Environmental phenols are present in a wide variety of everyday consumer products. Preservatives in packaged foods, parabens in shampoos, and bisphenol A (BPA) in plastic dishware are all examples of chemicals that humans are constantly exposed to.

Some of these ambient phenols have been linked to cardiac toxicity. Now, an interdisciplinary study led by four University of Cincinnati College of Medicine professors has revealed their negative impact on the electrical characteristics of the heart, and the findings have been published in the journal Environmental Health (1).

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Link Between Phenol Exposure and Heart Health

“This is the first study to look at the impact of phenol exposure on cardiac electrical activity in humans,” said Hong-Sheng Wang, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Neurobiology and the study’s first author.

Researchers examined data from the Fernald Community Cohort, which included roughly 10,000 people who resided near the former US Department of Energy uranium processing site at Fernald, outside Cincinnati, and took part in the Fernald Medical Monitoring Program between 1990 and 2008.

Many members of the cohort had no additional exposure to uranium compared to the overall population. Wang and his team used their data, including biological samples and medical records, in the study to ensure that uranium exposure did not influence the findings, making them generalizable. Because urine samples and electrocardiograms, or EKGs, were taken on the same day, the results were relevant in determining exposure to ambient phenols.

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EKG Changes Linked With Environmental Phenol Exposure

The EKGs, which measure cardiac electrical activity, were examined by board-certified physicians, and urine samples were sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for exposure testing.

The study’s purpose was to determine any changes in EKG parameters connected with environmental phenol exposure.

Because the heart is powered by electrical activity, anything that interferes with its electrical qualities can be harmful and lead to arrhythmia. The study concluded that increased exposure to some environmental phenols is associated with altered cardiac electrical activity.

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Higher Exposure to BPA Can Lead to Cardiac Changes

Researchers discovered that higher exposure to BPA, BPF, and BPA+F in women is associated with a longer PR interval, which is the time it takes for electrical signals to travel from the atria at the top of the heart to the ventricles.

“Our findings were highly sex-specific,” explained Wang. In women, researchers found a link between longer QRS duration, or ventricular contraction, and heart electrical impulse abnormalities.

“It was particularly pronounced in women with higher body mass indexes,” Wang told me.

Effects of Higher Exposure to Triclocarban (TCC)

In men, researchers discovered that higher exposure to triclocarban (TCC), an antibacterial medication, resulted in longer QT intervals in the heart, indicating that the heart’s electrical system is taking too long to recharge, which can contribute to cardiac rhythm disorder. TCC has since been prohibited in the United States.

Wang also stated that normal exposure levels are unlikely to induce clinically significant cardiac disease in healthy persons.

“These were not dramatic changes that we observed, but moderate changes to cardiac electrical activity,” he informed me. “However, they were particularly pronounced in certain subpopulations.”

He stated that changed cardiac activity could exacerbate a patient’s current heart disease or arrhythmias, particularly in older persons or those with other risk factors.

“Now there are new chemicals out there, so the next step would be to examine these newer environmental chemicals and to focus on their impact on an individual level in those who are predisposed to heart disease,” according to Wang.

References:

1. Association of same-day urinary phenol levels and cardiac electrical alterations: analysis of the Fernald Community Cohort
   (Rubinstein, J., Pinney, S.M., Xie, C. et al. Association of same-day urinary phenol levels and cardiac electrical alterations: analysis of the Fernald Community Cohort. Environ Health 23, 76 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-024-01114-x)

Source-Medindia