Plastics Compound May Cause Prostate Abnormalities

Oestrogen-like chemicals commonly found in oral contraceptives and plastic packaging could deform the prostate gland of human embryos, suggests a new study in mice. Deformities to the prostate gland have been linked to prostate cancer and bladder disease in later life. The finding is significant because up to 3% of women taking oral contraceptive drugs become pregnant without their knowledge, and continue exposing the fetus to the contraceptive drug many months into pregnancy. This is because the risk of pregnancy becomes higher when the drug is not taken diligently, but many women do not realise this, says study author Frederick vom Saal of the University of Missouri in Columbia, US. Among the 60 million women using oral contraceptives in the US and Europe, the average number of missed pills is three per month, he says. This results in up to two million women taking the pill accidentally becoming pregnant each year.