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12 Endocrine Disruptors You Likely Have in Your Home

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May 16, 2018 By Lisa Sharp 36 Comments

Endocrine disruptors are nasty chemicals that you don’t really want in your home but are likely hiding there anyway. There are ways to avoid them though. 

The interior of a living room

Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that may interfere with your endocrine system. The endocrine glands include the thyroid, parathyroid, hypothalamus, pituitary gland, pancreas, ovaries, testes, gastrointestinal tract, and adrenal glands. Endocrine disruptors can cause adverse reproductive, neurological developmental and immune effects. These risks are especially high during prenatal and early postnatal development.

Endocrine disruptors are found in most of our homes. The Environmental Working Group has created a Dirty Dozen list to help us avoid the worst offenders.

Here are some places you may find the “dirty dozen” endocrine disruptors and how to avoid them.

12 Endocrine Disruptors to Avoid

  1. BPA

    Found in: Canned food, some plastics, and receipts.
    How to Avoid: Choose fresh food over canned, avoid plastics (especially those marked “PC” or with recycling label #7), and say no to receipts.

  2. Dioxin

    Found in: Many industrial processes. The American food supply is widely contaminated. Chlorine bleach also forms dioxin after combined with organic compounds. Triclosan, the commonly used antibacterial agent in cleaners and soaps, degrades into dioxin. Bleached paper products like diapers, napkins, tissues, and paper towels can also contain dioxin.
    How to Avoid: Eat fewer animal products, avoid bleach and bleached paper products, and don’t buy products containing triclosan.

  3. Atrazine

    Found in: It’s widely used on corn crops in the United States. It has also ended up in a lot of our water.
    How to Avoid: Buy organic produce and get a drinking water filter that is certified to remove atrazine.

  4. Phthalates

    Found in: Some plastic food containers, children’s toys (some phthalates are banned from kid’s products), plastic wrap made from PVC, PVC products which have the recycling label #3, and personal care products that contain “fragrance.”
    How to Avoid: Use stainless steel or glass food storage containers, avoid plastic kid’s toys or check to see if they contain PVC/#3 plastic, avoid PVC products, and avoid personal care products that contain the catch-all ingredient “fragrance.”

  5. Perchlorate

    Found in: Water and food.
    How to Avoid: This one is really tough. You can use a reverse osmosis filter but this wastes a lot of water and can be pricey. And for food, there is no good way to avoid it. Your best bet is to make sure you are getting enough iodine in your diet.

  6. Fire Retardants

    Found in: Furniture, carpet padding, electronics, building materials, car seats, changing table pads, mattresses, and it has even been found in nail polish.
    How to Avoid: Vacuum with a good vacuum that has a HEPA filter. Use safer nail polish. 

  7. Lead

    Found in: Old paint in homes and on antiques, soil, water, pipes, cosmetics, and more.
    How to Avoid: Keep your home cleaned and well maintained. If you have an older home consider testing the paint for lead. Use a good water filter. Avoid painted antiques and vintage ceramics. If you are growing food consider having your soil tested for lead first. Also, eat a healthy diet, studies show children with healthy diets absorb less lead.

  8. Arsenic

    Found in: Food and water.
    How to Avoid: Use a good water filter. Reduce your rice consumption and learn which rice has the most arsenic, also always rinse your rice well before cooking.

  9. Mercury

    Found in: Seafood. It’s also in some electronics and CFLs. However, if you do not break these items you aren’t at risk.
    How to Avoid: Limit seafood and the Seafood Watch Guide for what seafood is safest. Dispose of electronics and CFLs properly.

  10. Perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs)

    Found in: Non-stick pans, stain and water-resistant coatings on clothing, furniture, and carpets, fast food wrappers, microwave popcorn bags, and personal care products.
    How to Avoid: Choose safer cookware, skip stain and water-resistant clothing, furniture, and carpets, eat less fast food, pop popcorn on the stove, and choose safer personal care products.

  11. Organophosphate pesticides

    Found in: Pesticides
    How to Avoid: Buy organic produce and use EWG’s Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce.

  12. Glycol ethers

    Found in: Paints, cleaning products, brake fluid, and cosmetics.
    How to Avoid: Choose safer cleaners and cosmetics. And choose safer paints and always wear a mask and ventilate the room you are painting.

Check out EWG’s Dirty Dozen Endocrine Disruptors list for more information.

Home in colorful letters and spring flowers in light white interior

Don’t let this list overwhelm you. You don’t need to do everything on it to make a difference. Take it one step at a time. Each step you take matters. We can’t avoid everything bad, we can only keep learning and doing our best.

I’d love to know if you knew about endocrine disruptors and if you have been actively trying to avoid them. Share in the comments below. And also use the buttons below to share this information with your friends and family on social media.

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Filed Under: Green Living, Homemaking

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rachel Osborn says

    October 23, 2015 at 3:42 pm

    Wow, this post is amazing! Spot on! You aren’t by chance an Ava Anderson Non Toxic consultant, are you? I am, and I recognize much of the same info/ingredients to avoid I’ve learned about through this company.

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:02 pm

      Glad you liked it. I’m not but i’ve heard of Ava Anderson Non Toxic.

      Reply
      • Marianne says

        February 3, 2016 at 4:38 am

        I haven’t heard of Ava Anderson, but I’ve of Dr. Christine Farlow, “The Ingredient Investigator”, who’s website is http://www.dyingtolookgood.com. Great information! Thank you for this post.

        Reply
  2. Erica (@Erica's Recipes) says

    October 23, 2015 at 3:46 pm

    I didn’t know about the dioxin – I’ll have to research that one. I’m a microbiologist, so I use handgel constantly.

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:03 pm

      I’d recommend checking out CleanWell, it has better ingredients than most hand sanitizers.

      Reply
  3. Rae says

    October 23, 2015 at 4:27 pm

    This is some seriously scary stuff! I live close to a cluster of strange cancers that are thought to be due to the water. Even though the water passes every safety test. There is probable fracking 20 miles south, on the actual riverbed.

    I will definitely make sure I get rid of some of this stuff!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:04 pm

      I live near a cement plant and we have all kinds of illnesses at high rates here. It is scary but we have just do our best to reduce the risks we can.

      Reply
  4. Jessica says

    October 23, 2015 at 6:26 pm

    Wow! This is so scary!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:05 pm

      It is but once we are aware of the issue we can make chances that reduce our risks. 🙂

      Reply
  5. Lauren says

    October 23, 2015 at 11:56 pm

    Great info! As for the water, we have the ZeroWater filter, which is supposed to filter out 100% of metals. Have you heard anything about that?

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:05 pm

      I’ve heard of it but I don’t remember what all it’s rated to remove.

      Reply
  6. Angie Scheie says

    October 24, 2015 at 1:40 am

    As someone who struggles with infertility, I try to pay attention to these things, but they are everywhere and it really freaks me out! I try to say no to receipts, and use safer makeup, household cleaning items. It’s just so scary.

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:06 pm

      Just do your best. Try not to let it worry you, just do what you can and keep learning.

      Reply
  7. Betsy @ Desserts Required says

    October 24, 2015 at 8:05 pm

    I did not know about endocrine disruptors before reading your article. I knew of many of the items to avoid but could not have told you, necessarily, why they made the list.

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:06 pm

      I’m glad I could help!

      Reply
  8. Nicky says

    October 24, 2015 at 10:37 pm

    This is a great article Lisa. I recently attended a green blogger conference and sat in on a lecture on this very subject. I was surprised to learn that BPA was found in large amounts on store receipts. You offer great advice on how to avoid each type of disruptor.

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:07 pm

      ShiftCon? 🙂 Glad you liked it!

      Reply
  9. Marjie@HomeAgainJiggetyjig.com/wp says

    October 25, 2015 at 2:56 am

    We’ve been working hard to keep these things out of our home. I’ve been rinsing my brown rice several times before cooking it, and we use all stainless steel pots and pans. We also are eating as much organic food as we can afford. We have a very deep spring where we get our water. We are switching to organic lotions etc as well.

    There is SO much to do! This is a great article!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:07 pm

      Sounds like you have made some great changes! Glad you enjoyed the article.

      Reply
  10. Chrissa - Physical Kitchness says

    October 25, 2015 at 10:24 pm

    WOW this is fascinating. Thank you so much for the thorough and educational post! Really opened my eyes!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:08 pm

      Glad you liked it! Thanks for coming by.

      Reply
  11. Katerina says

    October 26, 2015 at 12:57 pm

    This is such a great and important information! Thanks so much for sharing! I didn’t know many of these!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 26, 2015 at 5:09 pm

      Glad I could give you some more information.

      Reply
  12. Elaine Hodges says

    October 29, 2015 at 11:26 am

    Great information. Thanks for sharing on the Healthy Living Link Party.

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      October 31, 2015 at 12:12 pm

      Glad you like it!

      Reply
  13. Ariana says

    November 1, 2015 at 8:50 pm

    Wow, it’s scary to think of all the things hiding in our houses that mess with our hormones! I try to pay attention to my nutrition, exercise and sleeping habits to keep them in check – looks like I’ve got to pay attention to more!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      November 3, 2015 at 9:59 pm

      Isn’t it? Sounds like you are already on the right track. 🙂

      Reply
  14. anne says

    November 2, 2015 at 10:33 am

    There are so many things lurking in our homes that we don’t think about – thanks for sharing this great information on the healthy living link party!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      November 3, 2015 at 9:58 pm

      Very true! I love the link party! So many great posts.

      Reply
  15. Joanna says

    April 11, 2017 at 1:21 am

    This is important information, not only for us, but for our children. They are still growing and they have their whole reproductive life ahead of them.
    I wonder what these toxins will mean for themselves and their children?

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      April 11, 2017 at 3:55 pm

      Very true!

      Reply
  16. Donna says

    May 18, 2018 at 7:49 am

    so is this a repost?

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      May 18, 2018 at 11:58 am

      I made updates to the post so I shared it again.

      Reply
  17. Amanda @ Healthy House on the Block says

    March 18, 2019 at 2:48 pm

    This is such an important list to know. It’s so eye opening to see how frequently we are coming in contact with these chemicals that affect our hormones. Awareness is one of the first steps to changing things at home. Thanks for puting this information out there!

    Reply
  18. OneCrzyRed says

    November 15, 2021 at 9:42 am

    I don’t know when it happened but EWG has been bought out and is now a for profit company.
    Please be your own advocate and research what you can. We have had to clean out our home from toxins for my health and found that Melaluca has been a life saver to us in avoiding a lot of these toxins lised. Hope this helps those who are seeking cleaner living solutions!
    Be Blessed!

    Reply
    • Lisa Sharp says

      November 18, 2021 at 8:49 am

      This is not something I have seen. I do recommend when it comes to research to look for sources that are science-based and use experts. There is a lot of misinformation out there.

      Reply

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Welcome to my blog! My name is Lisa and I'm the Retro Housewife trying to live a greener life. I share my love of all things vintage, homemaking and green living here on the blog. To read more, click here.

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