that can irritate your eyes, nose, and throat. They can also trigger headaches and nausea.
A study in BMC revealed that pregnant women who breathe in VOCs might have a chance of having babies with CHD (Congenital Heart Defects). When a pregnant woman breathes in VOCs, they can enter her bloodstream and reach the developing baby. This might interfere with the baby’s heart development and increase the risk of heart problems.
Therefore, good ventilation is important. Open windows while cleaning to let fresh air circulate. These simple steps can make a big difference in creating a healthier home for you and your baby.
Flame Retardants
Flame retardants are chemicals added to furniture, electronics, and other household items to slow fire spread. While they serve an important safety function, some flame retardants can pose health risks, especially for pregnant women and their developing babies. These chemicals can leach out of products and accumulate in dust, which we then inhale or ingest.
A study published in Environmental Health Perspectives examined how exposure to flame retardants called organophosphate ester (OPEs) during pregnancy affects babies. It found that exposure to OPEs during pregnancy may increase the risk of babies being born prematurely or having a higher birth weight.
Choose furniture made with naturally fire-resistant materials, like wool or leather. Regular vacuuming and dusting can also help minimize contact with flame-retardant chemicals that accumulate in household dust.
Heavy Metals
Heavy metals like lead and mercury are naturally occurring elements in the earth’s crust. However, human activities have increased their presence in our environment, making exposure a concern. These metals can be found in various places, from contaminated soil and water to certain types of fish and even some older paints.
Heavy metal exposure during pregnancy poses risks to your baby’s development. A study published in Nature examined how exposure to heavy metals like lead, cadmium, and mercury affects pregnant women and their babies.
It reveals that lead, mercury, and cadmium can be toxic, especially for developing babies. Moreover, a strong link exists between the mother’s blood cadmium levels and babies’ low birth weight.
FAQs
How do toxins affect the fetus?
Toxins can significantly harm a developing fetus by crossing the placental barrier. It can lead to birth defects, developmental delays, and cognitive impairments. Exposure to harmful substances like alcohol, drugs, and certain chemicals during pregnancy can disrupt fetal growth and cause long-term health issues.
What types of birth defects are caused by toxic chemicals?
Exposure to toxic chemicals can cause birth defects such as neural tube defects, congenital heart defects, limb malformations, and developmental delays. These chemicals can interfere with normal fetal development, leading to serious and often lifelong health issues for the affected children.
What week do chemical pregnancies occur?
Chemical pregnancies occur within the first five weeks of pregnancy, often before a woman even realizes she is pregnant. These early miscarriages happen shortly after implantation, leading to a positive pregnancy test followed by bleeding and a negative test result shortly after.
Every small step to reduce exposure to harmful chemicals can make a difference. Choose safer products, create a clean environment, and advocate for stricter regulations that protect families from these hidden dangers. Together, we can create a safe and healthy environment supporting every pregnancy.
GLP-1 drugs taken before conception were not linked to higher pregnancy risks in new research, which suggested they may even offer some protection.
Women of reproductive age are increasingly prescribed GLP-1 drugs for weight-management support, but the risks and benefits of using them before pregnancy remain poorly understood.
The findings support continuing the use of GLP-1 medicines in women with metabolic risk factors who are considering pregnancy, said Cara Dolin, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist and co-author of the research, which was presented at the Society of Maternal-Fetal Medicine pregnancy meeting in February 2026.
“While there’s more research to be done, this data provides some reassurance that it is not harmful to be taking a GLP-1 if you’re planning a pregnancy, and that having done so may in fact benefit you by optimising your preconception metabolic health.”
The researchers examined electronic medical records for patients with a pre-pregnancy BMI of more than 30 who delivered at more than 20 weeks’ gestation. The data were reviewed for two studies: one assessed the link between pre-pregnancy GLP-1 use and the risk of gestational diabetes, while the second looked at the risk of severe maternal morbidity in patients with obesity.
Women with obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other cardiometabolic disorders have a higher risk of pregnancy complications including preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, stillbirth, caesarean section and other outcomes. While GLP-1 medicines can help manage these conditions, they are contraindicated during pregnancy, and women are typically advised to stop the medication two months before trying to conceive.
However, stopping the drugs can often lead to rebound weight gain or worsening metabolic health. A 2025 study suggested this rebound worsened some pregnancy outcomes, but the risks and benefits are still poorly understood, Dolin said.
“There is a lot we just don’t know, which is why we wanted to look at our experience here with our Cleveland Clinic patients and see whether taking GLP-1 drugs before pregnancy was causing harm or if it was beneficial and helping patients have healthier pregnancies.”
Researchers analysed data for more than 8,000 women who had obesity but did not have diabetes before they became pregnant. They compared outcomes for 208 women who had been prescribed GLP-1 receptor agonists before pregnancy with those who had not been prescribed the medication.
Women in the GLP-1 group had more risk factors heading into pregnancy. They tended to be older and have a higher body mass index, higher rates of bariatric surgery and chronic high blood pressure, and present earlier for prenatal care.
However, outcomes for the two groups were similar. Researchers found that the GLP-1 group did not have higher rates of gestational diabetes, severe maternal morbidity or other adverse maternal outcomes, suggesting that the medication may have helped mitigate elevated risk factors.
“I think this is a really important signal, and it may reflect that these patients were able to optimise their metabolic health prior to conception.”
“It shows there’s potential to use these drugs in a more targeted way with patients who are planning a pregnancy and have these different comorbidities and obesity.”
While the findings suggest that using GLP-1 drugs before pregnancy may be beneficial in women with metabolic risk factors, having a plan to stop the medicines before conception is essential, Dolin noted. In some cases, patients may be moved to an alternative medication that is safe for pregnancy and can be used to help manage their metabolic health during pregnancy.
Providers with patients who are taking GLP-1 medicines and planning a pregnancy should consider referral to a maternal-fetal medicine specialist for pre-pregnancy counselling.
“We can have a nuanced conversation with the patient about taking the medication, what the benefits are, what the potential risks are, and help them formulate a plan to transition off the medication once they’re ready to start trying to conceive,” she said.
Obesity may be a key driver of rising rates of 11 cancers in adults under 50, a study has found.
The 11 cancers were thyroid, multiple myeloma, liver, kidney, gallbladder, colorectal, pancreatic, endometrial, oral, breast and ovarian cancers.
All except oral cancer are known to be linked to excess weight, with researchers saying raised insulin levels and inflammation may play a part.
The findings come from researchers at the Institute of Cancer Research, London and Imperial College London, who analysed national cancer registry data for England from 2001 to 2019.
In England, around 31,000 cancers were diagnosed in people aged 20 to 49 in 2023, equal to roughly one in every 1,000 people. This compares with 244,000 cases in the 50 to 79 age group, where the rate is around one in 100.
Concerns have been growing in recent years over rising rates of cancers such as bowel and ovarian in younger adults.
Among the younger group, breast cancer was the most common, with 8,500 cases, followed by bowel cancer at 3,000 and melanoma skin cancer with 2,800 diagnoses.
For nine of the 11 cancers identified, rates are rising in younger adults but also increasing in older adults, who are much more likely to develop the disease. Bowel and ovarian cancer were the exceptions, rising only in younger age groups.
The researchers found that bowel cancer rates in younger women linked to BMI rose faster, from 0.9 to 1.6 per 100,000 people, than those not linked to BMI, which rose from 6.4 to 9.6 per 100,000 people. Similar patterns were recorded for men.
However, the authors noted that the overall number of cases of BMI-linked bowel cancer in younger women remained lower than those not linked to BMI, suggesting other factors must be contributing to the increase.
Several suspected contributors, including ultra-processed foods, antibiotic use and air pollution, have been proposed in recent years. However, many of these factors have also shown stable or declining trends in the UK, the team said.
Despite the rise in several cancer rates among younger adults over the past two decades, most established risk factors, including smoking, alcohol consumption, red or processed meat intake, low fibre diets and lack of exercise, remained stable or even declined in the period leading up to diagnosis.
This suggests these traditional risk factors are unlikely to account for much of the increase in cancer cases.
By contrast, overweight and obesity, which have increased steadily since 1995, could be key factors in the rise in cases. The team suggested that between 2001 and 2019, around 20 per cent of the increase in bowel cancer was explained by increases in BMI over that period.
However, the researchers said rises in BMI alone are not enough to explain the overall increase in cancer among younger adults in England and that there are likely to be other causes.
Data also suggest around 15 per cent of bowel cancer in younger people could be linked to being overweight or obese, with around 40 to 50 per cent in total linked to the combined effect of known risk factors such as obesity, lack of exercise, alcohol and smoking.
Montse García-Closas, professor at the ICR, said more research was needed, but “we cannot wait to act”.
She told a media briefing: “Our main conclusion is that although BMI is our best clue, much of the increase still remains unexplained, and we’ve done some additional analysis that show that most likely what’s missing is not just a single cause unexplained, but it’s likely a combination of multiple factors that act together.”
Amy Berrington, professor at the ICR, said: “Although rates have been increasing, cancer in young people is still a rare disease.”
Marc Gunter, professor at Imperial, said obesity was a known risk factor for around 19 different cancers.
He added: “For some of these cancers, including colorectal (bowel) cancer, we think this could be partly caused by higher levels of hormones such as insulin, which is often elevated in people with obesity, as well as inflammation.
“We know people with obesity have higher levels of insulin, and insulin is a growth factor and has been linked to cancer.
“In a recent study, we actually found that insulin in particular might be playing a role in early onset colorectal (bowel) cancer, and this is actually an area of very active research at the moment.”
The researchers called for large, long-term studies to identify all the biological and environmental factors that could explain rising cancer rates in young adults.
García-Closas added: “Tackling obesity across all ages, particularly in children and young people, through stronger public health policies and wider access to effective interventions, could slow the rise in cancer and prevent many cancers and must become a national priority.”
Michelle Mitchell, Cancer Research UK’s chief executive, said: “Globally, and in the UK, we’re seeing a small increase in cancer rates in adults under 50.
“The picture is complex and we need more research to understand what’s driving the trend, but this study helps to fill in some gaps.
“Overweight and obesity doesn’t explain the rise in full though. Improvements in detection are likely to also be playing a part, meaning that more people are being diagnosed at a younger age.
“Preventing cancer cases must be a priority for the UK government. Smoking remains a leading cause of cancer in adults under 50, which is why the Tobacco and Vapes Bill receiving royal assent this week is such a historic moment.
“Measures to restrict the advertising and promotion of junk food, introducing mandatory reporting and targets on healthy food sales, and making nutritious food more accessible to everyone would all help people keep a healthy weight.”
The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched an AI tool in beta to help policymakers, experts and healthcare professionals access sexual and reproductive health information faster.
Called ChatHRP, the tool was created by WHO’s Human Reproduction Programme and draws only on verified research and guidance collected by HRP and WHO.
It uses natural language processing and retrieval-augmented generation to produce referenced content and cut the time spent searching through documents across different platforms and databases.
WHO said ChatHRP also has multilingual capabilities and low-bandwidth functionality to support use in a wide range of settings.
The beta-testing phase is aimed at a broad professional audience, including policymakers, healthcare workers, researchers and civil society groups.
WHO said the tool can help users quickly access up-to-date evidence, find sources for academic work and verify information on sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Examples of questions it can answer include the latest violence against women data in Oceania for women aged 15 to 49, recommendations on managing diabetes during pregnancy, and whether PrEP and contraception can be used at the same time. PrEP is medicine used to reduce the risk of getting HIV.
WHO added that the system will be updated regularly as new HRP materials are published and includes a feedback loop so users can flag gaps in the information provided.
The launch comes amid wider concern about misinformation in sexual and reproductive health.
A 2025 scoping review found that misinformation in digital spaces is a systemic issue that can undermine human rights, reinforce discriminatory social norms and exclude marginalised voices.
The review also said misinformation can affect health systems by shaping provider knowledge and practice, disrupting service delivery and creating barriers to equitable care.
WHO said ChatHRP is intended to give users streamlined access to reliable information as a counter to “algorithms, opinions, or misinformation”.
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